What
Infrastructure solutions from Autodesk are for more than site development and road design. Their capabilities extend to all types of transportation, including railway design.
It is useful to have an overall understanding of how Autodesk tools can support rail-project related design.
Who
Engineering service providers, Designers, Project engineers, Project managers, Delivery managers.
How
Although Civil 3D is your main solution for railway projects, you can use additional Autodesk solutions to complete the following general tasks.
Existing Ground modeling: Autodesk Civil 3D has extensive capabilities in creating and editing digital terrain models from a variety of data sources like topographical surveys, standard drawing files as well as point clouds.
Besides the creation and editing tools, all sorts of analysis can be performed on a terrain model (Elevation, slope, zone of visual influence, low/high point
Alignment design: Autodesk Civil 3D allows to
- design a new rail alignment based on specific railway design criteria, including transition curves
- create a best fit alignment from a set of points, lines
- convert an existing 2D or 3D polyline into an alignment and profile.
- import alignment from e.g. LandXML, Genio and others
Tools for the comparison of 2 alignments and the creation of the required documentation are available as well
Cant Calculation: For alignments of the type “rail”, a cant calculation wizard is available to allow the calculation of cant based on design speeds for the alignment
Profile design: similar to the way Autodesk Civil 3D enables a designer to create an alignment, Design profiles can be created as well.
Switch/Turnout Design: A specific module inside Autodesk Civil 3D brings a customizable library of standard rail switches and turnouts to complete the rail track design. This switch placement tool generates alignments that can be extended and adjusted using the standard alignment editing tools.
3D Modeling: the core of Autodesk’s Civil 3D design capabilities is the creation of a 3D design model for the track including ballast, foundations, embankments etc. This capability enables volume calculations as part of a true BIM workflow. The ability to extend the geometry with additional attributes (property sets) that are required in many BIM delivery specifications.
Drainage design: Autodesk Civil 3D has a catalogue of inlets, manholes and pipes that enable the design of storm and foul water drainage systems. The Parts editor allows to add catalogues project or country specific content to the catalogue.
For all the above elements, documentation in plan, profile and cross section view can be generated automatically. The documentation is a by-product of the design which is dynamically linked to the 3D model. The
Why
Railway projects are complex and multidisciplinary. They include linear and horizontal elements (track, bridge, and tunnel) and vertical elements (buildings). A workflow that uses the same set of tools to work with both adds significant value.
A complete toolset that enables end-to-end BIM workflows is the basis for increased design efficiency and reduced project risks.
What next?
Besides the core rail design capabilities in Civil 3D, the Autodesk portfolio provides solutions and workflows for bridge and tunnel design with InfraWorks and Revit.
To communicate your design intent, tools use tools such as InfraWorks and 3ds Max to create compelling visualizations and VR experiences.
