ArborCAD by CAD International. Reference Manual

Transcription

1 Reference Manual This application reference manual is to be read in conjunction with the RealCAD Reference Manual accessible from the HELP menu at the top of your CAD screen. Whilst the RealCAD Reference Manual explains the core CAD software tools, this ArborCAD Reference Manual serves to cover only the tools of the ArborCAD application. About ArborCAD ArborCAD is a software application based on a core CAD engine known as RealCAD. When you purchase ArborCAD you are also getting a version of RealCAD. RealCAD is a very powerful CAD program not unlike AutoCAD, only much easier to learn and use. You will need to learn how to use RealCAD s basic drawing tools before you can fully utilise ArborCAD s automated Arborists tools. You can learn to use RealCAD quickly and easily by enrolling in the online training course available on our web site, then follow up by using this manual to learn and use the ArborCAD tools. Using the online training you ll be producing simple drawings in less than an hour and you don t need to be a computer nerd to do it! ArborCAD allows you to produce accurate professional drawings to specified standards but doesn t limit how you customise and make those drawings look. You can maintain your own individual style. RealCAD and LANDWorksCAD users Because LANDWorksCAD (a landscape architect and landscape designers software application) is also based on the same RealCAD engine, if you are already a LANDWorksCAD user you can simply add the ArborCAD application to your existing software. It is also true that if you are already a RealCAD or ArborCAD user you can add LANDWorksCAD to your software seamlessly. Excel Because ArborCAD will automatically insert trees and tree data from a simple Microsoft Excel file, you will need to have Microsoft Excel installed on your PC. Legal Notice ArborCAD is developed by CAD Australia Pty Limited T/A CAD International. ArborCAD, ArboriCAD names, source code, support materials, web sites and related materials are copyright protected. License to use ArborCAD is granted only by CAD International and is subject to the EULA supplied with the software. No warrantee or guarantee is given by CAD International that the information produced by this software application is accurat, nor should it be used in a court of law. It is the responsibility of the end user to ensure all information is correctly represented on the drawing.

2 Loading the Application When you start your CAD software, it will display either the standard RealCAD menu and Title Bar or the ArborCAD menu and Title Bar as shown. If you can only see the RealCAD menu you will need to load the ArborCAD application and save your settings so that next time you start the software ArborCAD loads automatically. Here s how Select TOOLS > LOAD APPLICATION from the pull-down menu. Select ArborCAD then OK. You should then see the ArborCAD Icon menu. Carefully Drag and Drop the menu to the desired location on your screen. We would suggest the far left side for ease of access without getting in the way of drawing. Now select FILE > SAVE OPTIONS from the pull down menu and wait for the confirmation dialogue to appear as shown (it may take a few seconds), then click OK or

3 Application Menu ArborCAD by CAD International Insert Trees Tool Tree Canopy Tool Encroachment Tool Generate Schedule Insert Group TPZ Quantity Table Insert Fence Fence Module Count About Insert Trees Tool Select this command will display a large dialog box with many options to load tree data you have collected in the field and converted to an excel file manually enter tree data set the style, colour, weight and layer of different parts of your tree drawings select which library Figure you want to use to represent your trees manually insert trees into your drawing or automatically insert trees into your drawing Tree Canopy Tool Select this command to enter data about the position of the tree canopy in relation to its trunk and to then insert a flexible curve into your drawing that fits the shape of the tree s canopy. Generate Schedule Select this command to Place a Tree Schedule into your drawing based on the data you select in the dialog box. For instance a Species Schedule or Tree ID schedule. Quantity Table Select this command to insert a Table showing the number of items in a drawing based on your selection of data fields. For instance to insert a Quantity Table that display how many of each species of tree is in the drawing or how many large trees vs small and medium trees.

