CADWorx® Video Training Series

Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

Lesson Two
3D – First Look

Some topics covered in this lesson:

You will learn how to….

• Use the AutoCAD View Ribbon and Tool Bar

• Convert CADWorx files from 2D to 3D

• Work with the CADWorx UCS Tool Bar

• Model components in the Vertical Plane

Note: Valve Operators (hand wheels) will be modified to correct sizes in a later part of
the lesson

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

1. Start CADWorx, and open the Lesson_One drawing.

2. Click File, then Save As
3. Type: Lesson_Two (do a Save As, Lesson_Two).
4. Erase the Border, Bill of Materials, and Dimensions
5. Save the drawing again.

Opening the AutoCAD View Tool Bar

6. If you’re using AutoCAD 2009, you can set your Work

Space to 3D Modeling. In that Work Space you can access
the various 3D Views easily (see video).
7. For 2008 and earlier versions of AutoCAD:
8. Move the cursor (pointer) over any AutoCAD (not
CADWorx) tool button.
9. Right Click on the mouse.
10. A list of AutoCAD tool bars will appear. • Opening the Lesson
11. Click on the View toolbar (if it dos not already have a check One drawing
on it. If it has a check on it, it is already open).

• Saving under a
different name

12. Drag and dock the toolbar in the top area of your drawing.
13. Click on the SW Isometric tool button. • Using the 3D
Modeling Work
Space (AutoCAD
2009), or Bringing
up the 3D View tool
bar (AutoCAD 2008
CADWorx has the capability to display its components in and earlier)
2D, 3D, or Single Line graphics. When you first open the
drawing, you will be viewing it in 3D. If you want to have
part of the model display in one of the other modes, you can
use the Settings tool bar to change it.
• Setting the view to
the South West

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

14. Next you’ll place the Settings toolbar at the top of your
screen, next to the AutoCAD View toolbar you placed there
earlier.
15. Click Plant
16. Click Toolbars
17. Click Settings • Seeing the drawing
18. Drag it up next to the view toolbar in the top area of your in different display
screen. modes (2D, Single
19. From the Settings Tool bar, hold down the mouse button on Line, 3D)
the 2D button, and you’ll see the tool bar has a “fly out.”
20. Move the pointer down to the “2D, “Single Line”, or
“Solids” button and release.

21. Click two points to Window all the objects, and press
<Enter>.
22. The components will convert to the mode you selected.
Convert the model back to 3D solids.

Note: The valve operators (called Top Works) are sized

in this first model based on a file the system uses.
As the lesson progresses, you’ll specify a different
top works file so they come in as typical sizes for
gate valves. Also, you’ll see how to model them
manually if you are using a version of CADWorx
that is 2008 or earlier.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

• You’ll change the

display to show the
model in 2D wire
frame, shaded as
conceptual shading,
and also as single
line grapics

23. Click View

24. Click Visual Styles
25. Click Conceptual

They system will shade the objects.

• Wireframe takes less

system resources

• Bringing up the
CADWorx UCS
toolbar, which will
greatly simplify 3D
modeling

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

26. Click View

27. Click Visual Styles
28. Click 2D Wire frame

When working in 3D, it is a good rule to work in 2D Wire

frame. It is less taxing on your system’s resources, and
you’ll have better machine speed if you do so.

29. Watch Video Two and Video Three, which discuss the Top
Works feature in CADWorx.
30. Bring in the CADWorx UCS Toolbar –
31. Click Plant, Toolbars, UCS.
32. Doc it at the top area of your screen.
33. Zoom into the area near to first flange and reducer, on the left
of the drawing.

What you’ll do next is work in the vertical plane. The two

olets, nipples and threaded gate valves were constructed
earlier in the horizontal plane. • Discussing 3D
versus Isometrics
For this exercise, you’ll erase them, and then you’ll redo
them in vertical, like they would actually be if this was a
suction line on a pump.

34. Erase the two thredolets, nipples, and gate valves.

What you’ll do next, is place a drain for the line. It will

again consist of a thredolet, a pipe nipple, and a gate valve,
but it will be placed this time in “vertical”.

To place it in vertical (coming down) the crosshairs have to

be flipped on edge, sort of like doing an isometric drawing.
When you draw Isos, you have to flip your crosshairs into the
different planes you draw in: top plane, vertical left plane, • Rotating the UCS,
vertical right plane. which rotates the
crosshairs
The same is try in 3D modeling. You have to flip your
crosshairs into the proper planes to place CADWorx
components going up and down in the “Z” direction.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

The CADWorx UCS tool bar makes this easy. Using this
toolbar, the “UCS” toolbar from CADWorx (not the UCS
AutoCAD toolbar – they are different) it has the same look
and feel as doing isometric drawings.

• Setting up the UCS

to work in the
vertical plane

• Setting the size and

spec

The UCS Next button

35. Look at they UCS icon in the lower left area of your screen.
You are currently in the “World Coordinate System”. You
can tell that by the small square where the three axes meet.

• Modeling a thredolet

36. Click the UCS Next button (see illustration above)

37. Notice how your crosshairs change to work in “vertical

right”, and the UCS icon changes as well.

This is how you need to be set to add the drains to the lines.

