The Wall Tool

In this Task

• The Wall tool will be used to create an exterior wall by ‘tracing’ approximate lengths over the inserted image.
• A curved wall will be added within the Wall sequence.
• The Wall Arc tool will be used to insert a curved wall after a wall sequence is finished.

Associated Tasks

• Adding a menu to the Tools palette.
• Changing layer properties.
• Using GEO Auxiliary Lines and Magnetic Points by activating the GEO tab.

Before you Start

• Activate the GEO tab at the base of the workspace.

Take Note

• The GEO snap should be used throughout the conceptual sketch process as it assists with the alignment of line endpoints.

Architecture Menu

Architecture

This menu can be added to the Sketch menu of the Tools palette during any tasks relating to Architectural drawings.

Activate the Sketch menu in the Tools palette, then select Panels Setup in the Tools palette shown by the top arrow below. Double click onto the Architecture tool to display this menu in the Tools palette. Click OK.

Adding another menu to the Tools palette

This will display the Architecture menu in the Tools palette. This menu can be disabled using the reverse process.

The Wall Tool

Ribbon : Architecture | Walls | Wall

Default Menu : Architecture | Walls | Wall

Palette : Panels Setup | Architecture | Walls

This tool draws interior and exterior walls of a floor plan by creating a double line drawn from either a left, center or right reference point.Wall parameters such as width, height and a predefined hatch pattern can be input prior to drawing by right-clicking onto the Wall tool.Modifications to these parameters is done using the Selection Info palette or the Properties Sheet.

 

This is a conceptual sketch only, created to capture the overall layout of the floor plan. For this reason, all walls will be drawn to an equal width.

Right click onto the Wall tool and select the Wall page. Create a Thickness of 110 and a Height of 2700. The reference is set to Center. Click OK.

For the purpose of conceptual sketching, a heavier line with a brighter color is selected so as to distinguish between the image and the Walls.

Left click onto the Wall tool in the Architectural menu panel, then select a brighter color from the Color drop-down.  In this example, the Green color is used. Create a slightly denser line by inputting .75 into the Line Width drop down, shown below.

Setting a brighter color and denser line width

From the base of the editor, activate the GEO snap, then zoom into the top area of the image if necessary.

Starting at the top left corner of the image, left click to start the wall.

Hold down the SHIFT keyboard key whenever a straight line is required and draw the first few segments, creating an approximate trace line

over the lines provided by the image.

To align the endpoints of a line, similar to the illustration below, make sure the GEO tab is activated, then position to the cursor over the endpoint of the line to which the current line should be aligned, shown below. Do not left click.

Position the cursor so that the current wall segment draws at a 90 angle, shown below. Left click when the auxiliary line shows alignment between the 2 endpoints, shown below.

Repeat this process, using the SHIFT key to maintain a straight line and the auxiliary line and magnetic markers to track to points to which endpoints should be aligned, similar to the illustration below.

Continue this process until the point at the lower left of the sketch is reached. Make sure the endpoint of this wall aligns with the first point at the top left corner of the image, then select Close the Current Wall option at the base of the workspace.

The result of the conceptual sketch is shown below. The illustration below is shown with the Layer 0 switched off. This is the layer on which the image resides.

Outline of outer wall

Arc Wall

Wall tool | Right click | Wall Arc

This Wall option allows the drawing of a curved wall using the same properties as the Wall tool.The Arc Wall tool can be used within a Wall sequence or independently.The Arc Wall tool is accessed by selecting the Wall tool, then selecting the Arc Wall option from the status bar at the base of the editor. The right click option can also be used to access the Arc Wall tool after activating the Wall tool.The Link Wall Segments option allows the Arc Wall segment to be connected to existing wall segments, removing the join to create a linked wall.

In this task, the Arc Wall option will be used to draw curved wall on the top outside wall, shown below.

Drawing the Arcs using Polylines

Select the Wall tool and make sure the Wall layer is activated.

Right click and Arc Wall and the Link Wall Segments options.

Left click at the select the vertex point shown as point 1 below to start the Arc Wall, then draw to the corresponding point shown as point 2 below.

Drawing the curve using Polyline/Polyline Arc

Drag the curve of the wall to Point 3 shown below, then right click and select Finish from the local menu.

Drawing the curve of the Arc Wall

The Arc Wall connects automatically to the existing walls, connecting the wall segments and removing the join, shown below.

Walls linked and connected, joins automatically removed

Arc Wall within Wall sequence

Straight and curved walls can be drawn as part of a single sequence. By using the Wall/Arc Wall options, it is possible to switch between these options without ending the wall sequence.

Zoom in to the lower part of the inserted image, the select the Wall tool from the Architecture menu.

Start at the approximate point to that shown below.

Draw the straight part of the wall, holding down the SHIFT key to constrain the angle to 90°

At the start of the curve, right click and select Arc Wall from the local menu, then draw to the opposite wall, shown below.

Drag the Arc Wall to the point shown below, then left click to define the position, similar to that shown by the arrow below.

Right click and uncheck the Arc Wall option, then draw the straight wall so that it connects to the perpendicular aspect of the connecting wall, shown below.

Connecting the last segment of the wall

The connection points of the walls have been integrated and the joins removed.

The result is shown below. The line thickness in the illustration below has been reduced for illustrative clarity.

Zoom to the Extents of the editor to view the entire sketch. In the illustration below, the layer on which the image was inserted, Layer 0, has been switched off to only display the walls. Use the Design Director to do this.

Exterior walls with curved walls shown in thinner outline