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BEN MicroStation Drafting (Metric Edition) Bentley Education Network 9-1

9 Text

This chapter introduces the general concepts of text, but not of dimensioning, which is the subject of a chapter by itself.

A Model, especially a Sheet model, will almost invariably need to have text placed in it. This text may be as complex as a complete list of materials for a project, or as simple as the name of a view. It may be input directly into MicroStation’s “word processor” style text editor, or created by another application and imported. A virtually unlimited number of Fonts may be used, including the huge range of TrueType fonts.

The text facilities available in MicroStation are comprehensive. As well as placing text for titles, descriptions etc., text may be placed in the form of notes with leader lines and arrowheads, or as entries to prepared Enter Data Fields. Once placed, the text may be edited, with the usual word processor functions such as Find and Replace available.

When you have completed this chapter, you will be able to:

• Label a design with text having the required set of attributes

• Place text by a variety of methods to orient it as required

• Place multi-line text, either created in the internal text editor, or imported from another program

• Place Empty Text Nodes and Enter Data Fields to define the attributes and position of text to be placed later.

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9-2 Bentley Education Network BEN MicroStation Drafting (Metric Edition)

TextText in General

Text in GeneralText is a type of MicroStation element, with symbology and level attributes like any other. Most of the tools that manipulate and modify other elements will also affect text, but there are a large collection of tools for text alone. There are also some View Attributes that are specific to the display of text elements, these are Text, Data Fields and Text Nodes. For instance, if Text is not checked On, text elements will not be displayed.

The Text Tool BoxThe range of tools available in this tool box are displayed below. We will be introduced to all of them in this chapter.

Figure 9.1 The Text Tool Box

Text StylesA Text Style is a set of text attributes which will normally be saved for re-use, either within the DGN where it is being applied, or (preferably) externally for general application. We will start by examining the range of these attributes, defining some of these and placing a text label.

Place Text

1. Open “TextChanges.dgn” from your assigned Student directory. Select the Place Text tool.The word processor Text Editor dialog box opens, as well as the Tool Settings window.

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TextText Styles


2. Click the magnifying glass Browse icon to open the Text Styles dialog box, ensure that the General tab settings are displayed.The settings we will make now are all in the Value column. Some rows will be greyed out until we turn them On.

3. Set the following attributes - Font: ARCHITECTURAL, Color: Checked (click the Color row to highlight it, then click the Value column), Color Value: 3 (Red), Underline and Overline: both Checked (see Figure 9.2).If we had not checked Color, the active element color would have applied. Dismiss the dialog box.

4. Click in the Editor dialog box, key in Fence (do not press Enter).

5. Move the pointer to a point just above the fence line (the broken line with Xs), data point to place the text.The text may tend to snap to undesired locations. When placing text in circumstances like these, it may be worthwhile to temporarily toggle AccuSnap (page 3-29) and AccuDraw Off.

Figure 9.2 Placing Text

This text is 1 master unit high and wide (1 meter in this case), which is the default value.

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TextText Styles

The text was keyed in using both upper and lower case characters in the previous exercise, but it appeared to be upper case only when it was placed. A small number of fonts do not include lower case characters, Architectural being one of these.

Changing Text AttributesText attributes may be changed using two methods:

• They may be Changed from the defined style using the Change Text Attributes tool

• They may be Updated to reflect changes made to the Style since it was placed.

We will experiment with the Change Text Attributes tool now, then introduce some more details about Text Styles later. In the next exercise, we will change the Font of the text element placed earlier.

Change The Font Attribute

1. With “TextChanges.dgn” open, ensure that Fill is checked On in the View Attributes dialog box.

2. Select the Change Text Attributes tool from the Main tool frame, click the Expand arrow to display the lower part of the Tool Settings window.

3. Remove all checkmarks except for Font. Choose Arial Black from the Font options menu.This is one of the TrueType fonts distributed with Windows.

4. Identify the text element “Fence” placed in the last exercise, accept.

5. Remove the checkmark from Fill in the View Attributes dialog box and Apply the change.The text is now displayed in both upper and lower case, but in outline only. The characters in some fonts are outlines similar to complex shapes, others are single lines like Architectural.

