In this chapter I will show you how linked files can be used to create new elements. To that end, I opened a new project, and as you can see, it is almost completely empty, because if we ignore these four markers, there is no other data on it except the defined levels. You can make sure of that if you open the auxiliary menu by pressing the right mouse button and look for the Zoom to Fit option in it. Nothing has changed for me, which means that there is really nothing to display on the project.

In order to be able to show you how to download a structural network from an existing drawing, it is necessary to first insert the appropriate data into my project, so I will first go to the Insert section and look for the Link CAD function in it. As soon as a new frame appears on the screen, it will not be difficult for me to select the file containing the ground floor plan and check how the other parameters are set. As you can see, the inserted drawing will be displayed in black and white technique (Black and White) and all its layers will be used. The scale will be determined automatically (Auto Detect) and at the same time minor irregularities will be corrected (Correct lines that are slightly off axis). It can also be seen that the position of the new drawing will be determined by Auto-Origin to Origin and that it will be placed on the level representing the Ground. Considering that the option that guarantees that all elements will be oriented as a rule (Orient to View) is also active, I have nothing else left but to click on the Open button and complete this operation. A moment later, a complete drawing should appear on the screen, within the markers that represent the directions of the future facades.

Having successfully completed all the preparations, I can move on to the main topic of this lesson, which is the generation of new elements based on those originating from the connected drawing. To that end, I’ll first go to the Architecture section and then on the opposite side look for the icon called Grid. If I launch the function of the same name with one click, additional options will appear on the screen, so it will not be difficult for me to switch to the mode that allows me to use existing lines (Pick Lines). After that, I just need to place the cursor over the appropriate element and press the left mouse button. In this way, I will generate first the horizontal elements of the structural grid, where their length and position will be automatically aligned with the lines coming from the CAD drawing. The same applies to the elements that extend vertically, so I have nothing else to do but select each of these lines individually and thus create a complete network.

To show you what I have achieved, I will first press the Esc key to terminate this function and then select the drawing I used as a background with one click. Since it is a connected element, accompanying functions will also appear on the screen, but since I just want to hide this drawing for now, I will place the cursor on a free part of the screen, press the right mouse button and look for the Hide in View item in the menu. After that, I just need to click on the Elements option and thus temporarily remove the entire plan.

Now the letter markings inside these circles are much clearer, so I can state that there was a small mistake, that is, instead of letters, numerical values were used. This can be easily corrected, but the whole process has to be done manually, so for that purpose I will first enlarge the appropriate part of the drawing and then with two clicks go to the mode that allows me to enter a new mark directly. I will mark the first line with the letter A, and then continue in the same way and enter the other letters B, C, D, etc. At some point, it will be necessary to use the Pan function to display the rest of the drawing, but that will not prevent me from making all the changes according to the same principle. As soon as I enter the last letter, I will be able to terminate this function with Esc and select the Zoom to Fit option to display all existing elements.

In the end, I just need to return the drawing that served as a background, and that can be done in the following way. First, you need to activate the Reveal Hidden Elements function, select the appropriate detail and activate the Unhide in View option from the auxiliary menu. Since this is an individual element, I will select the appropriate item and as soon as I turn off the hidden objects display, the whole plan will be put back into place.

You must have noticed that the new letter marks are placed slightly above the original ones, which is a consequence of the changes I made afterwards. If you don’t like it, you can freely return them to their initial position, and the most important thing for me is that I successfully used the existing elements and automatically created new ones.