From the Ground Up

UK and Ireland Country Kit - Online

This year I decided to wait until the release of the British English language version of Civil 3D this year before published my help documentation to the country kit.  So I have posted it online.

To download it click this link

 

Also new this year I have put together a couple of videos to explain what the country kits are and how to install them and some of the detail of what the UK and Ireland kit entails.

You can find it by clicking this link

 

Or by selecting the links from the tool palette if you are using the UKIE icon to start AutoCAD Civil 3D 2013.

 

Jack Strongitharm

Are you using BIM on Infrastructure Projects?

 

A new McGraw Hill Smart Market Report on the business value of BIM for Infrastructure shows that nearly half of the firms responding to the survey are currently using BIM on infrastructure projects. Spatial coordination and structural analysis were cited as contributing the highest value to the 67% of all users who reported a positive return on their BIM investment.

 

Do you agree?  The Autodesk Industry Strategy team for Engineering, Natural Resources and Infrastructure would like to learn a little bit more about how you are using and benefiting from the use of 3D modeling technologies, even if you aren’t. Could you spare 5 or 10 minutes to take this brief survey?

 

We’re trying to reach 1,000 survey responses within the week, so thanks in advance to anyone who helps us reach this goal by sharing the survey link with your engineering and infrastructure followers.  https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ADSKBIM

 

Jack Strongitharm

Autodesk / SAP integration white paper

You may have heard us speak about how industry data models in AutoCAD Map 3D can be used to integrate with ERP systems such as SAP to enable asset budget planning.

We have just released a new white paper, entitled An Approach to Integrated Design and Asset Data Management Workflows, that describes in some detail how integration with SAP and other systems can be achieved. 

This paper (posted on Autodesk.com) explores one approach to implement an integrated workflow in an environment, with solutions including AutoCAD Utility Design and AutoCAD Map 3D software, as well as common utility enterprise asset management systems such as SAP.

http://images.autodesk.com/adsk/files/autodesk_sap_whitepaper_en_letter.pdf

John Allen

SMART board Integration with Navisworks

The team over at SMART Technologies have been working with IDS Engineering to create a plugin to use Autodesk Navisworks on their interactive whiteboards. They're a great tool for coordination meetings, and demonstrating design intent to clients. See the YouTube video below.

via beyonddesign.typepad.com

This looks really useful to engage with your designs in project meetings.

Jack

Google Earth Utilities with R2013 products

Just wanted to make you aware of one post that explains to some of you who wondered about Google Earth in Civil 3D 2013. Here is a forum post with an official statement from Autodesk posted by Dave Simeone, Senior Product Manager for Civil 3D.

via beingcivil.typepad.com

A note on Google Earth and R2013 products.

It's like buses. You wait and wait and then two come along ... and some stuff about Industry Model Workflows

A few days ago John (who may or may not have gone to University) posted about the power of data modelling in AutoCAD Map 3D. Beyond providing set structures and information for your data these data models provide powerful business rules (trying to connect a gas main to a water pipe would be a big no no ..computer says no, for example), analysis tools and reporting capabilities.

One of the tools available in data models are workflows. These are set procedures that govern how you undertake certain tasks; data creation, maintenance, analysis and so on. Autodesk have provided many workflows if you are using one of the standard Industry models. These are accessed in AutoCAD Map 3D in the Industry Model Explorer:

That's great ..but what if you create you own data model (which you are more than welcome to do!) and want to create your own workflows. How easy is this? I'm not going to lie, you need to be a bit geeky and do some programming! Worflows are created using the .NET API (either C# or VB.NET). And there are 2 types: simple workflows can be created directly in the Infrastructure Administrator. More advanced workflows which require additional interface dialog boxes require you to create a dll using a visual studio application. Don't panic.. free express versions are available from http://www.microsoft.com/express.

Because Jack will frown on me if I use up pages of the blog, and also because I've been overcome by laziness, I've uploaded a document which shows you how to create simple and more advanced workflows:

Download Workflows

Enjoy the geekiness! And happy easter bunny stuff!

Neil Brooker. BA, MSc (honest)

It's about time ... and some stuff about SketchUp files

It’s about time …..

 Jack and Jill, sorry, John, have been badgering me (and not in a good way) to get my act together and connect with the ‘blogosphere’. So while they are busy fetching pales of water I shall oblige.

 First up is a little gem of an app for AutoCAD and AutoCAD Civil 3D. Ever sat there day after day like me wondering where you could possibly get free 3D content for your design visualisation project? Things like buildings, cars, boats, dogs, nurses, fruit stalls, football stadiums, weapons of mass destruction?  Well, worry no more. On the Autodesk Exchange for AutoCAD site you can download a free app that will allow you to download any free SketchUp content from the Google 3D Warehouse.