6. Select the Change Text Attributes tool again, this time choose ENGINEERING from the Font options menu.

7. Identify the text element “Fence” as before, accept.Note that the font is now solid, even with Fill turned Off. The displayed width of the text linework is controlled by Line Weight, just like any other element.

8. Select the Change Element Attributes tool from the Main tool frame (first used on page 3-8).

9. Turn Off all check boxes except Weight, experiment on the text with different line weights.

TextCreating a Text Style


Figure 9.3 Changing Text

Creating a Text StyleThe attributes set for the text placed in “TextChanges.dgn” will remain only until they are overwritten. It is worthwhile to save these settings for future use, especially when the settings can be used later in other designs. The arrangement of settings are saved as a named Text Style within a DGN.

Create a Text Style

1. Open “Furnished Cottage.dgn” and, with the Layout Sheet model displayed, choose Element > Text Styles from the Main menu bar.This is another method of opening the Text Styles dialog box, which we previously opened by clicking the magnifying glass Browse icon in the exercise “Place Text” on page 9-2. The Text Styles panel will show Style: None in the top section.

Arial Black Font

Engineering Font

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TextText Styles

2. Click the New icon in the dialog box icon bar.The new text style is given the temporary name of Untitled - 1. Most of the attributes in the General tab are colored blue, which warns us that these settings are as yet unsaved.

3. Change the name of the new style by clicking in the Value column on the Style Name row and overtyping the value with 1:1 General.

4. Change the Font for the style by clicking in the Value column on the Font row and choosing Arial from the option menu.

Figure 9.4 Naming the Style and Choosing a Font

TextUsing Text Styles


5. Set the Width and Height both to 3mm by clicking the Value column and overtyping for each one.

6. Highlight the Color row and click the Value column to enter a checkmark. Checking this row enables the setting of a fixed color for the text. If it is not checked, the Color Value remains greyed out and any text placed using this style will take on the Active Color, like other elements.

7. Set the Color Value to 0.

8. Click the Advanced tab and set the Line Spacing to 2mm.

9. Click the General tab again and review the settings, then Save the Text Style by clicking the Save icon in the dialog box icon bar. The text in the dialog box will change to black, indicating that the settings have been saved.

10. Dismiss the dialog box.

Figure 9.5 The 1:1 General Style

Using Text StylesNow we have a style saved in the DGN, we can apply it at any time in the future without having to make any more settings. The style just created is intended for general labelling; we will save another one later on for major captions etc.

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TextText Styles

General Text Placement

1. With the Layout Sheet model of “Furnished Cottage.dgn” displayed, ensure that the view attribute Fill is turned On, set the active Line Weight to 0.

2. Select the Place Text tool from the Main tool frame, Text Style: 1:1 General, Method: By Origin, Active Angle: 0° (the Coordinate Readout Angle Mode for this DGN is Conventional).

3. Enter the text 11 lighting pillars along this fence line to the Text Editor dialog box.

4. Position the text and place it above the site plan outline, as shown in Figure 9.6.

Figure 9.6 Placing 1:1 General Text

Note that the text is being placed by its Left-Top. This is the Justification point that was accepted as the default when we saved our Text Style.

In Conventional angle mode, a line at 0° is horizontal, see “Angle Modes” on page 2-21.

TextChild Text Styles


Child Text StylesWe may find that just one text style is not enough, for example we may need a text style larger than 1:1 General for the captions of drawing views. We can define a whole new set of text attributes and save these as a new style, but there is a more efficient method available.

It is likely that many of the attributes will need to be the same as a base style, with perhaps only the Height and the Width different. In the next exercise we will create a style based on 1:1 General, but 3.8mm in height and width instead of 3mm. This will be created as a Child text style, “inheriting” all except its height and width from the Parent. This not only makes creating the style quicker, it means any changes to the parent are reflected in the child, except where the parent style is Overridden. The Height, Width, Justification and Color are the only Overrides in this case. The Child style will use the ordinary element attribute color, not color 0 as is the case with the Parent style.

Create a Child Text Style

1. With the Layout Sheet model of “Furnished Cottage.dgn” displayed, choose Element > Text Styles from the Main menu bar.

2. Click the New icon in the dialog box icon bar, rename Untitled by clicking in the Value column on the Style Name row and overtyping the value with 1:1 Captions.

