ES123735

Advanced Anxiety-Free Isometric Configuration in

AutoCAD Plant 3D
Kenneth Fauver
Autodesk, Inc

Learning Objectives
 Learn how to customize an isometric style using Project Setup in AutoCAD Plant 3D
 Learn how to do specific advanced customization directly in the IsoConfig.xml file
 Understand the different parts and syntax of the IsoConfig.xml file
 Learn how to create an isometric style template for future use

Description
This class will cover the proper methods for customizing AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018 isometric
styles using the user interface within Project Setup, supplemented with XML file editing.
Attendees will learn when to use the user interface, as well as gain insight into the advanced
customization available by directly editing the IsoConfig.xml file for the style. Topics covered will
include understanding how filters are used in the isometric configuration. We’ll learn the
difference between themes, schemes, memes—and how to manipulate annotations and
dimensions to get the desired isometric deliverable.

Speaker
Ken Fauver has been employed by Autodesk for the past 6 years. He is part of the CS WW
Project Delivery AMER as a Plant 3D and P&ID Implementation Consultant. Previously part of
the ENI & TS-AMER Technical Sales Specialist Team. Concentrating on activities related to
Plant 3D. Ken supports the North American AEC Named Accounts working with Owner /
Operators and other Key Accounts. Has over 25 years’ experience in the Oil and Gas industry
as a Piping Designer, Drafter, and CAD Administrator. Prior to joining Autodesk, Ken worked for
several companies in the Petro/Chemical markets including Wink Engineering, ACPlant dba
Flow Logic International and Jacobs Engineering. My work-related interests include pipe design,
software support and training. Also, worked as a System Administrator, AutoCAD Programmer,
Trainer and CAD Coordinator with several software applications during his pre-Autodesk career.

Page 1
Table of Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 4
Isometric Drawing Setup ............................................................................................................ 5
Symbols and Reference ......................................................................................................... 5
Edit Isometric Symbols ........................................................................................................... 6
Isometric Symbols (SKEY) ..................................................................................................... 6
Isosymbolstyles.dwg ........................................................................................................... 6
Isokeyacadblockmap.xml .................................................................................................... 6
Iso Style Setup ....................................................................................................................... 7
Content paths ..................................................................................................................... 7
Production iso output directory: ........................................................................................... 7
Quick iso output directory: ................................................................................................... 8
Iso Style Default Settings........................................................................................................ 8
Annotations ...........................................................................................................................10
Iso sheet continuation (to) ..................................................................................................11
Iso sheet continuation (from) ..............................................................................................11
Other connected pipe lines ................................................................................................12
Connected equipment nozzles ...........................................................................................12
Drain Annotation ................................................................................................................13
Vent Annotation .................................................................................................................13
Open pipe ends..................................................................................................................14
Closed pipe ends ...............................................................................................................14
Connection text: .................................................................................................................15
Dimensions ...........................................................................................................................17
Themes .................................................................................................................................18
Default Theme ...................................................................................................................18
Fitting To Fitting Theme .....................................................................................................19
Small Bore Piping Theme ..................................................................................................20
Vent/Drain Piping Theme ...................................................................................................21
Offline Instrument Connection Theme ................................................................................22
Existing Piping Theme .......................................................................................................23
Continuation/Connection Piping Theme .............................................................................24
Sloped and Offset Piping ...................................................................................................25
Title Block and Display .......................................................................................................26
Table Setup .......................................................................................................................28
Iso Themes ........................................................................................................................30

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 Title Block Attributes ..........................................................................................................32
IsoConfig.xml ............................................................................................................................36
Autodesk Iso Style Editor Public Beta....................................................................................36
What is the isoconfig.xml .......................................................................................................37
Modifying the IsoConfig XML .................................................................................................38
Themes ..............................................................................................................................38
Split....................................................................................................................................41
Filters .................................................................................................................................41
Miscellaneous Annotation Changes ...................................................................................42
Appendix ...................................................................................................................................47
References: ..............................................................................................................................49
Previous AU Classes .............................................................................................................49

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Introduction
This class will focus on an isometric style that I configured for a customer in the Petro/Chem
industry. These setting are common to most industries and will serve as a starting place for
those of you that are new to configuring Plant 3D isometric.