• Using tracking to
position the
thredolet along the
pipe

38. Click on the “Main Size” area in the tool pallet.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

39. Set the Main Size to 6”.

40. Set the Reduction Size to ¾”.

41. Click on the Thredolet button.

• Tracking the
42. Have the OSNAP, Tracking, and Polar buttons turned on. thredolet down the
43. Move the crosshairs over the end of the pipe and pause them pipe 125mm
(don’t click). You need to be right over the center of the
pipe, at its end.
44. The system will “acquire” that point and you can “track”
from it.
(If you see a box similar to what is shown, you are tracking.)

• Placing a pipe nipple

45. While tracking, Type: 125 <Enter>.

46. Drag the crosshairs toward the bottom of the screen and
click.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

The Thredolet will be placed 125mm from the end of the

pipe, and oriented downward.

• Viewing the spec

data in the nipple

Click the Nipple button.

Note: If you don’t see it in the list to select, make sure

your Main size is set to ¾”. The system will display
components based on size.
.
47. Right click on the mouse, click Length, and Type: 100
<Enter>, for a 100mm long nipple.
48. Press <Enter> on the keyboard, to automatically connect
the pipe nipple to the thredolet.
49. Press <Enter> <Enter> to set the nipple end conditions to
threaded for each end.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

Note: As long as the nozzle data shows “Existing”, the color and line type display
are fine.

Double click on the nipple that you just placed on the

drawing.
• Placing a threaded
You’ll see in the dialog box that it is shown as TBE
gate valve and plug
(threaded both ends) in the long description part of the
dialog box.

50. Click OK to close the dialog box.

51. Click on the Gate Valve, 800 LB, THRD button.

• Copying the other

drain branches

52. Press <Enter> on the keyboard, and the valve will connect
automatically to the pipe nipple.
53. Drag the crosshairs down, to indicate the direction, and
click.

54. Click on the Plug button.

55. Press <Enter> to connect automatically to the previous
component.
56. Drag the mouse down and click (for the direction).
57. Place the other drains needed on the drawing. You can
place them using these same steps, if you want the practice,
or you could also copy them using the regular AutoCAD

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

Copy command.
58. Get them as shown in the next figure, all located 125mm in from
the end of each pipe.
59. Save the drawing.
• Adding valve
operators

• Inserting the
dimensions of the
valve operators

Manually Adding Valve Operators (Hand Wheels) in CADWorx

2008 and earlier versions

60. Bring up the Operator’s tool bar .

61. Click Plant
62. Click Toolbars
63. Click Operators
64. Dock it at the top of your screen.

65. Click the OS&Y tool button on the Operator tool bar.
66. Click a point in the middle of one of the 6” gate valves (use an
OSNAP MIDPOINT if necessary).
67. Drag the cursor up (to indicate the direction of the hand wheel).
68. Type: 168 <Enter> (for the diameter of the hand wheel).

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

69. Type: 857 <Enter> (for the length of the hand wheel).
70. Repeat for the other 6” Gate Valves.

Setting a Valve Tag and Valve Hand Wheel Orientation

71. Double click on one of the 6” gate valves, to bring up the

Component Edit dialog box.
72. Later, when the specs have been set up, you will probably have
a valve tag automatically come into the valve’s data. For
instance, when the specs have been done, a value of G33P
might be put in the TAG field automatically.
73. In this case, you haven’t modified the specs yet (probably), so
the TAG field will be blank.
74. Fill out the information in the TAG area as shown. This will • Adding Valve Tags
give the valve a TAG value (G33P in this case).

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

• Adding data to tell

Isogen how to draw
the valve operators

Next you’ll tell Isogen how to draw the hand wheels for the
valves, if you are running CADWorx 2008 and earlier
version. In CADWorx 2009, this is done automatically as
the valves are modeled.

75. Click the Isogen button at the bottom of the dialog box.
• Placing hand wheel
information on the
small drain valves

76. Set the Spindle Direction to Up if it is not already set.

77. Copy and paste the TAG info into the other 6” Gate Valves,
and set the Spindle Direction for them as well.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

Placing Operators on the ¾” Gate Valves

78. Type: UCS <Enter> <Enter> (to return to the World

Coordinate System).
79. Click the OS&Y tool button on the Operator tool bar.
80. Click the Midpoint on one of the ¾” Gate Valves (zoom
in as necessary).
81. Drag the mouse out away from the valve to indicate the
hand wheel orientation.
82. Type: 60 <Enter> (for the hand wheel diameter).
83. Type: 125 <Enter> (for the length).
84. Repeat for the other ¾” Gate Valves.

• Adding data for

Isogen to draw the
hand wheels on the
drain valves

85. Double click on the valve, and fill out the dialog box as
needed for the TAG information and the orientation of
the hand wheel. The Tag will be G33P.
86. In this example, the hand wheel will be oriented
SOUTH (since it is pointing toward the bottom of the
drawing). Two will be SOUTH, and two will be
NORTH.

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 CADWorx® Video Training Series
Lesson Two - First Look at 3D

• Reviewing the
finished model

87. Fill out the other ¾” Gate Valve TAG data as needed.
88. Save the drawing.

This completes Lesson Two.

Next up – Isometrics!

Written by Anthony W. Horn © 2011

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