Column Grid tool

Question

Regarding grid we are getting two grid balloons are overlapping each other, And Grid text and dimension text appear same height, whereas we need Grid text &ndash; 3.5 and dimension text-2.5.

Marc Thomas · Accepted Answer

Hi, sorry, yes you are correct, we do not have a fix for that at present, Enhancement 74789 was filed concerning operation of the Grid Lines settings. We are working on a number of enhancements to the grid systems tool targeted for a future version of ABD.

Marc

Paul Wagner · Answer

I'd like to offer up these findings and workflow I've come up with. This dimension workflow is a work around. But, it is perfectly doable and uses the familiar dimension tools and dimension styles settings. 
 First, you can adjust the location of individual grid bubbles in the Grid Systems > Grid Line Settings pane: Bottom Ext. (Plotted), Top Extn. (Plotted), Left Extn. (Plotted), Right Extn. (Plotted). 
 These settings override the Bubble > Plotted Offset setting in the Drawing Settings (so the setting there populates the Bottom Ext. (Plotted), Top Extn. (Plotted), Left Extn. (Plotted), Right Extn. (Plotted) as the default). 
 
 Second, in Ss4 the dimensions end up on the same level as the grid lines. This has been fixed in Ss5. 
 I've consider the dimensions created by the Grid Systems utility to be "reference" dimensions, in my experience I have multiple dimension lines related to the grid: overall, major column grid to major column grid, major column grid to minor column grid, etc. (as you can see the red dimension lines and white dimension text in the above screen capture). 
 So, I created a level named S-GRID-REFERENCE. I am using two dimension styles. One dimension style, Grid Dimensions , I set to use the S-GRID-REFERENCE level and set that as the dimension style in Drawing Settings > Grid Lines > Dimensions > Style in the Grid Systems settings. 
 
 The second dimension style, My Grid Dimensions , I set to use the level S-GRID-DIMS and use that dimension style to place the dimensions right in the grid system models. 
 In Ss4, the Create/Update Grid Models will put the dimensions on the same level as the grid lines S-GRID-LINE (again, this is fixed in Ss5) . To fix this I simply go to the Dimensions Styles dialog box (Main pull-down Menu > Element > Dimension Styles), right click on the Grid Dimensions style and select Remap Elements... then select Destination Grid Dimensions, this is a one time operation for the whole DGN file. The reference grid lines created by the Grid Systems are now on S-GRID-REFERENCE level and can be turned off independent of the grid lines. 
 The all purple dimensions are my "reference" dimensions. The red ones are my dimensions for plotting, etc. I reference the grid to the plan drawings. I still use the Show Grid Systems option in drawing Reference Presentation for sections and elevations, as Marc referred to in his post. 
 
 Lastly, if the dimensions I place manually are associative and the Grids are updated they loose the association. I can element select everything in the grid models use Reassociate Dimension tool. And, use Modify Element or Element Selection handles to modify the manually placed dimensions. In this case I am not so sure using the Association setting be imperative. And of course these additional dimensions can be placed in drawings and sheets as you see fit.

Marc Thomas · Answer

In the Grid Systems dialog click the Settings icon at top left, the Grid Lines tab includes separate settings for labels, dimensions and bubble sizes. I can see that in a case where grid lines are close together bubbles may overlap, we do not have a solution for that at present.

Marc

Marc Thomas · Answer

The current Grid Systems tool is the first stage of planned replacement/improvements to the Grid tool previously provided in Bentley Architecture and earlier versions of ABD. It is recognised that there are limitations to the current version of the tool and a number of Defects and Enhancement requests have been logged for further development. 
 The Grid Systems tool is designed to work with Dynamic views, and very importantly in the wider context of our product range, with our Structural tools to allow grids to be used across a range of our Building applications. Neither of these were possible with the old grid tool. 
 We do not have workarounds for the current limitations of the Grid Systems tool other than conventional manual methods that do not use the Grid Systems tool. For instance, modifying the grid models that are generated by the Create/Update Grid option is not a workaround as these models are an output of the underlying schema, any changes made to them would be overwritten by a subsequent update and also would not show up in Building Views when the 'Show Grid Systems' box is ticked. 
 Please post the related SR number here.