Scribd
Upload
40 views

Text, Dimensions, and Measuring Tutorial: Setting Up Your Workspace

This document provides instructions for using text, dimension, and measuring tools in a drawing program. It explains how to add different types of text, change text properties, measure distances and angles using a point-to-point tool, add dimensions such as horizontal, vertical, angular and radial dimensions, create callouts, and set default text settings. The steps provided allow the user to learn how to organize and annotate their drawings.

Uploaded by

ricardo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
40 views

Text, Dimensions, and Measuring Tutorial: Setting Up Your Workspace

This document provides instructions for using text, dimension, and measuring tools in a drawing program. It explains how to add different types of text, change text properties, measure distances and angles using a point-to-point tool, add dimensions such as horizontal, vertical, angular and radial dimensions, create callouts, and set default text settings. The steps provided allow the user to learn how to organize and annotate their drawings.

Uploaded by

ricardo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 14

Text, Dimensions, and Measuring Tutorial

To help organize your layout, and all the features you’ve created, you can use text,
dimension, and measuring tools. These tools are great aids in creating a design.

Setting up Your Workspace


From the Help menu, open the drawing file associated with this tutorial.
Before starting this tutorial, prepare your workspace by dragging off the toolsets you’ll
use. From the Main Tool Palette, drag off the Text toolset and the Dimension toolset.
Place the toolsets, horizontally, along the bottom of the workspace.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 1 of 14


To add text
1. A variety of tools are provided to add text to your drawing. The Text toolset contains
Horizontal Text, Text Along a Curve, Text at an Angle, and Box Text.

2. Click the Horizontal Text tool. Basic horizontal text is a single line of text.
3. Position your cursor on the workspace where you want the text to begin and
click.
4. Type to enter the text you want.

5. Press ENTER to move to the next line and type a second line of text.

6. Delete both lines of text.


7. From the Text toolset, click the Box Text tool. The Box Text tool allows you
to define an area, then, as you type text, it will fill that area within the box.
8. At the top of the workspace, click to set the first point of the text box.
9. Drag to expand the box to the size you want and click to set the second point and
draw the box.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 2 of 14


10. Type “This is text entered using the box text, wrapping to box” in three lines within
the box.
11. On the Data Entry window, click the “i" button to open the Inspector.
12. Click the Text Properties button and the text properties are displayed.

Here you can control properties such as font, size, and alignment. Changing the
alignment is useful when putting text in a title block, for example, and wanting it
centered within a rectangle.
13. Click the Center Align option. The text appears centered within the box.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 3 of 14


14. Click the Right Align option. The text is justified to the right side of the text box.

15. Click the Left Align option to re-align the text to the left.
16. Close the Inspector and delete the text.

To change default text settings


1. From the Text toolset, choose the Horizontal Text tool.
2. At the top of the workspace, click to start the text.
3. Type “V-Notch Base”. Remember, the text will be placed based on the current text
settings.
4. Click the Selection tool and be sure nothing is selected.
5. Open the Inspector and click the Text button.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 4 of 14


Any changes to the settings now would be considered default settings for
subsequently placed text.
6. Close the Inspector.

To measure in the drawing


1. Items on the Verify menu allow you to take measurements without using dimensions.
From the Verify menu, choose Dist Pt-Pt. The Distance dialog box appears.

The Distance Point to Point tool allows you to pick two points, anywhere in the
drawing, and measure the distance between them and gives a delta between the
points. The delta is the relative distance between the X coordinate, Y coordinate or Z
coordinates between the two points picked.
2. Move the Distance dialog box to the left of the design.
3. Click the top left endpoint of the polygon.
4. Drag to the right and click the next endpoint. The Distance dialog displays the
distance between the selected points.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 5 of 14


5. Click the top left endpoint again.
6. Drag to the bottom left endpoint and click. The Distance dialog displays the distance
between the two points.

7. Click the bottom left endpoint again and drag back up to the top left endpoint. Notice
the distance is the same, but instead of a negative value, the dY value is positive.
8. Position your cursor on the endpoint at the top left of the angled lines.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 6 of 14


9. Drag along the angled line, to the point where the two angled lines meet, and click to
measure the distance.

The Distance field displays one value. The dX and dY show the change in the X
coordinate and change in the Y coordinate between those two points.
10. Measure the distance between the point where the angled lines meet and the top
endpoint of the angled line on the right.
11. On the Distance dialog, click OK.
12. On the workspace, select the circle on the left.
13. From the Verify menu, choose Length to display the Verify Length dialog box.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 7 of 14


14. Click OK to close the dialog box. Other options such as Volume and Interference are
available for use in 3D measuring.

