Edit sheets
Work environment
The work environment of the "Edit sheets" window is similar to the one in other CYPE modelling tools and has a system of dockable windows that can be customised to adapt the workspace to the project's needs.
The interface is divided into 3 main parts: the top toolbar, the sidebar and the work area.
The toolbar contains different features. Users can create and manage templates, edit styles, and enter, edit or sort drawing elements, among other options.
The work area can be found on the right-hand side of the screen and allows users to view the composition of each sheet.
On the left-hand side is where the main tools for managing the sheets and layers of the project can be found. In addition, from the "View on screen" section, users can select the way in which the thickness and colour of the elements are to be displayed.
Creating and managing sheets
The “Edit sheets” window offers several options to make it easier to manage sheets. The available actions include the possibility of creating groups, creating new sheets, copying existing sheets and deleting existing sheets.
Within the "Grid" option, users can control the visibility of the grid. The colour of the main and secondary lines can be selected, and the spacing and division of the lines can be adjusted.
Furthermore, in this same section, there is a printing option, which allows us to generate PDF, DWF or DFX versions of the sheets created.
To start working, first of all, a new sheet must be created. To do this, select the desired standard paper size to represent the plan, assign a name to the sheet and add it to a group if necessary. If a previously created template is available, it can be loaded into the program.
The sheet will be drawn on the interface, and its size will be indicated at the top right.
Creating and managing layers
From the "Layers" section, users can organise the elements of the sheet as desired by creating, deleting or rearranging the layers.
From the "Assign to layers" icon, the objects on the layers can be changed.
The layers of imported DWG or DXF elements can also be managed by clicking on the "Layers of inserted DXF or DWG files" icon.
Next, the different layers are generated, which are essential for carrying out the work in a systematic and organised way, considering elements such as views, surfaces, dimensions, titles, doors, floors and people, among others.
In order to perform this task, click on the "Add" icon, located on the left margin of the layer management section.
Creating and managing templates
The “Edit sheets” window allows users to create or import templates for sheets, which saves drawing time as the templates can be reused in future projects. Alternatively, the provided example templates can also be used.
Create template
A template is made up of drawing elements: lines, text, images, etc.
It is created from a layer in the "Layers" panel in the sidebar.
To create a template, users must enter all the drawing elements in the same layer, click on the "Create" button, and choose the reference name of the template and the layer where the template was drawn so that it is loaded in the "Library".
Insert templates
Previously created templates stored in the project are loaded from the "Insert" option.
There are different methods for loading a template:
- Loading a template into a new sheet.
- Loading the template into an existing sheet.
- Loading a template into another project.
Please note that the templates are normally designed for a certain paper size.
Template library
From the template library, the project templates can be viewed and managed. In this section, the templates that have been created locally from the "Export the element to a file" option are saved so that they can be used later in other projects.
With the "Import the elements saved in the drive to the project" option, a template that has been saved locally is loaded.
Managing styles
The "Styles" group allows users to create customised libraries of sheets, lines, text, fills and dimensions. New styles can be generated from each pop-up window.
For "Sheets", the format, orientation and margins can be defined.
For "Lines", the linetype, scale factor, pen thickness, printing colour and identification colour can be configured.
Regarding the "Text" style, users can choose the font, style, size and colour of the text.
Under "Fill", users can choose the type (solid, line hatch, inverted line hatch, etc.), pen thickness, hatch spacing, printing colour, identification colour and, if necessary, the fill background.
The "Dimensions" section is divided into four sections: text, linear dimensions, areas and angles. In each of the tabs, users can select from the desired lines and symbols to the thickness of the individual parts of the dimensions.
Styles can be exported for use in other projects, and imported from other projects. They can also be edited, duplicated, deleted and sorted according to the user's preferences.
Outlining tools
The lines, arcs, rectangles, ellipses and polygons allow users to draw boxes and symbols, among other elements, in the space of the sheet. This way, the program allows the elements required for the composition of the sheets to be drawn.
It is important to note that users must click on "Control" if they want to draw from a grid reference.
Entering and editing texts
Text
To insert texts, first select the "Text" option in the "Drawing elements" group, which will open a pop-up window with the configuration options.
In this window, you can choose the desired position, frame and style of the text. Then place the cursor where the text is to be inserted and left-click the mouse.
This opens a new window in which the desired text can be inserted. Once the text has been entered, click on the confirmation button to complete the process.
Text box
A box containing the desired text can be entered from "Text box".
Users can also choose its alignment, whether or not to use a frame, the type of corners they prefer, and adjust the margins according to their specific needs.