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Isometric Drawing Setup
This section describes the settings used to setup the AU_Final_ANSI-C Isometric Style.

Note: This isometric style can be used for future projects by updating the isometric title block for
each customer.

Symbols and Reference

This section will allow you to modify SKEY and Annotation symbols.

Figure 1

Changes made in the Symbols and Reference dialog will get written to the IsoSymbolStyles
.dwg and Plant3dIsoSymbols.dwg drawing files.

Visit the ? help documentation.

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Edit Isometric Symbols
Created these new isometric symbol blocks.

Isometric Symbols make use of AutoCAD Blocks along with the use of Dynamic Block
parameter.
For AutoCAD Isometric to recognize this new symbol we need to new SKEY definitions in the
IsoSkeyAcadBlockMap.xml file as shown below.

Isometric Symbols (SKEY)

Isosymbolstyles.dwg
Inserted ExtBodyGateValve block.

Isokeyacadblockmap.xml
Added line item to Valves section

<!-- Begin: Valves -->

<SkeyMap SKEY = "V3??" AcadBlock ="3WayValve"/>
<SkeyMap SKEY = "V4??" AcadBlock ="4WayValve"/>
<SkeyMap SKEY = "AR??" AcadBlock ="ValveAngle"/>
…
…
…
<SkeyMap SKEY = "VE??" AcadBlock ="ExtBodyGateValve"/>
<!-- End: Valves -->

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Iso Style Setup

Figure 2

The Iso Style that was modified for this class is called AU_Final_ANSI-C. Except for Content
paths all other settings in this dialog are set to their default values.

Content paths

The AU_Final_ANSI-C isometric style resides under the following folder:

“C:\Plant 3D 2017 Projects\2017 Projects\AU 2017 Project\Isometric”

Production iso output directory:

Location where the Production Isometrics are created.

“C:\Plant 3D 2017 Projects\2017 Projects\AU 2017

Project\Isometric\AU_Final_ANSI-C\ProdIsos\”

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 Quick iso output directory:

Location where the Quick Isometrics are created.

“C:\Plant 3D 2017 Projects\2017 Projects\AU 2017

Project\Isometric\AU_Final_ANSI-C\QuickIsos\”

View the ? help documentation.

Iso Style Default Settings

When creating isometrics, you have option to change some settings at run time by selecting the
Advanced… button.

Figure 3

View the ? help documentation.

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Or set these values as default through the Iso Style Defaults Settings in Project Setup.

Figure 4

The only setting that were changed are as follows:

 Turn on Overwrite existing files

 Level of congestion to split isometric at: Set to More
 Turn off Export data tables

Visit the ? help documentation.

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Annotations

Figure 5

In the Annotations dialog the following settings have been changed:

 Spool, Welds, and Cut pieces annotation has been turned off.
 Enclosure height and text have been set to 0.09375.

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Iso sheet continuation (to)

Removed (#) from the connection prefix.

Figure 6
Iso sheet continuation (from)
Removed (#) from the connection prefix.

Figure 7

Page 11
Other connected pipe lines

Added (DWG) to the connection prefix.

Figure 8
Connected equipment nozzles

No change to Connected equipment nozzles.

.

Figure 9

Page 12
Drain Annotation

Disable the display of coordinates for drain annotation.

Figure 10
Vent Annotation

Disable the display of coordinates for vent annotation.

Figure 11

Page 13
Open pipe ends

No change.

Figure 12

Closed pipe ends

Disabled the display of closed pipe annotation and coordinates.

Figure 13

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Connection text:

The Connection text box allows you to change the information shown on the isometric
continuation.