4 Encroachment Tool Select this command to automatically compare and adjust a Circle representing a Tree Protection Zone area with an overlapping plane that represents a region that intrudes into the TPZ. If the intrusive region is less than 10% of the area of the TPZ then a new TPZ circle will be inserted. If more, the system will report this also Insert Tree Protection Zone Inserts an irregular shape TPZ boundary around a group of trees. It replaces the individual TPZ circles as it is inserted. The user can use his/her discretion to visually select the correct outer trees that form the boundary. Insert Fence Automatically inserts a series of line segments that represent fence panels around the external edge of the TPZ boundary Fence Module Count Counts the number of individual fence modules or panels required to be ordered for erection on site. About Select this command to display the current version of the ArborCAD application. Before You Start Be sure to set up your drawing with the desired plot scale, default text size, layers, and title sheet border and default hatch pattern before you start to use the ArborCAD tools. This will ensure you can see the text and dimensions correctly and don t have to change things after you have inserted them. We recommend creating a template drawing and saving that drawing in the Templates folder, then each time you start a new drawing you can use File, New from Template. See the section of Template drawings in the RealCAD Manual. Visit for regular update news and downloads of free templates etc.

5 Insert Trees Tool ArborCAD by CAD International Selecting this command displays the following Dialog box. Entering Tree Data Manually Northing and Easting values may be entered manually for each tree location by clicking on the desired cell and typing it in. Height values should be entered in Meters ID should be unique text given to each tree e.g. T001, T002, T003 Species Code can be whatever abbreviation you use to identify the tree species The Add Row button will add another row ready to type into. You can also Tab or Enter your way to the end of the row and new row will be created.

6 Entering Tree Location Data by Screen Click You can have the Northing, Easting and Height Values automatically filled in for a particular row by locating a position in your drawing Select the row in the data field 2. Then select the Locate button 3. Now click on the desired location on screen and the Northing, Easting and Height (if you are using the 3D software) value will automatically be calculated from your click position and get entered into the correct fields. This is a particularly good way to digitise from an existing aerial photograph or map or drawing. Automatically Load Data from File You can automatically populate your data by selecting Load from File

7 A window will appear to allow you to match the columns in your spread sheet with the various attributes of the trees. Northing, Easting, ID and Species are self-explanatory. Must match sheet name in Excel If Row 1 is a Header row then set this to 2 Height position at the base of the tree Trunk diameter just above root buttress Structural Root Zone is calculated from this value Diameter as calculated 1.4m above ground Use these columns for any extra information such as health, type and status of the tree There are several fixed name fields and 10 additional attribute fields to allow you to add more data to your drawing if desired e.g. Health Condition or Soil Type etc. The Sheet Name Field allows you to specify which Sheet (page) in the Excel file to load if you are using an Excel file. The name must match the Sheet name in the file. The Initial Row value allows the users to specify which row of data in the file is the first data row, thus ignoring headers or other rows of information that is not actual data. Note: Once you have established an office standard you will not need to adjust these values each time as the software will remember them for future sessions. Select OK, and then locate the desired Excel XLS, XLSX or TXT file containing the data to import. You may need to wait a short while as the file is converted and imported. Note: If data is already present in the Insert Tree window, the new data will be added to it.

8 Setting Styles Select Set Line Styles to set up the colour, style, weight and layer you want to represent each part of the tree graphics. Click in each field to display and select the desired properties. Be sure to un-tick (un-check) the Use Default option at the end of each row if you want the software to draw with the settings you have chosen. If you leave a row ticked (checked) the software will ignore the settings in this dialog box and use the currently active default settings for Colour, Style, Weight and Layer.

9 Selecting the Tree Figure ArborCAD by CAD International Select Browse to locate the desired figure to use as the graphic to represent your Tree. The following are some of the Figures supplied with the software that you can use to represent your trees. You are not limited by these examples and may design and use your own. Simply open and existing Figure, modify it as desired and save-as a new name.

10 Setting the Insert Options ArborCAD by CAD International Select each of the options you wish ArborCAD to use when inserting the next tree or group of trees into your drawing. All Text items for each tree will be inserted at the centre of the tree location so to avoid having text on top of other text, select only one of the text attributes. For example select only the ID Text or only the Species Code Text On the right hand side of the dialog box select the items you wish to calculate and draw for your trees Trunk Circle inserts a circle that represents the Diameter of the trunk (Stem Diameter) as measured from just above the root buttress if that information is present. Protection Circle inserts a circle representing the Tree Protection Zone (TPZ) using the formula TPZ = DBH x 12 where DBH is the diameter of the tree trunk as measured or calculated by the Arborists at 1.4m above ground Root Zone Circle inserts a circle representing the Structural Root Zone (SRZ) using the formula R SRZ = (D x 50) 0.42 x 0.64 where R SRZ = Radius of the circle and D = Stem Diameter. Protection Plane places a surface plane in the TPZ circle as an optional graphical enhancement Create Group Entity combines the circles figure and text into a single Group entity for each tree.

11 Inserting Trees Select Insert to have the software automatically place all the trees in the table into in your drawing using the settings you have specified. Note: Once the trees have been inserted there is a good chance you will not be able to see them as they may literally be miles away from your current view position. To locate them use the Zoom Fit all entities command and then use the Regenerate Window command and perhaps repeating the Zoom Fit command a second time.

12 Tree Canopy Tool ArborCAD by CAD International Select the Tree Canopy insertion tool to set and insert a curve that represents the possibly distorted shape and position of the canopy of the tree in relation to its trunk. Simply enter the values in the dialog box and select OK Then position your cursor at the centre of the trunk location on the drawing and the system will insert a Curve to represent the canopy of the tree. As this is a curve entity you will be able to select and adjust it manually as desired. The inserted curve will use the Currently Active default settings for Colour, Style, Weight and Layer. You can change it at any time of course.

13 Generate Schedules ArborCAD by CAD International Select the Generate Schedules icon to invoke the following dialog box. From the options in the box tick (check) the items you wish to display in your schedule and from the right hand radio buttons select the one that you wish to use to sort the data. Set the Text Height to a value that works for the scale of drawing you are producing. Select OK then click where you wish the top left corner of the schedule to be inserted. The resultant schedule is made up of simple text and lines that you can move, edit and delete etc. The data is extracted from the existing trees already placed in your drawing.

14 Generate Quantity Tables Select the Quantity Table icon to invoke the following dialog box. From the Tally Field select the item you wish to count. Set the Text Height to a value that works for the scale of drawing you are producing. Select OK then click where you wish the top left corner of the table to be inserted. The resultant Table is made up of simple text and lines that you can move edit and delete etc. The data is extracted from the trees already placed in your drawing.

15 Encroachment/Incursion Tool Selecting this command displays Encroachment Tool that compares the area of a TPZ circle relative to an overlapping plane. If the area of the overlap exceeds 10% of the area of the TPZ circle then a message is displayed and the user is prompted whether to generate a new TPZ circle or not. If the area of overlap is less than 10% of the area of the TPZ Circle then a new larger circle is drawn automatically such that its area has increased by that same percentage. See examples below. At the end of the routine a piece of text is displayed with the percentage value of the incursion. The user can then place this text on the drawing if desired. To use, select the command then select the circle and then the plane.

16 Insert Trees Protection Zone Selecting this command immediately requests the user to select a circle on the tree protection boundary. Selects one of the TPZ circles and then another and a line is drawn between the two selected circles. Continue by reselecting the last circle and then the next circle. Again a new line is inserted. Repeat this process until you have completed the entire loop. The last circle you select should be the same as the first circle you selected. Note: If you have planes/hatching inserted into the circles they will not be deleted.

17 Insert Fence Note: Before using this command you must have a surface plane inside the TPZ boundary. It may be wise to use the Chain Command in the Selection Masks toolbar to select the boundary lines and arcs more easily. Selecting this command displays a small dialog requesting the length of the fence modules that you will be inserting Enter a value and select OK. Now select the plane that represents the TPZ and the software will instantly place a series of lines around the perimeter of the plane to best fit the outline of the TPZ. These fence lines do not encroach on the TPZ.

18 Note: You may need to delete or modify the line segments, especially where they overlap Fence Module Count By selecting this command the software counts and displays the number of fence segments in the drawing and the total length of fencing so they can be ordered accurately