 In this example I will show you how to download, translate and use .skp files in Autodesk Infrastructure Modeller. For those of you who are unaware of AIM, it is a very powerful 3D conceptual design tool and is, in technical terms, very, very cool. Find out more at: http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/pc/index?id=17276659&siteID=123112

 Ok, it’s as simple as I am:

1)      Launch Autodesk Exchange from your AutoCAD Application (top right of the menu bar)

 

2)      Select the AutoCAD store:

 

3)      Select the SketchUp Import tool to download

 

4)      Install the app and follow the instructions as below using either AutoCAD or AutoCAD Civil3D

5)      Once your 3D model has been imported to AutoCAD simply use the AutoCAD export tool to export to an FBX format file

6)      You can now import your FBX file into Autodesk Infrastructure Modeller as a 3D Model! Below are some examples I made of London (England, for those of you in the States) using building and aircraft models from Google 3D Warehouse.

 

7)      And just to prove that you can get almost anything on 3D warehouse (and some people really DO have too much spare time), here’s King Kong attacking the Gherkin. It’s a little known fact that pickled
cucumbers are a staple food of large gorillas!

 Bon Appetite!

Neil Brooker. PhD. (Just kidding)

De-mystifying spatial data modelling

Spatial data management and the creation of industry specific data models can be perceived as a dark art, reserved only for people with lab coats and PhDs in GIS, IT and database administration.

I prefer to bypass much of this and focus on some of the questions that the industry data models in AutoCAD Map 3D and Autodesk Infrastructure Map Server can answer, for example:

• Is pipe A connected to pipe B?
• When does this road need to be resurfaced?
• Can I take turn my survey data into a structured, master data set?
• Can I standardise data input?
• Why is that line blue?
• Can we adhere to our client’s data structure?
• Can I restrict access to this information?
• How much do we need to invest in pipe replacement this year?

By focussing on these areas, it becomes clear that a little bit of effort up-front to define tables, input forms and workflows has long term advantages. Applying attributes and structure to data relating to geometries brings efficiency and standardisation in data entry (see below) as well as numerous downstream benefits that can be gained through analysis, reporting and long term asset management.

The challenge for Autodesk has been to take these capabilities and make them more broadly accessible and large strides have been made in this area recently.  A potted history:

• 2005 – Autodesk obtain TOPOBASE, an Oracle-based family of geospatial applications and data management solutions through the acquisition of c-plan
• 2005 – 2011 – Customers rolling out TOPOBASE solutions alongside core Autodesk technology
• 2011 – TOPOBASE functionality built into with AutoCAD Map 3D 2012 and Autodesk Infrastructure Map Server 2012 (formerly MapGuide Enterprise)
• 2011 – Data modelling capabilities offered as embedded industry models, making these functions available to all AutoCAD Map 3D users in a DWG format.  Oracle version still available for enterprise scale deployments.
• 2012 – AutoCAD Map 3D 2013 now supports SQL Server as a third option for storing industry data models
• 2012 – New tools available in AutoCAD Map 3D 2013 for automatically converting GIS and CAD data into intelligent data models.  See workflow here: http://videos.autodesk.com/map_3d_convert_gis_cad_data_1_video_924x520.webm

The last few releases have dramatically streamlined the process of creating, populating and using industry data models.  For example, I recently created a small data model for a tree survey with look-up tables and data entry forms, imported a DWG survey layer into the model and used it to classify the data in the centralised data model… all in less than an hour!

It’s examples like these that prove data modelling no longer has to be a huge, complex task; next time that survey is run the user will have a base layer to work from, a standardised data structure and defined forms to use for maintaining records.

And for the record, I don’t have a PhD…

John Allen

Where are the Civil View Tutorials?

Caught me out this, but all the tutorials for 3DS Max Design have been moved to online. Probably to keep the installer from getting bigger.

So if you need to use them and learn, here is the link.

Link to tutorials

 

Thanks to Ian McGregor for hunting these down.

 

Jack Strongitharm

ADN Plugins for Civil 3D

This time of year, all focus goes to the new software releases. Therefore some other cool tools get less attention... Here are 2 useability plugins for civil 3D that are worth looking at

Plugin Of The Month - Pipe2Pline For AutoCAD Civil 3D 2011 & 2012

The “plugin of the month" is brought to you by the Autodesk Developer Network (ADN). These plugins are developed by Autodesk or by other ADN members.
This plugin is a tool for AutoCAD Civil 3D that creates a 3D Polyline from a selected part of a Pipe Network. To do this it asks the user to select the starting and ending Pipe or Structure, then finds the shortest path between them.

http://labs.autodesk.com/utilities/ADN_plugins/

Solid Cut Surface for Civil 3D 2012

This plug-in generate an AutoCAD Civil 3D TIN Surface below an
AutoCAD solid element. This plugin only works with Civil 3D 2012 and .NET Framework 4.0

 http://labs.autodesk.com/utilities/ADN_plugins/supported_apps/