Applied Sciences-1st year CGC-CEC

SOLID EDITING COMMANDS

EGD Lab- AUTOCAD

1. UNION
2. SUBSTRACT
3. INTERSECT
4. INTERFACE
5. SLICE
6. SOLIDEDIT

UNION

Combines two or more 3D solids, surfaces, or 2D regions into a single, composite 3D solid,
surface, or region.

 Find

Select two or more objects of the same type to combine.

Using the Union Command with Surfaces

Although you can use the UNION command with surfaces, it will cause the surface to lose
associativity. Instead, it is recommended that you use the surface editing commands:

 SURFBLEND
 SURFFILLET
 SURFPATCH

Using the Union Command with Solids and Regions

The selection set can contain objects that lie in any number of arbitrary planes. For mixed object
types, selection sets are divided into subsets that are joined separately. Solids are grouped in the
first subset. The first selected region and all subsequent coplanar regions are grouped in the
second set, and so on.

The resulting composite solid includes the volume enclosed by all of the selected solids. Each of
the resulting composite regions encloses the area of all regions in a subset.

You cannot use UNION with mesh objects. However, if you select a mesh object, you will be
prompted to convert it to a 3D solid or surface.

The following prompt is displayed.

Select objects
Select the 3D solids, surfaces, or regions to be combined.

SUBTRACT (Command)

Creates as a new object by subtracting one overlapping region or 3D solid from another.

 Find

With SUBTRACT, you can create a 3D solid by subtracting one set of existing 3D solids from
another, overlapping set. You can create a 2D region object by subtracting one set of existing
region objects from another, overlapping set.
Note: Using SUBTRACT with 3D surfaces is not recommended. Use the SURFTRIM command
instead.

Select the objects that you want to keep, press Enter, then select the objects that you want to
subtract.
Objects in the second selection set are subtracted from objects in the first selection set. A single
new 3D solid or surface is created.

When subtracting regions, objects in the second selection set are subtracted from objects in the
first selection set, and a single new region is created.

You cannot use SUBTRACT with mesh objects. However, if you select a mesh object, you will
be prompted to convert it to a 3D solid or surface.

The following prompts are displayed.

Select objects (to subtract from)
Specifies the 3D solids, surfaces, or regions to be modified by subtraction.
Select objects (to subtract)
Specifies the 3D solids, surfaces, or regions to subtract.

INTERSECT (Command)
Creates a 3D solid, surface, or 2D region from overlapping solids, surfaces, or regions.

 Find

With INTERSECT, you can create a 3D solid from the common volume of two or more existing
3D solids, surfaces, or regions. If you select a mesh, you can convert it to a solid or surface
before completing the operation.

You can extrude 2D profiles and then intersect them to create a complex model efficiently.

The selection set can contain regions, solids, and surfaces that lie in any number of arbitrary
planes. INTERSECT divides the selection set into subsets and tests for intersections within each
subset. The first subset contains all the solids and surfaces in the selection set. The second subset
contains the first selected region and all subsequent coplanar regions. The third subset contains
the next region that is not coplanar with the first region and all subsequent coplanar regions, and
so on until all regions belong to a subset.

INTERFERE (Command)

Creates a temporary 3D solid from the interferences between two sets of selected 3D solids.

 Find

Interferences are highlighted with a temporary 3D solid that represents the intersecting volume.
You can also choose to retain the overlapping volumes.
 Pressing Enter starts the interference testing of pairs of 3D solids and displays the Interference
Checking dialog box.

The following prompts are displayed.

First set of objects
Specifies a set of objects to be checked. If you do not select a second set of objects, all objects in
this selection set are checked against each other.
Second set of objects
Specifies an additional set of objects to be compared against the first set of objects. If you select
the same object twice, the object is handled as part of the first selection set.
Check
Initiates interference checking for both sets of objects.
Check first set
Initiates interference checking for only the first selection set.
Nested selection
Provides access to individual solid objects that are nested in blocks and xrefs.