Using Dimensions
Dimensions are helpful when you need to document measurements.
1. Open the Inspector and click the Dimension button. You can control the dimension
properties, such as font, value, and tolerance.

2. Click the Font tab and choose 24, from the Size drop-down menu.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 8 of 14


To use the Smart Dimension tool
1. From the Dimension toolset, click the Smart Dimension tool.
2. The Smart Dimension tool creates dimensions off a variety of geometry,
whether it is horizontal or vertical. Click the vertical line on the left of the shape to
place the first point.
3. Drag to the left and click to place the dimension.
4. Delete the dimension and change the Font size to 36, then draw another dimension.

5. Draw a dimension along the top left horizontal line.


6. Click on the left vertical line to start the dimension.
7. Drag in different directions to see the variety of locations for the dimension.
8. Drag down from the line and click to place the dimension.

9. To create an angular dimension, press and hold the SHIFT key, then click the first
angled line. Release SHIFT, then click on the other angled line and drag up. An
angular dimension appears.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 9 of 14


10. Delete the dimensions.

To place a chain of dimensions


1. From the Dimension toolset, choose the Horizontal Dimension tool.
2. In the top left corner, click and drag the sub-tool palette to the bottom of the
workspace.
3. Click the Horizontal Chain tool. This tool allows you to select two points,
then set a chain of dimensions between the next selection of points.
4. On the Inspector, click the Value tab and change the Arrow Leader value to 1.0, then
press ENTER.
5. Position your cursor on the bottom right endpoint of the object and click to set the
first point.
6. Drag to the center of the nearest circle and click to set the second point and place the
dimension.

7. Drag and click on each circle’s centerpoint to create a chain of dimensions from point
to point.
8. Click the bottom left endpoint to finish.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 10 of 14


To place multiple dimensions from a baseline
1. From the Dimension toolset, choose the Horizontal Dimension tool.
2. From the sub-tool palette, choose the Horizontal Baseline tool. Using this
tool, you pick two points to define the first dimension, then subsequent points
picked will be dimensioned from the first point.
3. Click the top left endpoint of the object to start the dimension.
Drag to the right, to the nearest endpoint, and click to set the dimension.
4. Delete the baseline dimensions.
5. On the Inspector, click the Value tab. We’ll change the formatting before placing the
dimension.
6. Type 1″ in the First Offset text field and press the ENTER key. The offset controls
the distance between the dimensions along the baseline.
7. Click the object’s top left endpoint to start the dimension.
8. Drag to the right, to the nearest endpoint, and click to set the next point of the
dimension.
9. Drag down and over, to the endpoint where the angled lines intersect, and click to set
the next point of the dimension.
10. Drag up and over, to the next endpoint, and click to set the next point of the
dimension.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 11 of 14


To display circle dimensions
1. From the Dimension toolset, choose the Radial Out Dimension tool. This tool
also has a sub-tool palette with different styles of radial dimensions.
2. Click on the circle to the left. The radius is displayed outside the circle.

3. From the sub-tool palette, choose the Diameter Out Dimension tool. This tool
will automatically place a dimension of the diameter outside the circle, or arc.
4. Click on the circle second in from the left. The diameter appears outside the circle.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 12 of 14


5. From the Dimension toolset, choose the Center Mark Dimension.
6. You can change the overlap on the Data Entry window. Type .25 in the Axis
text field and press ENTER.
7. Click on each of the circles to place a Center Mark Dimension.

To create callouts
1. From the Dimension toolset, choose the Balloon Dimension tool. Notice a
sub-tool palette appears with a variety of options.
2. Click the Callout Dimension tool. This allows you to place a string of text.
3. On the Data Entry window, type “Drill close to Tolerance” in the Text field
and press ENTER.
4. Click on a quadrant of the left-most circle to set the first point of the balloon.
5. Drag up and slightly to the right and click to set the second point and place the
dimension.

Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 13 of 14


Text, Dimensions & Measuring Tutorial Page 14 of 14

You might also like