3. Click in the Value column of the Parent Style Name row, choose 1:1 General as the parent.In the Text Styles panel, the name of the new style changes from being shown at the “root” of the structure to being a Child from the Parent 1:1 General. Under the General tab, the Override column has checkmarks on all except the top 2 rows.

Figure 9.7 Creating a Child Text Style

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TextText Styles

The checkmarks in the Override column indicate that the attribute settings shown will Override those of the Parent.

4. Remove all of the Override checkmarks except for the Height, Width, Justification (not Node Justification) and Color Value (not Color )rows.Apart from Height, Width, Justification and Color Value, all of the attributes of 1:1 General will apply to the new style.

5. Set both the Height and the Width to 3.8mm.

6. Set the Justification to Center Center.

7. Click the Advanced tab, remove the Override checkmark in the Line Spacing row.

8. Return to the General tab, review the settings then Save the style.

Figure 9.8 The Child Text Style Settings

TextEditing Text Styles


9. Choose a color for the text from the Attributes tool box.The 1:1 Captions text style does not have a defined color.

10. Select the Place Text tool from the Main tool frame, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: By Origin, Active Angle: 0°.

11. Enter the text Floor Plan - Scale 1:100 to the text editor dialog box, place the caption under the floor plan on the layout sheet.

12. Replace the text in the text editor dialog with Site Plan - Scale 1:500, place this caption under the floor plan on the layout sheet.

Figure 9.9 Layout Sheet With Text in Place

Editing Text StylesDefining a text style may take time, we may need to change the definition a few times before we get exactly what is wanted. For the next exercise we will assume that the sizes and other attributes are fine, but we would like to try a change of Font for both styles. Since Font was one of the attributes “inherited” from Parent to Child style, we will only have to change this once.

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TextText Styles

Changing an Attribute in a Text Style

1. With the Layout Sheet model of “Furnished Cottage.dgn” displayed, open the Text Styles dialog box.

2. Highlight the 1:1 General style in the left panel, click Font in the right side panel General tab.

3. Choose Times New Roman from the options menu, Save the change.All of the text placed with either 1:1 General or its Child style 1:1 Captions will immediately change to the new font.

Figure 9.10 Changing the Font Attribute

Importing Text StylesWhen we have defined Text Styles in one DGN, we have the option of using them in other DGN’s. In practice, it is likely that we will have a special DGN that has definitions of text styles for Importing into other DGN’s, but no actual design or sheet models.

TextImporting Text Styles


Importing Text Styles

1. Open “RasterWorks.dgn”, display the Raster Printout model.

2. Select the Place Text tool, click the magnifying glass icon to open the Text Styles dialog box.

3. Choose File > Import from the dialog box menu bar.

4. From the Textstyle Import dialog box, select “Furnished Cottage.dgn” from our own Student directory, click OK.The 1:1 General style will appear in the left panel of the Text Styles dialog box, with a “+” sign beside it, indicating there is at least 1 Child style imported. There may be other styles as well, depending on the version of the seed file supplied with your installation.

5. Click the “+” sign to see that the child style 1:1 Captions has been imported, close the dialog box.

Figure 9.11 Importing Text Styles

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TextText Styles

6. Open the Tool Settings window (Click the tool - input focus is probably in the text editor, so <Ctrl>+<Spacebar> will be ignored) and choose 1:1 Captions from the Text Style options, Method: By Origin.

7. Enter the text Starboard and place it under the boat to the left of the keel.

8. Change the text to Port and place this to the right of the keel, dismiss the Text Editor dialog box.The color of the text is one of the Text Style attributes, but this may be changed at any time without affecting the saved style.

9. Select the Change Element Attributes tool (page 3-13) from the Main tool frame, Method: Change, check the Color box (only), Color: 2 (Green), identify the text Starboard and accept the change.

10. Change the Color tool setting to 3 (red), change the color of the text Port.

Figure 9.12 Changing the Color of Existing Text

TextText Placement Options


Text Placement OptionsSo far we have placed text using the By Origin method, where the Origin or “handle” we place the text with is at the Justification point. When the justification is set to Left-Top, the Origin is at the Left-Top of the text being placed. If we need to snap to the text to manipulate it, this is the only keypoint. There are other placement methods apart from By Origin available, which we will now investigate.