For Example:
Out-of-the-box the continuation for a pipeline connected to equipment with look like this

Page 15
Under the Connection and continuations > Connected equipment nozzle > Connection text: add
the following:

<Equipment.Tag>, <Nozzle.Tag>, <Nozzle.Size>-

<Nozzle.PressureClass>LB$<Equipment.PartSizeLongDesc>

Note: The “$” in the text represents typing the “Enter” key to start a new text line.

Results:

Visit the ? help documentation.

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Dimensions

Sets the format for dimensions placed in isometric drawings.

Figure 14
Changed the following settings:

 Dimension text height: 0.0830

 Do not over constrain string dimensions is checked.

Visit the ? help documentation.

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Themes
Specifies dimension, annotation, and isometric symbol scale for piping and override themes.

Default Theme
The default theme specifies isometric options for normal piping.

Figure 15

Page 18
Fitting To Fitting Theme
The Fitting to Fitting theme specifies isometric options for fittings that are connected.
Overrides the Default Theme.

Figure 16

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 Small Bore Piping Theme
The Small-Bore Piping theme specifies isometric options for small bore
fittings and pipe as defined in the Dimension section above. Overrides the
Default Theme.

Figure 17

In this case all pipe and fitting 2” and below are considered Small Bore Piping.

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Vent/Drain Piping Theme
The Vent/Drain Piping theme specifies isometric options for Vent and
Drain piping. Overrides the Default Theme.

The may be some additional configuration changes in the IsoConfig.xml

to get exactly what you want he. Usually must do with modifying or
creating filters. We will discuss this later in this document.

Figure 18

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Offline Instrument Connection Theme
The Offline Instrument Connection theme specifies isometric options for offline
instruments. Overrides the Default Theme. Currently set to not dimension
instruments.

Figure 19

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Existing Piping Theme
The Existing Piping theme specifies isometric options for existing pipe
and fittings. Overrides the Default Theme. Currently set to not to show
dimensions or annotations.

Figure 20

Page 23
 Continuation/Connection Piping Theme
The Continuation/Connection Piping theme specifies isometric options for
continuations and/or connections. Overrides the Default Theme. Currently set to
not to show annotations only.

Figure 21
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 24
 Sloped and Offset Piping
Specifies formatting for sloped lines, including falls, 2D offsets, and 3D offsets.

Figure 22
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 25
 Title Block and Display
Sets up the title block for isometric drawings.

Figure 23

Selecting the Setup Title Block… button will allow you to modify the isometric title block you
would like to use for your project.

Title Block Insertion

To change out the title block with your custom title block, follow these steps:

1. Insert your title block drawing into the isometric template.

2. Erase the existing Title Block reference.
3. Purge the Title Block block definition.
4. Use the RENAME command to change your company title block name to “Title
Block”.

Page 26
Here we eliminate the tables for Cut Pieces and Welds.

Figure 24
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 27
 Table Setup

BOM Table Layout

This dialog configures the columns and column layout to be used for the Bill of
Material (BOM). Use default values.

Figure 25
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 28
BOM Table Settings
Specifies the bill of materials settings. Use default values.

Figure 26
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 29
Iso Themes
Iso Themes are used to control which Dimension Style, Multileader Style, Table Style,
Text Style, and Layer Setup.

Default Theme

Figure 27
Override Themes
You can override the default layers for each them. No changes here.

Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 30
 Figure 28

No changes were made to the Override Themes.

Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 31
Title Block Attributes
Automatically fill out the title block from a data source.

Map Title Block Attributes

The isometric configuration allows for two ways to map data to the title block
attributes. You can either map directly to the database properties or you use an
external spreadsheet referred to a Line Designation Table (LDT).

Selecting the Map attributes… button will take you to the dialog that allows you to
map directly to the database properties.

Page 32
For the AU_Final_ANSI-C Iso Style my customer opted for the Line Designation
Table method. Clicking on the LDT Setup tab in the dialog starts this
configuration.

