Corridor Cul-de-sac troubleshooting

Corridors are quite fun to build, configure and eventually model various surfaces. Everyone has seen the smooth and clean examples.

Sometimes, the corridor object can get out of whack; subassemblies targeting the wrong alignments, daylighting specified to the wrong surface, etc. Maybe you’ve seen this simple error…

Of course intersection can pose their own problems, but what about all of those other corridor examples like bus stops or knuckles or even cul-de-sacs. Recently, I had a chance to help someone with just such an issue. And it looked like this. For some reason, the lane was not respecting the closest target making a hole in the surface.

Let’s see what we can find out….

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Civil 3D Style Evolution

I teach a fair amount of classes around the functionality of Civil 3D. One common dilemma I hear students discuss is how to handle styles. Yes, you can put them in a template and have the standard set of styles available. But what happens when I need to present an object differently than the company standard? Agent Smith once said “You hear that Mr. Anderson?… That is the sound of inevitability…”

Yes, style change is inevitable. After the break, I’ll give you my solution which does not end in death…

GIS Data with Google Maps or Infrastructure Map Server

Good morning.  This is just a quick note for those government agencies that publish GIS data. I just discovered that Google has a Public Data program to make the information available to a wider audience. Organizations simply need to fill out a form to apply to the program.

I also found out that individuals can create their own maps using the Google Maps Engine Lite.  For me, this will provide a great venue to present my project history. You may have similar needs as an individual. But if you want to create online maps for your business, they also have something called Google Maps for Business. It appears that this service will only let ESRI users connect directly…

If you don’t want to pay a subscription, you could setup your own web mapping service with Infrastructure Map Server. With this application, you can publish and share GIS data as well as CAD data with a web-based or mobile browser interface! And Map 3D /  Civil 3D will natively work with this option!

Civil 3D Wish – Surface definition order

Ever wonder why your surface contours aren’t behaving properly?

In most cases, the issue can be found in the order of operations in the surface properties. In the screen grab below, the issue is simply that the outer boundary should be at the end to ensure that data added later will still be limited by that boundary.

After having conversations with folks in training classes as well as support calls, I’ve come up with a solution. It would be great if….

Part Builder Land Mines

And… I’m back.  I’ve spent that last 2 months working on standardizing a local engineering firm. However, it was only scheduled to be a week and a half.  So what happened? Lots of answers there really. But one that most people can empathize with is Part Builder. A portion of my todo list required that certain parts be built. On the initial proposal, I gave an estimate of time for this task. Yes. I. Missed. That. Goal.

Through all of the madness, here’s two tidbits that we need to keep in mind…

Washing Sketchup 3D models

Ron Couillard over at CADsoft Consulting has 2 great posts here and here on doing laundry.  I mean using Civil 3D as a way to wash the 3D models in the Trimble 3D warehouse (previously known as the sketchup warehouse) so they can be used in Infrastructure Modeler. Pick you favorite model and drop it in AIM, or whatever we’re calling it now.  🙂

Or I should say Infraworks for the 2014 version. Man, can somebody just buy everything once so I can keep track of all these things? I’m not getting any younger….  🙂

Project Chronicle Captures

Project Chronicle, if you don’t know, is an Autodesk Lab solution to capturing workflows in your Autodesk app of choice. I’ve been using this for some time now and realized I hadn’t shared about it…

Anyway, while doing my weekly blog reading, The CAD Geek reminded me of how great this little gem is with his recent write up.

By the way, it’s a completely free app! You can find a gallery of posted Chronicles @ chronicle.autodesk.com.

Go check it out and use it share your knowledge with your company, user group or the world!