This article provides a step-by-step guide on using libraries in your blocks panel blocks dialog box, specifically how to import a new library, load an electrical library, and adjust the scale factors and insertion point. It also discusses how to change object snaps, place symbols, and modify rotation values.
Key Insights
- The article details the process of importing a new library into your blocks panel blocks dialog box, from locating specific files on your hard drive to loading the library for easy access in subsequent projects.
- Adjustments such as scale factors and insertion points are essential when bringing paper space objects into model space, with a focus on uniform scaling and the placement of objects on screen.
- Placement of symbols, particularly outlets and switches, requires a change in object snaps and specific rotation values, with the ability to place and rotate multiple blocks without exiting the workflow.
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Let's take a look at using libraries in our blocks panel blocks dialog box. I'm going to go I enter to open up our blocks panel.
Here we can see that we have four tabs and we've looked at these before. Current drawing, recent, favorites, and libraries. Now here under libraries is where I want to import a new library.
You may have some libraries in your drawing already and you may have none. Either way we're going to import a new one now. I'm going to hit load library and I'm going to navigate to our C drive, find file downloads, blocks, and I will choose electrical.
Open. We have now loaded an electrical library. Essentially AutoCAD will allow us to browse to this location by finding electrical in the drop down at any time in any project moving forward.
The great news is we can access all of the blocks automatically from this dialog box. The bad news is we cannot get rid of these libraries very easily. The only way that I have found to remove libraries in AutoCAD 2021 is to rename the folder on your computer.
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But for now this is an excellent way to bring in our blocks in our blocks library. If we take a look at the handout we can see that we are going to place many symbols on this drawing. So I'm going to make sure to turn on repeat placement.
Next let's go up to uniform scale and we will change this to a scale factor of 48. This is because these are paper space objects but we're bringing them into our model space. Finally let's check the insertion point box because these will be placed on the screen.
One more thing we need to do before we can place our symbols is change our running object snaps. These symbols will not be placed at endpoints and midpoints but rather simply on walls around our drawing. If we check the handout we can see that our symbols are placed on walls somewhat randomly around the rooms but this has some rhyme and reason to it.
Specifically we want to make sure that each room is served with the appropriate outlets and that the light switches make sense near the doors. In the real-world these would be constructed in the field by connecting them to our studs in our walls so we don't need dimensions or other specific locations. We will let the contractor work this out while they're building the building.
So let's go to our running object snaps. Let's turn off endpoint and midpoint and let's turn on nearest. Now we can begin to place our symbols.
I'm going to start with a duplex outlet and you can follow along with the handout. It doesn't have to be perfect so I'll place one here. I'll place one and I'll make sure to zoom in so I definitely select the wall.
I'll place one here and I'll place one here. Now I'm not going to place one here. I'll change my rotation and place all the ones facing the right direction in a little bit.
So the only other two facing up are the one in this location and the one in this location. I'll hit escape to say that I'm done. Change my rotation scale to 90 and I'll place another round of outlets.
In this case I believe there's only one outlet we need to place and that's the one next to the sink. Here you can see I can change my rotation while continuing to place multiple blocks. If I hit R for rotate I can type in 180 for 180 and that will point my block down because it's rotated around and now I can continue placing my outlets without exiting this workflow.
I'll place one here, rotate, R, enter, 180, enter, here, R, enter, 180, enter, and one here. One more, R, enter, 180, enter, in the living room family room here. Enter to say that I'm done and escape, escape.
Let's place one more at an angle of 270, enter, duplex outlet. This one's next to the sink and this one is in this bedroom. Escape, escape, escape, control S to save.
It's up to you to decide if you like entering your rotation value each time or if you should break up inserting these blocks into multiple steps so that you can override this rotation angle. For now I'm going to override the rotation angle with an angle of zero and start to do my switches. I'll go to my switch, I'll add one here, here, and then I'll hit escape, escape, escape.
Let's add the ones at the 90 degree angle. That's going to be by this door. This is actually a double so I'm going to put two switches in next to each other and I think that's it for this direction of switch.
So I'll hit escape, escape. I'll change this to 180 for 180 degrees. This is the switch that goes into the bathroom.
Again, make sure you zoom in and select the wall. Escape, escape, escape. Finally, 270,270.
And there's another double switch here. This one might be tight so do as best as you can. Escape, escape, escape.
Zoom extents and control S to save. Next, I'm going to add my voice and data outlet. Resetting this to an angle of zero.
Enter. This one goes here. This time I only have two more to add.
One in this area and one in this area. So I'm going to use the rotation option. R, enter, 270.
That will place this one here. And R, enter, 180. And I'll place this one up here.
Escape, escape, escape. Zoom extents and control S to save. In the next video, we are going to add in our lights and the splines connecting our light switches to our light fixtures.
I'll see you there.