Fitted TextThe size of this text is not affected by the text style settings. It adjusts to fit between two data points, thus we can both orient it and adjust its size visually to suit the application.

Place Fitted Text

1. Create and open a new DGN named TextWorks.dgn, using “2dMetricGeneral.dgn” as the seed file. The master and sub-units are both to be millimeters, with the coordinate readout set to master units, one decimal place accuracy.

2. Select the Window Area tool, with the AccuDraw window Active, press <M> (for Multiple Data Point keyin). The Data Point Keyin window opens.

3. Enter 0 into the Data Point Keyin window to define the bottom-left of the view.

4. Enter 150,100 in the keyin window to define the top-right of the view area. Close the Data Point Keyin window.

5. Import the text styles from “Furnished Cottage.dgn” (see “Importing Text Styles” on page 9-13).

6. Select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: Fitted.

7. Enter the text Text fitted between data points to the Text Editor.

8. Place a data point near one corner of the view, then complete the placement with a data point near the center.

Figure 9.13 Placing Fitted Text

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Text Styles and Working UnitsWe are now working with a design file with Working Unit settings of millimeters as the master unit, but we could have imported a Text Style from a DGN with English (Imperial) units. If we did this, the text height and width attributes will be the same, just expressed in different units. For example an English unit text height of 0.12” would import to a metric DGN with a text height of 3mm, assuming that the coordinate display was set to one decimal place.

View Independent TextText placed by this method remains at the same orientation, regardless of the rotation of the view. Fitted VI text behaves the same way, with, like Fitted, its size specified by data points.

Place View Independent Text

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: View Independent, Active Angle: 0°.

2. Enter the text View Independent Text to the Text Editor, place the text near the center of the view.

3. Select the Rotate View tool (page 1-26), Method: 2 Points, rotate the view (any angle).Note that while the Fitted text appears rotated, the View Independent text does not.

4. Unrotate the view, either by using the Rotate View tool with the Method set to Unrotated, or with the View Previous tool.

Figure 9.14 View Independent Text

Unrotated View, or . . .

. . . Rotated view, text placed as View Independent retains its original orientation.

TextText Above Element and Below Element


Text Above Element and Below ElementThese methods of text placement are used for labelling lines, or for any purpose when the text needs to be placed at a fixed spacing from a line or line segment.

Placing text parallel to lines

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, pan to an empty area and place two 60 mm horizontal lines.

2. Place a 60 mm vertical line (indexed to the y AccuDraw axis) with its origin (starting point) at the bottom. Place a second with the same length, but with its origin at the top.

3. Select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: Above Element, Line Spacing: 2 mm.

4. Enter the text Above Element, identify one of the horizontal lines at its midpoint (a midpoint snap may be used), accept.

5. Change the text in the Editor to read <ORIGIN, identify each of the vertical lines at their midpoints and accept.When a line is vertical “Above” and “Below” are defined by the position of the origin, it will always be to the left of the text. There will be no ambiguity with lines at any other angle.

6. Change the Method to Below Element, enter the text Below Element, identify the horizontal line with the text “Above Element” at its midpoint, accept.

Figure 9.15 Text Placed Above and Below Elements

When a line is exactly vertical, the concept of Above and Below is not inherently defined, so . . .

. . . MicroStation makes the assumption that the starting point of the element will be at the left when the text is viewed normally.

The Line Spacing setting is the mea-surement between the line and the nearest point on the text.

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Text On ElementThe identified element is partially deleted and the text inserted in the gap with this method.

Place Text On an Element

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: On Element.

2. Enter the text On Element, identify the horizontal line currently without text at its midpoint, accept.

Figure 9.16 Text On Element

Text Along ElementCurved or circular elements can have text placed following the curve using this method. Each character is automatically rotated to be parallel to the element at its closest point, which can cause them to overlap when placed along the inside of a small-radius curve. There is a setting for Interchar(acter) Spacing in the Tool Settings window to fix this.

Place Text On an Element

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, Pan the view to a clear area. Use the Place SmartLine tool to place a 180° arc in a clockwise direction from left to right, with a radius of 30 mm.

Figure 9.17 Placing an Arc for Along Element Text

The single line element was auto-matically partially deleted when the text was placed, so there are now 2 separate Line elements.