 Select nested objects. Specifies which nested objects to include in the selection set.
 Exit. Restores normal object selection (not nested).

SLICE (Command)
 Creates new 3D solids and surfaces by slicing, or dividing, existing objects.

 Find

The cutting plane is defined with 2 or 3 points by specifying a major plane of the UCS, or by
selecting a planar or a surface object (but not a mesh). One or both sides of the sliced objects can
be retained.

 3D solid objects can be sliced using specified planes and surface objects
 Surface objects can be sliced by specified planes only
 Meshes cannot directly be sliced or used as slicing surfaces

Sliced objects retain the layer and color properties of the original objects, however the resulting
solid or surface objects do not retain a history of the original objects.

The following prompts are displayed.

Objects to slice
Specifies the 3D solid or surface object that you want to slice. If you select a mesh object, you
can choose to convert it to a 3D solid or surface before completing the slice operation.

 Start point of slicing plane

 Planar object
 Surface
 Z axis
 View
 XY
 YZ
 XZ
 3points
Start point of slicing plane
Sets the first of two points that define the orientation of the slicing plane. With this option, the
slicing plane is always perpendicular to the XY plane of the current UCS. After you specify the
 second point on the plane, you can choose whether to keep both sides of the sliced object or you
can specify another point on the side of the plane that you want to keep.

 Second point on plane. Sets the second of two points on the slicing plane. If the second
point is not located on the XY plane of the UCS, it is projected onto the plane.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
Planar object
Aligns the cutting plane with a plane that contains the selected circle, ellipse, circular or elliptical
arc, 2D spline, 2D polyline, or planar 3D polyline.

 Select a circle, ellipse, arc, 2D-spline, or 2D-polyline. Specifies the planar object that
defines the cutting plane. A planar 3D polyline object can also be selected.
o Specify a point on desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
Surface
Aligns the cutting plane with a selected surface.

 Select a surface. Specifies a cutting surface.

Note: You cannot specify mesh, 3D face, or thickened objects as the cutting surface.

o Select the sliced object on the desired side to keep

o Keep both sides
Z axis
Defines the cutting plane by specifying a point on the plane and another point on the Z axis
(normal) of the plane.

 Specify a point on the section plane. Sets a point on the slicing plane.

 Specify a point on the Z-axis (normal) of the plane. Specifies a point that defines the
axis that is perpendicular to the slicing plane.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
View
Aligns the cutting plane parallel to the current viewport's viewing plane. Specifying a point
defines the location of the cutting plane.

 Specify a point on the current view plane. Sets a point on the object to start the slice.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
 XY
Aligns the cutting plane with the XY plane of the current UCS. Specify a point to define the
location of the cutting plane.

 Point on the XY-plane. Aligns the cutting plane parallel to the XY plane of the UCS and
passing through a specified point.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
YZ
Aligns the cutting plane with the XY plane of the current UCS. Specify a point to define the
location of the cutting plane.

 Point on the YZ-plane. Aligns the cutting plane parallel to the YZ plane of the UCS and
passing through a specified point.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
XZ
Aligns the cutting plane with the XZ plane of the current UCS. Specify a point to define the
location of the cutting plane.

 Point on the XZ-plane. Aligns the cutting plane parallel to the XZ plane of the UCS and
passing through a specified point.
o Specify a point on the desired side to keep
o Keep both sides
3points
Defines the cutting plane using three points.

Specify a point on the desired side to keep

Uses a point to determine which side of the sliced object to keep. The point cannot lie on the
cutting plane.
Keep both sides
Retains both sides of the sliced objects.

SOLIDEDIT (Command)

Edits faces and edges of 3D solid objects.

 Find

You can extrude, move, rotate, offset, taper, copy, delete, and assign colors and materials to
faces. You can also copy and assign colors to edges. You can imprint, separate, shell, clean, and
check the validity of the entire 3D solid object (body).

You cannot use SOLIDEDIT with mesh objects. However, if you select a closed mesh object,
you will be prompted to convert it to a 3D solid.

