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Integrated BIM tools, including Revit, AutoCAD, and Civil 3D
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Attach and work with an external reference file in Civil 3D.
Type:
Tutorial
Length:
4 min.
Transcript
00:03
In Civil 3D, attaching an external reference (xref) to a drawing
00:09
inserts the entire contents of another drawing as a display-only object.
00:14
Xrefs are versatile and easy to use for different file types,
00:18
whether they contain a single object or a complete design.
00:23
In this Civil 3D model, a surface has already been designed and built by the survey team.
00:30
This is the existing ground surface, and when you look at it with the Object Viewer,
00:35
you can see that the surface style changes according to the selected style.
00:40
As a member of the design team, you are ready to start designing the roads,
00:45
and you need the existing ground surface to start from.
00:49
To keep the drawings light, you are going to use an external reference file.
00:54
But first, since your other drawing was created in a specific coordinate system,
00:59
you want to make sure that you set the same coordinate system in the new drawing.
01:04
From the Quick Access Toolbar, click New to start a new drawing.
01:10
In the Toolspace, on the Settings tab, right-click the drawing name and select Edit Drawing Settings.
01:18
On the Units and Zone tab, set the coordinate system to match the project, and then click OK.
01:26
Now, when you insert an external reference, the default coordinates are already set.
01:32
If the External References dialog does not open, from the Insert tab, Reference panel, click Attach.
01:41
From the Attach drop-down, select the type of reference file that you want to use.
01:47
You can add a Bentley file, a DWF, a PDF image, a DWG, or many others.
01:56
For this example, select Attach DWG.
02:01
Select the file that your surveyor created, and then click Open.
02:07
In the Attach External Reference dialog, you can set the Reference Type.
02:13
Select Attachment to include reference files that were in the original, or Overlay to avoid circular references.
02:21
For this example, select Overlay.
02:25
Since you are using geographic data, there are no changes to make to the scale, insertion point, or rotation.
02:33
Click OK.
02:35
Once it is loaded, zoom to the extents of your file with the xref selected.
02:42
In the toolbar, you can see that you are working with an external reference.
02:48
From the Home tab, Layer panel, note that layer 0 is active.
02:54
If you want to turn the external reference off, you can either turn off layer 0 or change its transparency.
03:02
You can also right-click the reference and select Edit Xref in-place,
03:07
which allows you to make changes to the original file.
03:12
A benefit of using xrefs to reference objects is that Civil 3D can quickly read the surface data.
03:19
For example, from the Annotate tab, Labels and Tables panel, expand Add Labels.
03:27
From the Surface list, select Contour – Multiple.
03:32
In the reference file, set a line across the desired contours to see that Civil 3D reads the surface data and adds the labels.
Video transcript
00:03
In Civil 3D, attaching an external reference (xref) to a drawing
00:09
inserts the entire contents of another drawing as a display-only object.
00:14
Xrefs are versatile and easy to use for different file types,
00:18
whether they contain a single object or a complete design.
00:23
In this Civil 3D model, a surface has already been designed and built by the survey team.
00:30
This is the existing ground surface, and when you look at it with the Object Viewer,
00:35
you can see that the surface style changes according to the selected style.
00:40
As a member of the design team, you are ready to start designing the roads,
00:45
and you need the existing ground surface to start from.
00:49
To keep the drawings light, you are going to use an external reference file.
00:54
But first, since your other drawing was created in a specific coordinate system,
00:59
you want to make sure that you set the same coordinate system in the new drawing.
01:04
From the Quick Access Toolbar, click New to start a new drawing.
01:10
In the Toolspace, on the Settings tab, right-click the drawing name and select Edit Drawing Settings.
01:18
On the Units and Zone tab, set the coordinate system to match the project, and then click OK.
01:26
Now, when you insert an external reference, the default coordinates are already set.
01:32
If the External References dialog does not open, from the Insert tab, Reference panel, click Attach.
01:41
From the Attach drop-down, select the type of reference file that you want to use.
01:47
You can add a Bentley file, a DWF, a PDF image, a DWG, or many others.
01:56
For this example, select Attach DWG.
02:01
Select the file that your surveyor created, and then click Open.
02:07
In the Attach External Reference dialog, you can set the Reference Type.
02:13
Select Attachment to include reference files that were in the original, or Overlay to avoid circular references.
02:21
For this example, select Overlay.
02:25
Since you are using geographic data, there are no changes to make to the scale, insertion point, or rotation.
02:33
Click OK.
02:35
Once it is loaded, zoom to the extents of your file with the xref selected.
02:42
In the toolbar, you can see that you are working with an external reference.
02:48
From the Home tab, Layer panel, note that layer 0 is active.
02:54
If you want to turn the external reference off, you can either turn off layer 0 or change its transparency.
03:02
You can also right-click the reference and select Edit Xref in-place,
03:07
which allows you to make changes to the original file.
03:12
A benefit of using xrefs to reference objects is that Civil 3D can quickly read the surface data.
03:19
For example, from the Annotate tab, Labels and Tables panel, expand Add Labels.
03:27
From the Surface list, select Contour – Multiple.
03:32
In the reference file, set a line across the desired contours to see that Civil 3D reads the surface data and adds the labels.
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