TextWord Wrapped Text


2. Select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: Along Element, Line Spacing: 4mm.

3. Enter the text Along Element, identify the arc at its midpoint.Two sets of highlighted text display, one inside the curve, the other outside.

4. Accept the text on the outside with a data point outside the curve and above the text.

Figure 9.18 Placing Text Along an Element

Word Wrapped TextThe Word Wrap option makes placing a “block” of text easy. We define the diagonally opposite corners of a temporary rectangle to form a boundary for the text we are about to place, then enter the text. As a line of text reaches the sides of the block, it “Word Wraps” like a word processor to start another line.

Placing Word Wrapped Text

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 General, Method: Word Wrap.

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2. Place a data point in a clear area of the view, followed by another 45 mm to the right and 20 mm down.The block is placed in the direction the text is written - down and to the right. It will have the active symbology attributes, but it is only a temporary element.

3. Key in the text as shown in Figure 9.19 (the block is filled in as the text is keyed in), accept when completed.The block disappears when the text is accepted. We set the line spacing in the Advanced tab of the Line Style dialog box on page 9-7.

Figure 9.19 Word Wrap Text Placement

The Text Editor dialog box dimensions set the displayed line length, which has nothing to do with how the text appears in the view.

The block defining the line length is removed when the text is accepted.

TextWord Wrapped Text


Instance-specific Style OverridesAn instance-specific style override is a change of text attributes for a single placement of text. These changes do not become a permanent part of the saved Text Style. These changes can be made in the extended Tool Settings window for the Place Text tool, or (more conveniently) in the Word Processor style text editor. This is the default text editor style and is the one used in all of our text exercises. To see the text editor style setting, look at Workspace > Preferences > Text > Text Editor Style.

The word processor style text editor has the options common to word processors for the selection of Font, Bold, Italic, Underline, Stacked Fraction and Color.

Apply Overrides to Text as it is Placed

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 General, Method: Word Wrap.

2. Make the text boundary block 45 mm wide and 40mm deep, from top-left to bottom right.

3. Key in the text as shown in Figure 9.20, selecting the changes as the text is keyed in.

Figure 9.20 Applying Instant Specific Text Style Overrides

Overrides of text size and justification can be made in the Tool Settings window.

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TextText Nodes

Text NodesMulti-line text, such as the text we have been placing with the Word Wrap method, is known as a Text Node. With Text Nodes extra settings come into effect, e.g. the Line Spacing attribute (set under the Advanced tab) came into effect. As well, the justification setting is separate for Nodes, see Figure 9.8, “The Child Text Style Settings” on page 9-10. Text Nodes are recognized when we are using the Dialog Box style text editor, so we will temporarily change over to this in the following exercise.

Text Nodes have a number and they are accompanied by a marker, which is only displayed when Text Nodes are checked On in the View Attributes dialog box. We have the option of placing Empty Text Nodes in a model, which are used as “place markers” for text that is entered later on. By placing Empty Text Nodes, we define the location of the text and the Text Style, which will be the style active when the node is placed. The operator entering the text later on need not be concerned with the style to be used, as it is already specified in the Text Node.

We will be introduced to a new Lock setting in the following exercise, Text Node Lock. With this lock On, text can only be placed on empty text nodes.

Using Empty Text Nodes

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, choose Workspace > Preferences from the Main menu bar.

2. Choose Text from the Preferences dialog box, then set Text Editor Style: Dialog Box, click OK. This is important with Text Nodes.

Figure 9.21 Setting the Text Editor Preference

3. Place a checkmark in the Text Nodes box of the View Attributes dialog box, click Apply and close the dialog box.Text Node markers will appear on any multi-line text in the view.

4. Open the Text Styles dialog box and highlight the style 1:1 General in the left panel to make this the active text style, close the dialog.

TextText Nodes


5. Select the Place Text Node tool, View Independent: Unchecked, Active Angle: 0°.

6. Place a Text Node in a clear area of the view.The marker will display a Node Number, starting from 0 and incrementing with each node placed in the design.

7. Select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 Captions, Method: By Origin. Click the arrow to expand the Tool Settings window, check the Text Node Lock box.In practice, the text style does not matter, as it will ultimately be determined by the Text Node. We have only chosen one here to make the effect of the Text Node obvious.