 LDT file (XLS): <drive>\<project root>\Isometric\AU_Final_ANSI-

C\Line List for Isos.xls
 Worksheet name: LNLIST (Tab inside the XLS to be used)
 Header row: 1 (Row number that in considered the header. The spreadsheet can
only have one header row.)
 Line number column: Line# (Name of column containing the Line Number)
 View LDT… (Is everything is correct, this button will show a preview of the
spreadsheet data)

Figure 29

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 Map Title Block Attributes (Cont’d)
Selecting the View LDT… button will show the columns of data in the
spreadsheet.

Figure 30

The columns will now be accessible in the attribute map dialog. Set them as shown.
Notice I have utilized a combination of database properties and LDT columns.

Figure 31

Page 34
Finished title block with all attributes assigned.

Figure 32
Visit the ? help documentation.

Page 35
IsoConfig.xml
Some isometric configuration requires modification of the IsoConfig.xml file. Meaning there was not a
setting in the user interface to change or I needed to tweak the setting further to get the results needed.
I will outline those changes in this section.

Autodesk Iso Style Editor Public Beta

Hello Plant 3D Beta forum participants,

I'm pleased to announce that we have just made available the Autodesk Iso Style Editor
Public Beta to you for testing!

We know how difficult it is having to navigate and work with the Iso Config XML file when
tweaking the finer details of Iso Styles, so the team has put together the Iso Style Editor to
try and simplify things for you.

You can work with a Properties table UI, and still have access to the XML when you need it!

Go to the DOWNLOADS page to watch our getting started video, check out the PDF guide,
and download the Iso Style Editor!

Next, let us know your thoughts! The FORUM for the Iso Style Editor is here.

Have a friend that isn't part of the forum yet? Send them this invite link:
https://goo.gl/AoSxBG

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What is the isoconfig.xml

Xml stands for eXtensible Markup Language. Although called, a language, it’s better to think of
xml as a way of organizing information for developers. Xml is closer to customizable database
format than a programming language. For further information on using XML please read:
http://www.w3schools.com/xml/xml_whatis.asp

Information within xml is grouped within tags by including sub-tags, and/or attributes. The
contents and types of tags are completely definable by the developer. The xml follows a loose
structure dictated here: http://www.w3schools.com/xml/xml_tree.asp.

In short, xml is organized in a tree hierarchy with elements indicated by brackets. Applying the
structure to the isoconfig.xml, our root element is the element IsoconfigDefinition.

Xml definitions:

<Tag> – a value surrounded in brackets. Same for Parent and Child elements.

<Tag/> – an element (tag) is closed with a slash “/”. Same for Parent and Child elements.

Attributes – A property of a tag residing within its brackets, i.e. <Tag IsLinear=”true”/>. The
IsLinear value is an attribute that has a true or false value.

Comments – Comments are surrounded with <!-- and closed with !-->.

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Modifying the IsoConfig XML

Themes
A theme is a named configuration for Dimensions, Annotations, Bend, Elbow,
Symbols, and Insulation.

Default Theme
Default dimension format cutoff. All dimension 12” and above are shown
as feet and inches instead of 24 and above.

Formatting of the line number annotation. This example changes the format to
<Line#>-<Size>-<Spec>

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Fitting To Fitting Theme
Fitting to fitting dimension format cutoff. All dimension 12” and above are
shown as feet and inches instead of 24 and above.

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Small Bore Piping Theme
To turn off the dimensioning of plugs for small bore piping “Overall”.

To turn off the dimensioning of plugs for small bore piping “String”.

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Split
The split section controls how the isometric engine will break up the model into
drawings

To change the number of components shown as dashed for the continuation.

Also includes flanges.

Filters

Added new filters for changes made to Small Bore Piping Theme above.

Eliminate insulation break symbol at iso message.

