Mastering AutoCAD Civil 3D 2016

Autodesk Official Press

Cyndy Davenport, Ishka Voiculescu

• Publisher: Sybex
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781119059738
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: CAD-CAM
• Index: Computer Science

Utilize AutoCAD Civil 3D 2016fora real-world workflow with theseexpert tricks and tips

Mastering AutoCAD Civil 3D 2016 is a complete, detailed reference and tutorial for Autodesk's extremely popular and robust civil engineering software. With straightforward explanations, real-world examples, and practical tutorials, this invaluable guide walks you through everything you need to know to be productive. The focus is on real-world applications in professional environments, with all datasets available for download, and thorough coverage helps you prepare for the AutoCAD Civil 3D certification exam with over an hour's worth of video on crucial tips and techniques. You'll learn how to navigate the software and use essential tools, and how to put it all together in the context of a real-world project. In-depth discussion covers surveying, alignments, surface, grading, cross sections and more, and instructor support materials provide an ideal resource for training and education.

This book will take you from beginner to pro, so you can get the most out of AutoCAD Civil 3D every step of the way.

• Understand key concepts and get acquainted with the interface
• Create, edit, and display all elements of a project
• Learn everything you need to know for the certification exam
• Download the datasets and start designing right away

With expert insight, tips, and techniques, Mastering AutoCAD Civil 3D 2016 helps you become productive from the very beginning.

Chapter 1
The Basics

If you want to be a master in anything, you have to start with the basics. Since the Autodesk^® AutoCAD^® Civil 3D^® platform has evolved so much over the years, now more than ever you need to have a good grip on the basics. Like with every new release of the product, manyfeatures have been enhanced, while other new ones have been added.

To get familiar with the software, you will need to go through many dialogs, ribbons, tabs, menus, and icons. Some of them may be familiar, while others will be new. This chapter will help you get used to both the familiar and the new. When you learn the interface of the Civil 3D environment and understand the terminology used in the book, everything becomes easier to use. So, please arm yourself with patience and take the time to understand every part of the workflow.

Let's start learning about the interface and Civil 3D–specific terminology. Toward the end of the chapter, you'll dive into the use of the Lines and Curves commands that, coupled with the use of transparent commands, offer multiple ways of drawing accurate lines and curves.

In this chapter, you will learn to:

• Find any Civil 3D object with just a few clicks.
• Modify the drawing scale and default object layers.
• Navigate the ribbon's contextual tabs.
• Create a curve tangent to the end of a line.
• Label lines and curves.

The Interface

If you are new to Civil 3D, this part of the chapter is especially for you, since this section will introduce you to the terminology used throughout this book. This release introduces a new startup interface that streamlines the design process. In previous versions, on startup Civil 3D created a new drawing based on a default template; with the 2015 release, you were presented with a Start tab. Now, 2016 does both: offers the Startup tab as well as creates a drawing based on the default template. Within the Start tab, four options are present: Learn, Get Started, Recent Documents, and Connect, as shown in Figure 1.1.

Figure 1.1 The Startup tab provides a quick way to get your design going.

1. Learn The Learn option will take you to a dashboard containing videos that will familiarize you with new features and “Getting Started” basics. There will also be links to Learning Tips and Online Resources. To go back to the startup dashboard, click the Create option on the right.
2. Get Started The Get Started section allows you to start a new drawing from a template that can be selected from the drop-down list or gives you the opportunity to open an existing file from a location, open a sheet set, find more industry-standard templates on the online repository, or open sample drawings that are provided through the software's installation.
3. Recent Documents Recent Documents is pretty straightforward; it allows you to select and open a drawing from a list of most recently worked-on documents.
4. Connect The Connect section deals with the Autodesk online experience for AutoCAD-based products. While using the software, you can sign in with your Autodesk account to take advantage of the cloud-enabled features within AutoCAD products. This section also provides a means to deliver software feedback to the development team.

The 2014 version introduced a new feature within the interface: tab-based access to all the files opened in the same working session. If you haven't experienced this feature in AutoCAD, you might be familiar with it in the latest browsers that use a tab-based display of open web pages, allowing quick access to any open web page, all in the same window. In the case of AutoCAD, this display shows the opened files. Using this feature, you can switch between the opened drawings just by clicking the desired file in the tab list. You can also switch between the opened drawings by using the old Ctrl+Tab key combination, but the tab-based file option lets you choose any drawing from the list of opened drawings without going through the whole list in the order in which the files were opened. On hovering over one of the file tabs, you will be presented with the option to switch between the Model and Layout tabs for that file. Figure 1.2 shows the new tab-based file feature. Other options related to the management of that drawing are available when you right-click the tab.

Figure 1.2 The ...