8. Key in Text placed on a Text Node, move the pointer over the crosshairs of the Text Node, which highlights as AccuSnap finds it.The text style currently active is larger than the one used to define the Text Node, and its justification is Center rather than Left.

9. Accept the text placement.All of the text attributes will be those defined for the style active at the time the Empty Text Node was placed (1:1 General in this case). Note how the text “jumps” to the left justification and the smaller size when the placement is accepted with the second data point.

10. Return to View Attributes and uncheck Text Nodes, Apply.

11. Click the Lock icon in the Status Bar, uncheck the Text Node lock.

Figure 9.22 Placing Text on an Empty Text Node

In this case, some of the attributes of the text style active when we entered the text are different to those stored in the Text Node, . . .

. . . but the attributes active at the time the Node was placed are the ones that count. The markers are normally turned off when they are not being used to place text.

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TextCopying and Pasting Text

Copying and Pasting TextWith the help of the word processor style text editor, we can copy text from virtually any Windows application, including a web browser. We will use some text copied from the MicroStation Help facility in the following exercise.

Copy Text to a DGN Model

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, choose Workspace > Preferences from the Main menu bar.

2. Choose Text from the Preferences dialog box, then set the Text Editor Style to Word Processor, click OK.

3. Click the Help tool from the Standard tool box to open MicroStation Help.

4. Click the Search tab, key in text to the words to search for field, click List Topics, then double-click Text Styles at the top of the Topic list. MicroStation Help automatically highlights the word we are searching for.

5. Highlight the top paragraph and its heading, press <Ctrl>+<C> to copy the text to the clipboard. Close Help.

Figure 9.23 Copying Text

TextCopying and Pasting Text


6. Select the Place Text tool, Text Style: 1:1 General, Method: Word Wrap.

7. Place the text boundary block 80 mm wide and 50 mm deep (placed from top-left to bottom right).

8. With input focus in the Text Editor (flashing cursor), press <Ctrl>+<V> to paste the text, place a data point to accept it.

Figure 9.24 Placing the Copied Text

The Width of the block is the critical dimension for the Word Wrap place-ment of text. It does not matter if it is too short or too long, the text will be placed just the same.

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TextEditing Text

Editing TextIt is essential to be able to make changes to text (including correcting the spelling) after it has been placed. Editing MicroStation text is similar to editing text in most other Windows® applications, we can change anything to do with its format or content. We have the usual options available from the Edit menu of the Main menu bar, including Find and Replace, Cut, Copy, Paste etc. These options are standard to many applications and will not need introduction here.

The Edit Text ToolThis tool provides two means of editing the text, it has Tool Settings to change some text attributes, and it opens the text editor dialog box. With the default user preference settings (which we have assumed for the following exercise), the Word Processor Style text editor opens, the same dialog we have already used for placing new text. We can use this to do the usual word processor functions to delete or add text, apply modifiers (such as Bold, Underline etc.) or do a spell check. Again, these options and the tool icons used are standard to many applications and will not need introduction here.

Editing Text Attributes

1. Open “TextWorks.dgn”, select the Edit Text tool, click the down arrow to display the extra settings in the Tool Settings window.

2. Identify the line of text “Text fitted between data points” placed earlier.The Text Editor opens, with the identified text in the dialog box. We will not be using this dialog box this time, however.

3. Highlight the text in the Text Editor dialog (press and drag the cursor over it), re-open the Tool Settings window by moving the pointer over the tool or the PopSet icon. Click the expand arrow.

4. Change the Text Height to 6, the Text Width to 4 and the Font to Arial, place a data point in the view to accept the edit.

Figure 9.25 Editing Text Attributes

TextMatching Text Attributes


Matching Text AttributesWhen making changes or adding to an existing drawing, we may need to place text with identical attributes to the text already there. The easiest way of setting up the text attributes to achieve this is by Matching them to an existing text element with the desired appearance. We will also be introduced to the “general purpose” tool for matching All element attributes in the following exercise.

Matching Text Attributes

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Match Text Attributes tool (no tool settings).

2. Identify the text element “Text fitted between data points” that was edited in the previous exercise, accept.

3. Change the Active Color to be different to the text just identified.

4. Ensure that the Text Node lock is not checked in the Status Bar Locks menu.

5. Select the Place Text tool, Method: By Origin, leave all other settings as they are.

6. Place some text and note the attributes - the Text attributes are the same as the original, but not the ordinary Element attributes.