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Miscellaneous Annotation Changes

Prevent the valve text from being grouped with other annotations and have the leader
stop at center of BOM tag.

Default Theme > Annotations > AnnotationSchemes

Separate the annotation from the BOM tag.

Default Theme > Annotations > AnnotationSchemes

Page 42
Resolve the issue of valves with different descriptions being grouped into one
row in the BOM.

Resolve the issue of pipe supports with different descriptions being grouped into
one row in the BOM.

Page 43
Resolves the issue of pipe being separated into two rows with identical
descriptions and sizes in the BOM.

Resolves the issue of valves with different descriptions being grouped into one
row in the BOM.

Page 44
To enable inline instruments to be listed in Iso BOM add the following.

The SizeDelimiter can be made lower case.

Page 45
Also, within the Data section, the Index on an AggregatedList may include a character
attribute which includes characters that are allowed as the index.

Page 46
Appendix
Variable Filter Values (including but not limited to the following):
Type – all components. Example: "Type = 'Bend'"
DIRECTION – for valve operators. Example: “DIRECTION='E'"
UNDIMENSIONED – Boolean property of an isometric message
END1, END2 – end conditions. Example: FL, BW, SC, SW, CP, etc.
SHORTRADIUS – short radius elbow flag. Valid value: SR
Service – service property for a component
Category – shop or field items. Valid values: ERECTION-ITEM, FABRICATION-ITEM,
OFFSHORE-ITEM
SymbolName – connector symbol. Example: FieldWeld
Length – Pipe length
FieldItem – flag for field items
Existing – flag for existing items
ITEM-CODE – ITEM-CODE property from the piping spec or catalog
ConnectionSize – size of a component end connection in decimal units
SpoolNumber – spool number property for a component
[FLAT-DIRECTION] – for eccentric reducers
[TRACING-SPEC] – tracing spec property for a component
[REFERENCE-TO] for continuations
[REFERENCE-FROM] – for continuations
[ANGLE-CDEG] – cutback elbow degrees
TEXT – for messages
MPVLEVEL – for multiport valves
MaxPipeLength – for fixed length pipe
SKEY – Isometric symbol SKEY

Page 47
Valid Operators:

LIKE – contains a string and is usually used with a wildcard. Example: "Type LIKE 'TEE*'"
= - exactly matches. Example: "Type='Support'"
NOT - inverts the operation. Example: "NOT [ITEM-CODE] IS NULL" means that when the
value for ITEM-CODE is not NULL (blank).
OR – one condition or another. Best if enclosed with parentheses. Example: "Type='FLANGE-
BLIND' OR Type='CAP'"
AND – one condition as well as another. Best if enclosed with parentheses. Example: "Type
LIKE '*Weld' AND Category='FABRICATION-ITEM'"
() – for grouping logical conditions. Example: "Type = 'olet' AND (SKEY='LASC' OR
SKEY='LASW' OR SKEY='LABW')"
‘ – for enclosing literal text. Example: "Type = 'END-CONNECTION-PIPELINE'"
* - wildcard. Example: "Type LIKE '*Weld'”
&lt; - less than “<” symbol. Example: (ConnectionSize &gt; 0 AND ConnectionSize &lt;= 2)
means “ConnectionSize is greater than 0 but less than 2”.
&gt; – greater than “>” symbol. Example usage: “&lt;&gt;” is the same as “not equal to”

Page 48
References:
Autodesk Knowledge Network
AutoCAD Plant 3D 2018 Help
De-Mystifying AutoCAD Plant 3D Isometrics Configuration Reference
Microsoft Developer Network

Previous AU Classes
(AU2015) ES10519-L: Customize Your AutoCAD Plant 3D Isometric Configuration - Mike
Musgrave
(AU2014) PD6442-L: Configuring AutoCAD Plant 3D Isometrics - Bernd Gerstenberger
(AU 2013) PD1392: Setting up Isometrics in AutoCAD Plant 3D - Carsten Beinecke

Page 49