Wall Geometry

Walls: Geometry

The Geometry tab view provides access to the primary parameters of a Wall or Ribbon Graphic. Walls have a distinct thickness and an independent border path.

Wall or Ribbon graphics are created with the tools found near the bottom of the technical tool palette. Wall graphics may be joined or mated to other wall graphics. When a joint is formed this palette provides control over the shape of the joint.

This palette tab view is accessed from the Tools Main menu, Walls menu selection. Click the Geometry tab to access these parameters.

A wall has a defined thickness or width. The Thickness parameter is used to inspect or enter this thickness or wall width. This parameter is different than others found on EazyDraw parameter palettes; the numerical thickness value is NOT shown in the Palette Units as defined by the palette Fine Scale. The units and precision of the wall thickness value are those define for the numeric format in use on the Graphic Details Inspector. A resize handle is provided to change wall thickness interactively on the drawing, it is the larger brown rectangle handle found near the start point of the wall graphic.

Auto-Join controls the behavior when the ends of two walls are snapped together. If this parameter is checked the two walls will form a defined joined corner. The automatic join action will form up the mating wall corners and the thickness of the joining walls. Uncheck the parameter to prevent this action. Turning auto-join is important if two different size walls (thickness) are to be mated.

When two walls are mated the shape of the formed corner is defined by the Start and End Join parameters. There are 3 choices, Bevel, Round, and Miter. The figure below shows these three forms. Use the popup menu to select the desired shape for a joined wall end. The end of the selected wall needs to be joined to another wall for these parameters to apply. Setting the parameter for a joined wall will also set the corresponding join shape for the other mated wall.

The Join shape for nodes applies to multi segment wall paths, but not to smooth walls. The shape of the corners at the nodes is controlled with the Nodes popup menu. This parameter does not apply to smooth walls because the shape at their nodes is smoothly transitions across the curve vertices.

Miter Limit applies to mitered joint ends and nodes. The miter joint for a sharply acute angle can protrude a great distance. They would extend an infinite distance for fully acute angle. Therefore a method must be provide to prevent this divergence. The limiting method is the Miter Limit. It is a unit-less ratio of the protrusion length divided by the thickness, or width, of the wall graphic. If this ratio exceeds the Miter Limit parameter value the shape of the corner is changed to a Bevel shape. The Bevel shape algorithm is well defined for all acute angles.

When dimensions are attached to drawings constructed of walls, the detail of the actual dimension measuring positions needs to be considered. A Center dimension will measure from the center line of the wall. Sometimes Inside or Outside dimensions are required. If inside or outside dimensioning is to be used, drawings should be constructed in an clockwise fashion. Drawing in this manner allows the software to distinguish the inside of the composite shape from the outside.

The Thickness and Join parameters may be manipulated interactively with the small resizing handles provided on a selected wall graphic.

Only two of the Wall forms have Nodes, so this popup is often disabled. The two forms with Nodes are the Wall Path and Bezier Wall . Other wall forms have shaped joins but only at their ends - when mated with another wall graphic. These two wall forms will have one resizing handle at the first node of the path, this handle is used to interactively change the Join Node shape setting.

Auto Joining of wall ends does not apply if either corner of the wall end has the closed or Butt setting. A closed end will not auto-mate. It is often useful to "close" an end if auto-mating is not desired; as just resizing or moving the end of a wall on a drawing will often inadvertently touch another wall and alter the end parameters.

A Joined pair of wall ends will provide one wall end shape resizing handle at the joint. It is shown on the exterior or obtuse side of the joining angle.

Joints of more than two wall ends are supported by the auto-joining capability. In these situations, one joint angle of more than 180 degrees is possible (but not necessarily present); in this case the Join style applies to this one angle and all others are drawn as Relief interior mated wall ends.