CHAPTER 1: AUTOCAD CIVIL3D 2012 OVERVIEW

AutoCAD Civil 3D 2012 software is a powerful, mature, civil engineering application

designed to significantly increase productivity, save time, and decrease costs. It uses an industry-proven dynamic engineering model that maintains intelligent object relationships, so a change made in one place instantly updates the entire project. Civil3D was built from the ground up as a model-based, multiuser production tool that can help the users overcome the technical and industry challenges that most organizations face. These challenges include the following: Synchronizing design elements and labels across many pages and among many users The time-consuming task of revising designs and drafting Constant industry pressure to do more work with less staff Competition with other firms for the best people Lack of integration of engineering design applications and drafting tools for creating final construction plans sets

CHAPTER 2: AUTOCAD CIVIL3D 2012 ENVIRONMENT

USER INTERFACE enhances the standard AutoCAD environment with additional tools for creating and managing civil design information.
1. 2. 3. Applications Menu contains commonly used AutoCAD functionality. Quick Access Toolbar- contains frequently used tools. Ribbon- provides a single, compact location for commands that are relevant to the current task. It eliminates the need to display multiple toolbars, which reduces clutter in the application and maximizes drawing space. 4. Contextual Tab- contains all the tools related to the selected object.Appears as a tab when an object is selected in the drawing area. 5. Properties Dialog Box- enables to edit the object name, style, and other object-specific parameters. 6. Toolspace- enables user to manage civil objects, styles, and default settings in a drawing. a. Prospector Tab- provides a categorized view of all civil objects present in the drawing. b. Settings Tab- contains a tree structure of object styles and settings for the drawing. Control styles, labels, and command settings for each component of Civil 3D. c. Survey Tab- used to manage survey projects, data, and settings. d. Toolbox- contains tools to create external reports on Civil3D objects in a drawing. 7. Tool Palettes- provide access to a variety of tools and content. The default tool palettes contain corridor subassemblies and assemblies. 8. Context Menu- provides quick access to selected object-related tools. 9. Workspace- are a collection of menus, toolbars, and palettes that load automatically. 10. Graphic Window/ Drawing Area- the main window where the user inputs, modifies, and views visual data. 11. Status Bar- displays status information and includes some controls for changing the view.

CHAPTER 2: AUTOCAD CIVIL3D 2012 ENVIRONMENT

Knowledge Check: 1. 2. 3. Name the four tabs of toolspace. Types of commands available in the Application Menu. The three major wokspaces in AutoCAD Civil3D.

CHAPTER SUMMARY This chapter has focused on describing the basic aspects of the Civil3D User Interface. Students has learned how to navigate, use Toolspace, works with workspaces, and access the interface components to accomplish design and drafting tasks.