The following prompts are displayed.

Face

Edits selected 3D solid faces by extruding, moving, rotating, offsetting, tapering, deleting,
copying, or changing their color.

Face: Extrude
Extrude
Extends a 3D solid face in the X, Y, or Z direction. You can change the shape of the object by
moving its faces.
 Select faces. Specifies which faces to modify.
Remove
Removes previously selected faces from the selection set.

 Remove faces. Removes the selected face from the solid object.

Undo
Cancels the selection of the faces you added most recently to the selection set and redisplays the
prompt.

Add
Adds faces you select to the selection set.

All
Selects all faces and adds them to the selection set.
 Select faces. Selects specific faces (instead of all of them).
Height of extrusion
Sets the direction and distance of the extrusion. Entering a positive value extrudes the face in the
direction of its normal. Entering a negative value extrudes the face in the direction opposite to its
normal.

 Angle of taper for extrusion. Specify an angle between -90 and +90 degrees.

Tapering the selected face with a positive angle tapers the face in, and a negative angle tapers the
face out. The default angle, 0, extrudes the face perpendicular to its plane. All selected faces in
the selection set are tapered to the same value. If you specify a large taper angle or height, you
can cause the face to taper to a point before it reaches the extrusion height.
Path
Sets a path for the extrusion path based on a specified line or curve. All the profiles of the
selected face are extruded along the chosen path to create the extrusion.

 Select an extrusion path.

Lines, circles, arcs, ellipses, elliptical arcs, polylines, or splines can be paths. The path should not
lie on the same plane as the face, nor should it have areas of high curvature.
The extruded face starts from the plane of the profile and ends on a plane perpendicular to the
path at the path's endpoint. One of the endpoints of the path should be on the plane of the profile;
if not, the path is moved to the center of the profile.
If the path is a spline, the path should be perpendicular to the plane of the profile and at one of
the endpoints of the path. If not, the profile is rotated to be perpendicular to the spline path. If
one of the endpoints of the spline is on the plane of the face, the face is rotated about the point;
otherwise, the spline path is moved to the center of the profile and the profiles are rotated about
its center.
If the path contains segments that are not tangent, the object is extruded along each segment and
then the joint along the plane is mitered, bisecting the angle formed by the segments. If the path
is closed, the profile lies on the miter plane. This allows the start and end sections of the solid to
match up. If the profile is not on the miter plane, the path is rotated until it is on the miter plane.

Face: Move
Move
Moves the selected face on a 3D solid object to a specified height or distance. You can select
multiple faces at one time.

You can change the shape of the object by moving its faces. This option is recommended for
minor adjustments.
 Select faces
Specifies the face to be moved.

 Base point of displacement. Sets the base point for the move. If you specify a single
point, usually entered as a coordinate, and then press Enter, the coordinate is used as the new
location.
 Second point of displacement. Sets a displacement vector that indicates how far the
selected face is moved and in what direction.

Face: Rotate
Rotate
Rotates one or more faces or a collection of features on a solid about a specified axis.
You can change the shape of the object by rotating its faces. This option is recommended for
minor adjustments.
Select faces (rotate)
Rotates the face according to the specified angle and axis.
In the drawing area, select one or more faces.
Axis point, 2Point
Sets two points to define the axis of rotation.

Pressing Enter at the main Rotate prompt displays the following prompts. Specifying a point at
the main prompt skips the prompt for the first point:

 First point on the rotation axis. Sets the first point on the axis of revolution.
 Second point on the rotation axis. Sets the second point on the axis.
Axis by object
Aligns the axis of rotation with an existing object. You can select the following objects:

 Line: Aligns the axis with the selected line.