7. Select the SmartMatch tool, identify and accept some different text.

8. Place some more text and note the attributes - the Text and the Element attributes are both the same as the original.

Figure 9.26 Using Matched Attributes

All of the attributes (not just text) were matched to this text element, . . .

. . . then used when placing this.

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TextEnter Data Fields

Enter Data FieldsEnter Data Fields are single line text placeholders placed in a model, for text to be entered at another time. One example for the use of Enter Data Fields is in the title blocks of sheet models. In this case, such detail as the variable part of the drawing number could be an Enter Data Field. Title blocks are often created as Cells (see chapter 6) that incorporate enter data fields, which are placed in the border area of the sheet model.

The main advantages of Enter Data Fields over ordinary text placement is that the position, the text style and the maximum permissible number of characters are defined when the fields are originally placed.

Creating Enter Data FieldsTo create an Enter Data Field we place a reserved character using the ordinary Place Text tool. This character is the underline (“_”) in the default MicroStation configuration, but it may be re-configured if necessary. These fields can be combined with other text in the same text element, as is illustrated in Figure 9.27. Enter Data Fields may be filled in singly, automatically, or by copying using the related tools from the Text tool box.

Create a Cell With an Enter Data Field

1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, turn On and Apply the Data Fields View Attribute. Select Place Text, Text Style: 1:1 General, Method: By Origin.

2. In a clear area place the text Drawing No. followed by a space and 4 underline characters.

3. Keypoint snap a Cell Origin to the text (see “Create a Named Cell” on page 6-7), place a block type fence around it.

4. Open the Cell Library dialog box (Element > Cells), attach our own Student (nn) cell library. Click Create.

5. Name the cell DrawNo, with the description Drawing Number with Fields, leave the option menu set to Graphic, click the Create button in the Create New Cell dialog box.

Figure 9.27 Enter Data Fields

Underlines would normally join up with conventional text placement and this is how it appears in the text editor, but . . .

. . . when they are placed by themselves, they separate.

TextFilling In Enter-Data Fields


Filling In Enter-Data Fields1. With “TextWorks.dgn” open, select the Place Active Cell tool,

Active Cell: DrawNo, Active Angle: 0°, x and y Scale: both 1.

2. Place the cell in a clear area of the view.

3. Select the Fill In Single Enter-Data Field tool, identify one of the underline characters on the cell just placed.

4. Key in A001 to the Text Editor, press <Enter> to fill in the field, then accept.

Figure 9.28 Filling in a Single Enter-Data Field

There are three other tools for filling in Enter Data Fields, experiments with these are optional:

Copy Enter Data Field - used to copy the contents of one enter data field to another.

Copy and Increment Enter Data Field - used to copy and increment the contents of an enter data field that contains numbers into another enter data field. The amount it is incremented by may be varied.

Automatic Fill In Enter Data Fields - Used to fill in all empty enter data fields in a view, automatically identifying them in the order they were placed.

Regardless of our Preferences setting, (Workspace > Preferences > Text) the Dialog Box style of text editor opens for filling out data fields. All of the attributes were set when the Enter Data Field was placed, so the Word Processor style would not have any advantages.

9


TextAnnotations

AnnotationsText often needs to be visually linked to particular features of a drawing. There are tools to place notes with arrows linking the text to the drawing and other tools that allow us to place normally hidden messages along with a Flag symbol to indicate their presence.

The Place Note ToolThis tool uses lines and arrowheads similar to a dimensioning element (to be introduced next chapter). In fact the settings for the linework associated with the text may be affected by the settings made for dimension elements. The active text style in the supplied file is already set to 1:1 Annotations and this will define the text attributes for the tool. The active dimension style is Spin, which sets the attributes of the arrow line and its terminator, an open arrowhead in this case.

Placing Notes

1. Open “Spindle Assy-m.dgn” from our dgn directory, ensure that the Drawing sheet model is open.

2. Window in on the lower-right part of the spindle assembly. Find location marker No. 1 (press <F8> to display Construction class elements if the grey number-and-circle location markers are not visible).

3. Select the Place Note tool, Text Frame: None, Justification: Left, Generate Leader and Association check boxes checked On, key in the text Brake Plate.

