Our Cartographic Unit has converted their operation over to use ESRI products and the annotation tool that they use for labeling and various fills cannot be exported to DGN. So we are looking at using Geo-Referenced PDF files for our location maps.
However, we are running into a number of issues. So we are looking for help, in case there are others who have attempted this and found the proper workflow.
We found it necessary to have the PDF files created with Layers, so we can turn off certain items - specifically any border information, as it is often necessary to butt multiple maps together at their edges. So while the example maps seem to offer that capability, the Geo-Reference information is where we have hit a brick wall. I've attached a file that appears to have geo reference info, but MicroStation cannot read it. The following is a message center message from a similar file attachment.
"We cannot create a valid coordinate system for the selected page of the PDF named file://C:\Users\crheault\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Content.Outlook\PG2Q9KXK\GridMap_E13A.pdf because it contains more than one georeferenced area. Use design coordinate system by default.""C:\Users\crheault\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache\Content.Outlook\PG2Q9KXK\GridMap_E13A.pdf"
Also, the level structure in the PDF should be visible in MicroStation. There is a tree structure in Adobe that only lists as a flat structure yet if you can figure out a parent layer name, you can toggle its children from the parent.
I also tried this in ORD 2018 R4 and it was no better.
PDF
When you are in mstn attach a survey file dgn and make sure its all in your prefered GCS..
now go to your pdf.plcfg and Enable Georeferencing...
create your pdf now try and add that to esri as a geopdf... and it will reproject to your datum... why becaus Adobe acrobat expects all its georef pdfs to be WGS84 long lat only...
So if you want your pdfs created in ESRI to be GEOREF CAPABLE in msnt you only have few choices...
1. reproject everything in ESRI to WGS84 long lat before you create your pdf georeps raster file...
and raster ref attach the pdf in msnt with reproject to active datum in active file.
2. Create dont use pdf just export to shp file instead and rebuild your map in msnt from the shp file.
3. export create a Raster file that is a jpg with geo ref in ESRI and ref attach in mstn as a picture via raster manager but geo refed no layers sorry..
or 4...
GET the ESRI person to draw a polygon in esri that covers the area of interest and measure co oridinates of the edges of the data to be made into pdf and send you those coordinates...
This gives you the means to draw a box by coordinates in msnt inthe right projection ... now the esri user creates the pdf , tell them not to georef the pdf (but still have layers?...)
go to mstn and attach the raster ( pdf) interactive by your drawn shape which matches the boundary of the pdf it should now be true projected location and true scale...
This is how we used to do it in old days before GCS was available...in mstn pre v8i...
Lorys
Started msnt work 1990 - Retired Nov 2022 ( oh boy am I old )
But was long time user V8iss10 (8.11.09.919) dabbler CE update 16 (10.16.00.80)
MicroStation user since 1990 Melbourne Australia.click link to PM me
So are you saying its Layers or GEO-REFERENCE - you can't have both?
Charles (Chuck) Rheault CADD Manager
MDOT State Highway Administration Maryland DOT - State Highway Administration User Communities Page
My pdf plt cfg has both when I make pdfs..
But the datum for geopdfs is alway output to WGS84 long lat... I make these in msnt, I believe the ersi product behaves differently..
So I suspect the esri user needs to temporarily change the projection to WGS84 long lat before they create your georef layered pdf output and you ref attach that through mstn Raster manager and let it reproject the pdf to match your active drawing GCS datum in northings and eastings.. thats what I do with long lat rasters images ie long lat maps images that are georefed...
They tried changing the projection, but it seems like the entire PDF is in Lat Long, but inside the neat line, its in US Survey Feet. I can measure distances in the PDF and get sheet units outside the neat lines but real world units inside the map limits. So Clearly, there are still multiple units in the PDF. They need to allow me to view the projections found in the PDF and select which to use.
I guess I need to log a TR or R or whatever they call them.
ok, when the esri user has the neatline corners of the map that is the extents of the map in pdf too right, so if they were to tell you the coords of all 4 corners extents in long lat and in nothing easting projection..
now in msnt make a drg in northing eastings projection the same draw a closed polygon via the extents of map via xy given...now change the cgs to long lat and let it re-project etc
create new file in northing eastings projection datum now ref attach the re projected file the boundary will now be visable as the reprojected Long lat extents.. we can now raster ref attach pdf raster and try using the re-project via inherited and other options until it lands exactly over the drawn boundary.. if you still cant get it right you can at least warp raster the attachment wont be perfect but at what scale will it start to matter...even corrected satellite imagery is never perfect enough to match actual ground survey its always a little bit off and survey is only published to 50mm accuracy for land titles..
I have to find out exactly what they did, but late Friday, they delivered a file that worked a treat! It was close of business (actually past that), but the last thing I saw was a correctly geo-referenced PDF - finally. I am pretty sure your feedback was a big help.
Update: They created the PDF from the Data View, which does not contain the Titles, Legend, Etc. The others were created using the Layout View.
yep that will change the coords as thats the map paper view not the data view where your cgs is set... but its still Long Lat in pdf