 Circle: Aligns with the 3D axis of the circle (perpendicular to the plane of the circle and
passing through the center of the circle).
 Arc: Aligns with the 3D axis of the arc (perpendicular to the plane of the arc and passing
through the center of the arc).
 Ellipse: Aligns with the 3D axis of the ellipse (perpendicular to the plane of the ellipse
and passing through the center of the ellipse).
 2D polyline: Aligns with the 3D axis formed by the polyline start points and endpoints.
 3D polyline: Aligns with the 3D axis formed by the polyline start points and endpoints.
 Spline: Aligns with the 3D axis formed by the spline's start points and endpoints.
View
Aligns the axis of rotation with the viewing direction of the current viewport.
X axis, Y axis, Z axis
Aligns the axis of rotation with the axis (X, Y, or Z) that passes through the selected point.
Origin of rotation
Sets the point of rotation.
Rotation angle
Rotates the object about the selected axis the specified amount from the current orientation.
Reference
Specifies the reference angle and the new angle.

 Reference (starting) angle. Sets the start point for the angle.

 Ending angle. Sets the endpoint for the angle. The difference between the starting angle
and the ending angle is the computed rotation angle.

Face: Offset
Offset
Offsets faces equally by a specified distance or through a specified point. A positive value
increases the size or volume of the solid. A negative value decreases the size or volume of the
solid.
Select faces (offset)
Specifies the faces you want to offset.
Note:
The size of holes inside a solid object that is offset decreases as the volume of the solid
increases.
 Specify the offset distance. Sets a positive value to increase the size of the solid or a
negative value to decrease the size of the solid.

Face: Taper
Taper
Tapers faces on a 3D solid at a specified angle. The rotation of the taper angle is determined by
the selection sequence of the base point and second point along the selected vector.

A positive angle tapers the face in, and a negative angle tapers the face out. The default angle, 0,
extrudes the face perpendicular to its plane. All selected faces in the selection set are tapered to
the same value.

Select faces (taper)

Specifies the faces to be tapered and then sets the slope of the taper.

 Base point. Sets the first point for determining the plane.

 Another point along the axis of tapering. Sets the orientation of the axis that
determines the direction of the taper.
 Taper angle. Specify an angle between -90 and +90 degrees to set the slope of the taper
from the axis.

Face: Delete
Delete
Deletes or removes faces, including fillets and chamfers.
Use this option to remove and later modify filleted and chamfered edges. The face is not deleted
if the change results in a non-valid 3D solid.

Select faces (delete)

Specifies the face to be removed. The face must be in a location that can be filled by surrounding
faces after it is removed.

Face: Copy
Copy
Copies faces as a region or a body. If you specify two points, SOLIDEDIT uses the first point as
a base point and places a single copy relative to the base point. If you specify a single point
(usually entered as a coordinate) and then press Enter, SOLIDEDIT uses the coordinate as the
new location.

Creates a new object with the original orientation and profile of the face. The result can be used
as a reference to create a new 3D solid.
 Select faces (copy)
Specifies the face to be copied.

 Base point or displacement. Sets the first point to determine the distance and direction
for the placement of the copied face (displacement).
 Second point of displacement. Sets the second displacement point.

Face: Color
Color
Changes the color of faces.
Colored faces can be used to highlight details within a complex 3D solid model.
Select faces (color)
Specifies the faces to be modified. The Select Color dialog box is displayed.

Face: Material
Material
Assigns a material to selected faces.
Select faces (material)
Specifies the faces to be modified. The Select Color dialog box is displayed.
 Enter new material name. Enter the name of the material to be assigned to the selected
face. (The name of a material can be found by opening the Materials window and selecting the
material swatch to display the name in the Name field.)
 ByLayer. Assigns the material based on the layer assignment.
Face: Undo
Reverses actions as far back as the beginning of the SOLIDEDIT session.
Face: Exit
Exits the face-editing options and displays the Enter a Solids Editing Option prompt.
Edge
Edits 3D solid objects by changing the color of or copying individual edges.
Edge: Copy
Copies selected edges on a 3D solid as 2D arcs, circles, ellipses, lines, or splines.
 Retains the angle of the edge and allows you to make modifications and extensions, and create
new geometry based on the extracted edge.

