TERRAIN TOOLS (CIVTOOLS) IN MICROSTATION 2023
Did you know that you can get the same results using MicroStation 2023 features without old CivTools? How?
The following is a list of CIvTools capabilities and their corresponding MicroStation 2023 features that can be used to achieve the same results:
1. Place Contour - Used to place 3D line-strings or curve-strings that represent contours. Turn on the Planar option to place contours. If the Planar option is off, you can key in different elevations for each data point to allow breaklines to be easily defined.
- Use the normal place SmartLine tool. Use AccuDraw or use Set Element Elevation.
2. Label Contour - This allows you to label contours individually or in groups. You can label groups by striking a line across all the elements to be labelled. Only contours on major or minor contour levels (as defined in the CivTools parameters) are processed.
- Already present. (Modeling > Terrain Tools > Label Terrain Contours)
3. Place Breakline - Provides the ability to place breaklines as lines or curves at a specific elevation and optionally increment or decrement the elevation of successive vertices.
- Use SmartLine with AccuDraw.
4. Place Coordinate - This allows you to place a coordinate marker with the respective Northing and Easting coordinates (and optionally the elevation) of an identified point. You can choose the output prefixes and suffixes as well as the order of the NE or EN coordinate output (the latter is in the Coordinates tab of the Civil Tool Properties dialogue).
- Already exists as Label Point Coordinate. Add Place Leader and Place Note options to existing Label Point Coordinate.
5. Modify Contour - This allows you to modify contour vertices without modifying the vertices' elevation.
- Use Modify Element commands.
6. Set Elevation by Crossing - Modify the elevations of sequential contours (identified by a crossing line) to a user-specified absolute or delta interval.
- Use the Modify Element command with AccuDraw.
7. Set Element Elevation - This enables you to set the Z value for all vertices of a line-string, curve-string, or complex string to a specified value.
- Already exists as Set Element Elevation.
8. Place Spot Elevation - This enables you to place text and an optional marker to marker elevation. The elevation can either be keyed-in or taken from the datapoint elevation.
- Already present as Place Point.
9. Place Composite Curve - Provides the ability to place "curves" using straight lines and arcs.
- Use SmartLine with Join Elements to true and set Vertex to Rounded.
10. Civtools settings - Allows you to set the level, symbology, and size of all the elements placed using the Civil/Site tools.
- This is the old implementation of Element Templates.
Additionally, we have prepared for you the ribbon “Terrain Tools”, which you can download as DGNLIB (TerrainTools_Ribbon.dgnliDGNLIB below) and save in the location specified by the variable “MS_GUIDGNLIBLIST” (File → Settings → Configuration Variables).
In the Modelling Workflow, the tab “Terrain Tools” will be available for use after restarting MicroStation; you can use this DGNLIB to customize the Ribbon as per your requirement.
For more information about customizing the ribbon or for help merging the above ribbon with another DGNLIB please see the following blog series on customizing the ribbon: Customization Blog series: Customizing the Ribbon - Blog 1 of 4 - MicroStation Blog - MicroStation - Bentley Communities