It is also possible to further customise the box by choosing line, fill and text formatting styles.
Replace texts
To add variable texts, users must access the "Replace texts" icon. This option allows keywords to be replaced by specific project data. There are two types of text substitution variables: user variables and predefined variables.
User variables
User variables allow custom variables to be created that can be reused in other sheets or projects. These variables can include the following: the name of the project, the address, the responsible architect and engineer, etc.
User variables can be saved locally to be loaded into other projects later via the "Import" button.
Predefined variables
Predefined variables can read data from the program to be entered as text within the sheets. These variables can include the following: the sheet reference, the sheet number, the scale factor, etc.
Predefined variables can also use information associated with tags, dimensions, scenes and views.
Inserting external files
The program allows users to insert external files, such as images and vector drawings, to complete the project information. The program imports the following formats: DXF, DWG, DWF, JPEG, JPG, BMP, WMF, EMF and PCX.
The "Insert files" option allows users to access the "Library", where files are imported into the program, and "Insert", where the size and position of the element being inserted can be selected.
Please note that DXF and DWF formats also import layers. From the "Layers of inserted DXF or DWG files" option in the "Layers" section, the program allows you to modify the thickness and colour of the lines of the layers of these types of files.
Creating and entering user symbols
User symbols are created from the "Drawing elements" group and can be, for example, people, trees, geographic north, or boxes, among others. A user symbol can be created by means of lines, arcs, polygons, texts, tables, etc.
The "Library", "Create" and "Insert" options are available under "User symbols".
User symbols can be saved locally and can be reused in other sheets or projects via the "Library" option.
Edit sheets - 3D Scenes: Entering BIM model views
Once the sheet has been created, the next step is to enter the model to start the elaboration of the plan views.
To do this, the 3D scene library will be used, which makes it easy to create scenes that will be incorporated into the sheets.
Each scene can contain several views, and each of the elements shown in each view can be selected via the "Outline" section.
To enter a scene in the sheet, select the "Insert" button under "3D Scene" and click on the box where the new scene is to be inserted.
Once the box has been inserted, the scene and the desired view can be selected, and the scale can be adjusted. Also, several options can be chosen, such as drawing the scene in monochrome, normal, hybrid or vector image. The display quality on the screen and the print quality can also be adjusted.
This panel can be used to select another point of view and to perform rotations, among other options.
Creating sections from views
The "Section" tool is used to generate sections in a simple way from a 3D scene previously inserted in the drawing.
To do this, simply click on "Section" in the "Drawing elements" group and specify the numbering and style of the section to be created in the drop-down menu.
The precise location of the section on the already generated floor plan must then be specified. The corresponding section will be created automatically and can be edited according to the user's preferences.
Dimension
The program allows users to dimension the scenes of a project in order to generate all the necessary information in the drawings. There are 4 ways to dimension distances and angles: "Real distance", "Apparent distance", "Apparent distance in the local 'x' axis" and "Apparent distance in the local 'y' axis".
For example, if there is a 2 m long roof with a slope of 30%, the real distance will be 2 m and the apparent distance will be 1.92 m. The apparent distance is therefore the projection of the real distance on the drawing of a given view.
Distance dimensions
Perpendicular and oblique dimensions
The main difference between the two is that the oblique dimension allows users to choose the direction in which the dimension is to be drawn.
Continued dimensions
The program offers three types of continued dimensions:
- Relative distance.
- Accumulated distance.
- Relative and cumulative distances: this type of dimension is recommended for elevations and sections in order to achieve continued dimensions from a reference of "0.00".
Surface area dimensions
Under the "Dimension" button on the top toolbar is the "Area" option.
With this feature, users can measure surfaces in the 3D scene and their area can be displayed as text.
Angle dimensions
Using the "Angle by vertex and 2 points" option, any angle in the drawing can be dimensioned.
Tagging elements
Tags allow information to be extracted from the BIM model.
When clicking on an element from the previously inserted 3D scene, the tag will automatically detect the element and extract the data associated with it.
A tag can also be created without being associated with any element and the text can be entered manually.
Results output
Once the project sheets have been assembled, they can be printed. To do this, click on the "Print" option and select the sheets and the format in which the plans are to be printed. In the "Status" column, the program will indicate if any of the elements entered are outside the printing area of the sheet.
The program allows users to export the generated sheets in PDF, DWG and DXF format.
Furthermore, users can choose whether they want to export all the sheets in one single file, or each one in a separate file.
The program also allows scene views to be exported as a vector image or as a rendered image.