4. Keypoint snap to the vertex within the No 1 location circle.

5. Move the pointer up and to the right, visually placing the arrow line and the text approximately as shown in Figure 9.29.

Figure 9.29 Placing the First Note

This section may be used to override the text settings.

TextThe Place Note Tool


6. Pan the view to display the upper-right part of the assembly, find location marker No. 2.

7. Reset back to the Place Note tool, place a note at location 2 (in the same way as in steps 3, 4 and 5) with the text Spool Locator.

8. Place a note at location 3 (down near location 1) with Text Frame: Box, with the text Upper Pulley.

9. Choose Text Frame: Line, Justification: Right place the text Single Row Bearing <Enter> SKF #6020 (2 lines of text), place this note to the left of the assembly at location 4 (top-left).

10. Change the Justification back to Left, place the same text as in the previous step at location 5 (upper-right).

Figure 9.30 Placing Notes: Multi-line and with Text Frames

9


TextAnnotations

11. Change the Text Frame to None, the Justification to Dynamic, key in the text Lower <Enter> spindle <Enter> weldment (3 lines).We will use a new snap mode in the next step, Intersection Snap. This will involve observing both of the intersecting elements.

12. Select Intersection snap and move the pointer over the intersection of the centerline and the base line at location 6, ensure both highlight and become dashed, accept.

13. Move the pointer either side of the centerline, note the effect of Dynamic justification, place the note to one side.

14. Place a note at location 7 (upper right) with Text Frame: None, with the text Spindle Plate.

Figure 9.31 Completing the Notes

The lines both highlight and become dashed when we Inter-section snap to them.

All of the notes in place.

When we use Dynamic justi-fication, the decision of the placement side for multi-line notes can be made as it is being placed.

TextThe Place Note Tool


Associative Notes

When we were placing the notes in the last exercise, we had the Association box checked. This means that the arrow linking the text is Associated with an element and will stretch to maintain the association if the element is manipulated. In this case, the association is with an element in a Referenced model. To observe the effect, we will stretch one of the components in the Spindle Assembly (master) model, then note the effect in the Drawing model.

Experiment With Association

1. With “Spindle Assy-m.dgn” open, display the Spindle Assembly (master) model (the Model View in the View Groups tool box).

2. Window the area about the spindle plate at the top of the assembly, place a block type fence about the end of the plate at location 7.

3. Select the Move tool, Use Fence: Checked, Fence contents/mode: Stretch, move the fence 10 (10 master units) to the left.

4. Display the Drawing Sheet View from the View Groups tool box, window the area of the assembly about location 7.The end of the plate is now to the left of location marker 7, but the arrow still connects to it.

5. Display the Spindle Assembly (master) model (the Model View in the View Groups tool box) once more. Undo the change and Update the view.

Figure 9.32 Associated Note

The arrow has moved to maintain the Association

9


TextDesign Problem - Improving the Borders

Design Problem - Improving the BordersWe have used two drawing borders so far in this course, “A4 Border.dgn” and “A3 Border.dgn”. We have attached “A4 Border.dgn” ourselves as a reference to some designs, and “A3 Border.dgn” was already attached to the sheet model of “Spindle Assy-m.dgn”.

When we print out these designs, we place a fence around the border to define the area to be printed (see “Defining the Area to be Printed” on page 8-18). The size of this fence is critical, if we make it too large, we may not be able to produce a printout at the desired scale. If it is too small, some of the geometry may be hidden. To solve this problem, Active Points are provided at the top-left and the bottom-right to snap the block type fence to.

Our job is to convey the purpose of these active points to any future users. We will place text outside the area of the border that will be printed as shown in figure 9.33. Only “A4 Border.dgn” is shown in the illustration, but add the text to “A3 Border.dgn” as well. Since “A3 Border.dgn” is larger than “A4 Border.dgn”, the text will also be larger.

.

Figure 9.33 Drawing Sheet with Instructions

This text is to be on the same level as the border. Its color and line weight are both to be 0.

The top of the text is to be spaced 5mm from the bottom line of the border and be spaced in evenly from the ends by approximately the same distance.

The Font is to be Arial, with the size set to make the text fit across the width as shown.

ben mdm.bk(ben mdm c9.fm) training... · 9 text this chapter introduces the general concepts of...

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