Provides a method for making modifications, extensions, and new 3D solids based on the
extracted edge.
Select Edges (copy)
Specifies the edges to copy. Press Ctrl+click to select the edge. Then set the displacement:
 Base point of displacement. Sets the first point for determining where the new object is
placed.
 Second point of displacement. Sets the relative direction and distance for the new
object.
Undo
Cancels selection of the edges you added most recently to the selection set. The previous prompt
is displayed. If all edges have been removed, the following prompt is displayed:
Remove
Removes previously selected edges from the selection set. The prompt is redisplayed.
Add
Adds edges to the selection set.
Edge: Color
Changes the color of individual edges on a 3D solid object.
Select edges (color)
Colored edges can be used to highlight intersections, interferences, or critical clearances.
Press Ctrl+click to select the edge.
Edge: Undo
Reverses actions as far back as the beginning of the SOLIDEDIT session.
Edge: Exit
Exits the face-editing options and displays the Enter a Solids Editing Option prompt.
Body
Edits the entire solid object by imprinting other geometry on the solid, separating the solid into
individual solid objects, shelling, cleaning, or checking the selected solid.

Body: Imprint

Imprints an object on the selected solid. The object to be imprinted must intersect one or more
faces on the selected solid in order for imprinting to be successful. Imprinting is limited to the
following objects: arcs, circles, lines, 2D and 3D polylines, ellipses, splines, regions, bodies, and
3D solids.
 Select a 3D solid. Specifies the 3D solid to be imprinted.
 Select an object to imprint. Specifies an object that overlaps the first selection.
 Delete the source object. Specifies whether the object to imprint is removed when the
operation is complete.

Body: Separate Solids

Separates 3D solid objects with disjointed volumes (sometimes called lumps) into independent
3D solid objects. Combining discrete solid objects using a union operation (UNION) can result
in disjointed volumes.

A union or subtract operation can result in a single 3D solid that consists of more than one
continuous volume. You can separate these volumes into independent 3D solids.

Note: Separating solids does not separate Boolean objects that form a single volume.
Select a 3D solid
Specifies the 3D solid object to separate. Press Ctrl+click to select the edge.

Body: Shell

Shelling creates a hollow, thin wall with a specified thickness. You can specify a constant wall
thickness for all the faces. You can also exclude faces from the shell by selecting them. A 3D
 solid can have only one shell. New faces are created by offsetting existing ones outside their
original positions.

It is recommended that you create a copy of a 3D solid before converting it into a shell. That way
if you need to make significant modification, use the original version and shell it again.

Select a 3D solid (shell)

Specifies a 3D solid.
 Remove faces. Specifies the face subobjects to be removed when the object is shelled.
 Undo. Reverses the last action.
 Add. Press Ctrl+click an edge to indicate which faces to retain.
 All. Temporarily selects all faces for removal. You can then use Add to add the faces you
want to retain.
Enter the shell offset distance
Sets the size of the offset. Specify a positive value to create a shell to the inside perimeter of the
solid. Specify a negative value to create a shell on the outside perimeter of the solid.
Body: Clean
Removes shared edges or vertices having the same surface or curve definition on either side of
the edge or vertex. Removes all redundant edges, vertices, and unused geometry. Does not
remove imprinted edges.
In unusual circumstances, this option removes shared edges or vertices having the same surface
or curve definition on either side of the edge or vertex.

Select a 3D solid (clean)

Specifies a 3D solid object that you want to clean.
 Body: Check

Validates the 3D solid object as a valid solid, independent of the SOLIDCHECK setting.
 Select a 3D object (check). Specifies the 3D solid object to be validated. If the object is
valid, the following prompt is displayed:
This object is a valid ShapeManager solid.
This option is used as a debugging tool to compare stages in a highly complex 3D solid model.
Body: Undo
Undoes the editing action.
Body: Exit
Exits the face-editing options and displays the Enter a Solids Editing Option prompt.