i am a student i am unable to understand relation between element template, feature defination and style amnager. i am unable to under stand if we use element template for element propertie then why feature defination and if we use feature defination then why element template what is relation between these.how we attach these files.where are these files... for example if i want in an aligment i want different colours for line and curves where i will make changes...element template or feature defination.actualyy i want to understand relation between highlighted in attached pic.
Thanks
The XIN file is a "legacy" file that provided graphic and command settings for InRoads. Its use with Open Roads is part of a migration strategy from Bentley. It allows large organizations with many years of development in those files begin migrating them to Open Roads. Additionally, certain settings and workflows of Open Roads still must be performed via these legacy products.
It can be used to bulk create Feature Definitions using the Link XIN File command. This creates a feature definition for every Feature Style in the XIN file. In most cases, those feature definitions have settings that mimic the settings of the XIN (Feature) Style Manager. and in those settings, there is a place where an Element Template or a Native Style can be used. By default, the majority of these will be Native Style.
Certain Feature Styles only create point feature definitions, others only create linear feature definitions while still others create surface feature definitions. Any Style in the XIN may generate on or more of these types of feature definitions. One difference between XIN Styles and Open Roads Feature Definitions is that feature definitions have a Plan and a 3D mode. In an XIN file, InRoads used Plan for 2D or 3D displays.
Additionally, XIN files have a Default mode. If it is defined, its display settings are used for any of the Plan, Profile or Cross Section modes that are not defined. This can also effect the feature definitions that are generated.
The feature definition for 3D surfaces must come from an Element Template and Components in an XIN usually need to be exported from the XIN as an XML file and then imported into a DGNLIB as an element template.. In actual practice, even a well thought out XIN file may not generate the full XML file that is needed for any surface feature definitions that are generated with a 3D component element template. There are other posts describing this.
Note too, that all XIN Style reference one or more Named Symbologies. These are more or less the InRoads equivalent of an element template. Element Templates were added to MicroStation long after InRoads had implemented Named Symbologies.
So why all these different items? Civil Design uses 2D Plan, Profiles and Cross Sections. Element Templates do not address anything of these. For Open Roads to function, it needed some type of methodology to allow the assignment of many of the settings that the 3 Bentley Civil Applications possessed.
(Yes, Bentley owns 3 different Civil Applications - MX, InRoads and GEOPAK. These were acquired over a span of a number of years by buying them from other companies. Open Roads represents the future of these products, each of which had a sizable number of large clients. Rather than force them to switch from any one of these to a single product, they have been enhancing each product over the last few years with many items that we now know as Open Roads.)
Getting back to feature definitions - these were developed to add functionality to element templates that could not be added directly to MicroStation.
The next release of Open Roads eliminates the XIN file and adds a symbology set of tools to address those things that were still needed to bridge between feature definitions and element templates.
Charles (Chuck) Rheault CADD Manager
MDOT State Highway Administration
I'll give you some links to videos you can watch to gather more information on the subject.
1. There is a course on the learn server titled, "Setting Up OpenRoads Technology: Features" which covers the topic of feature definitions and element templates. It I located at the bottom of the "OpenRoads Technology - Advanced Learning Path."
Link to Advanced Learning Path:
2. Here is a link to a series of videos on feature definitions:
3. Here is a link to a video that touches on the topic of style manager:
4. There is a lot of good content on the Civil Design wiki for OpenRoads information: