MS Basics For Building Designers

Practice Workbook
This workbook is designed for use in Live instructor-led training and for OnDemand self-study. OnDemand
videos for this course are available through CONNECT Advisor and on the LEARNserver (learn.bentley.com).
This practice workbook is formatted for on-screen viewing using a PDF reader. It is also available as a PDF
document in the dataset for this course.
The MicroStation CONNECT Edition

Basics for Building Designers:
Introduction to the MicroStation

CONNECT Edition
This workbook contains exercises to introduce a new user to the MicroStation CONNECT Edition. The course
is designed around a metric dataset, with this being reflected in the course data and workbooks.
Revision: 01.00 Course Level: Fundamental
DO NOT DISTRIBUTE - Printing for student use is permitted

Description and Objectives
Course Description
This workbook contains exercises intended to help a new MicroStation user become familiar with the MicroStation
CONNECT Edition. This will be done from the point of view of a building designer or drafter who is working at a design
firm, is new to MicroStation, and has been awarded a design project that they will be involved with.
During this course you will learn basic navigation of the MicroStation CONNECT Edition user interface, creating and
working with MicroStation design files, design file settings, and more.
Skills Taught
 The Work Page
 Branding a design file
 Navigation of the MicroStation CONNECT Edition user interface

 File creation
 Design file settings
 Models
Copyright © 2021 Bentley Systems, Incorporated DO NOT DISTRIBUTE - Printing for student use is permitted 2
The Training Dataset
Training Dataset Installation Instructions

Note that the exercises contained in this workbook are designed to use a custom WorkSpace, BentleyCONNECTTraining, and the WorkSet
MSBasicsBldg. The default installation folder for the datasets is:
C:\BentleyCONNECTTraining\WorkSets\
For instructions on how to configure a training dataset, please visit Learn.Bentley.com and view the following training course:
Before You Begin: Configuring a Dataset for a MicroStation CONNECT Edition Course
Milestones
The practice workbooks contained in this course guide (and their associated exercises) can be performed in the sequence that they appear, or
completed as an individual standalone workbook. Each workbook has a corresponding subdirectory in the dataset’s DGN folder whose name
is based upon the title of the individual workbook, as can be seen below.
As you begin working the exercises in a new workbook, accessing the dataset and lessons it contains, the "timeline" for the project may have
advanced from where you left off in the previous workbook. Additional geometry and annotations will be seen, along with other modifications
to the project data.
Compatibility Notes
Where applicable, this workbook contains “compatibility notes” intended to assist in the transition to MicroStation from AutoCAD. These notes
are formatted to stand out from other text in the body of the document.
Compatibility notes are formatted as illustrated:
This is an example of a “compatibility note” found in a Bentley training document.
AutoCAD and RealDWG are trademarks or registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. All other brands and products are trademarks of their
respective owners. These training materials may be used for informational and educational purposes only.
Welcome to MicroStation
Our firm has been awarded the bid for a new project. In your role as a designer/drafter at our firm, you will be working
on a proposed restaurant, and the design will be performed exclusively using MicroStation. You are new to MicroStation
and find yourself in need of becoming familiar with the basic operations of the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.
In this lesson you will:

 Set the WorkSpace and WorkSet
 Open a MicroStation design file
 View a design file that has been “branded” to the active WorkSet
1. Start the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.
To start MicroStation, you can choose from several methods:
 Program group: From the MicroStation program group (Apps) or the Desktop, double-click the MicroStation icon
 DGN: Double-click a .dgn file (or any file associated with MicroStation)
 Drag-and-drop: Drag a DGN file icon from Windows Explorer onto the MicroStation icon
 MicroStation executable: In Windows Explorer, double-click the file microstation.exe
These are some of the ways that MicroStation may be started. These methods will typically launch MicroStation in its default mode.
Through various types of customization, it is possible to launch MicroStation in a particular mode.
2. The Work page is presented displaying the WorkSpaces and WorkSets, WorkSet Properties, and more.
The Work page is similar to the Create page in AutoCAD.
3. From the Work page, set the following:

 WorkSpace: BentleyCONNECTTraining
 WorkSet: MSBasicsBldg
A WorkSpace is a container that is used to group WorkSets and may be used to represent any variety of things such as your client, your
department, or a specific asset such as a plant or building.
A WorkSet is used to represent a specific “project” within the WorkSpace.
4. View the WorkSet Properties. Now that the WorkSet has been chosen, you can view the WorkSet Properties. These are shown on the
right side of the Work page.
You can see that the active WorkSet contains properties for the client, project information such as a Client Project ID, Description, and
location information.
The WorkSet Properties for our project have been preset by the CAD Management Team in our organization. The value of a WorkSet
property is then available in any design file associated with the WorkSet and can be used by various annotation and reporting tools found
within the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.
This can be useful in filling out title block information. A property’s value may be accessed when placing text and is linked back to the
Property definition. If a change is made to the property value, the change will then propagate to any file the property is used in. The next
time the file is opened, the text whose value is derived from the property can update.
5. Open a design file:

a. From the Work page, click Browse.
b. Navigate to the folder …\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\Ref.
c. Open the MicroStation design file topord.dgn.
This file contains the topographic data for the location of our restaurant design project.
You are presented with a No WorkSet Alert message. This file was supplied by the customer and has not been associated with our
active WorkSpace/WorkSet.
NOTE: A WorkSet in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition is the equivalent of a “project”. It is a grouping of files and settings that are
used to access a project’s data. A WorkSet can include custom WorkSet Properties such as a project ID number, WorkSet
specific standards (seed files, cells, etc.), a Sheet Index, and any associated design files. A WorkSpace is a collection of related
WorkSets.
d. Click Use active WorkSpace/WorkSet and click Open.
The file is then opened, displaying the MicroStation user interface, with the file now being “branded” to the active WorkSpace/
WorkSet. Each subsequent time the file is opened, MicroStation will verify that this is the active WorkSpace/WorkSet. If it is not, the
user will be prompted to activate this WorkSpace/WorkSet.
The MicroStation CONNECT Edition User Interface
Continuing with your introduction to MicroStation, you find yourself in need of becoming familiar with the basic layout,
tool locations, and functionality found in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.

 The MicroStation CONNECT user interface
 Access the Backstage view
 View file properties
 Use Ribbon Search
1. Continue in topord.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\Ref).
2. Review the ribbon-style user interface:
The MicroStation CONNECT Edition features a ribbon-style interface consisting of the following components:
(Typical components of a ribbon-style interface)
A knowledge of what these components are will be beneficial in your daily use of MicroStation.
The ribbon is similar to the AutoCAD ribbon but the layout is slightly different. However, you can rearrange the ribbon groups to
your liking.
a. Observe the active Workflow Drawing.
The MicroStation CONNECT Edition delivers 5 standard Workflows. These include:
 Drawing: Contains the most commonly used commands for creating, manipulating and modifying basic elements (geometry)
such as lines, curves, polygons, and shapes.
 Task Navigation: Used to navigate tasks (typically created in a previous version of MicroStation) in the MicroStation CONNECT
Edition.
Only visible when the active file is a configured DGN Library:
 Admin: Provides access to “administrative” features such as text and dimension styles.
Only visible when a 3D model is active:
 Visualization: Provides access to lighting, materials, and rendering and animation tools that may be used when working with
3D geometry (only available when a 3D model is active).
 Modeling: Contains tools used for creating, manipulating and modifying 3D elements (only available when a 3D model is
active).
Also included in the user interface is the Quick Access Toolbar, an integrated ribbon Search, and access to Help.
b. The Quick Access Toolbar contains frequently used commands such as Open, Save, and Print. With these tools being contained in
the Quick Access, they are available independent of the active workflow.
c. The “Ribbon Search” is used to find tools or dialogs. It can search across multiple workflows and ribbon tabs, search Help topics and
access the Bentley Communities.
To search, enter the partial or full name of the tool or dialog and you will get a list of results with the given name in a window below
the Search field.
The Search window works like the Search window in AutoCAD.
Search results are categorized by:
 The Ribbon
 The Backstage view
 The Quick Access Toolbar
(An example of the ribbon Search, where SAVE has been typed into the search field)
d. From the Help tab, you can access Help Contents which opens the Web help in your default browser.
On the Help ribbon tab, you can also expect to see the following:
 CONNECT Advisor
 Feedback service
 Examples
 Social Media links
3. The Backstage view:

From the ribbon, pick File. You are presented with the Backstage view.
The Backstage view contains many important features such as file operations, access to tools, settings, and more. There are many
important MicroStation features found in this location. The following are a few examples:
 Tools > Packager: Create a WorkSet “package” (ZIP file) composed of design files, references and workspace files.
 Tools > Batch Converter: Used to convert from one file format to another.
 Settings > User > Preferences: Set preferences and settings related to how MicroStation operates.
 Publish i-model: Used to convert a design file into an i.dgn file and package a set of design and reference files into a single,
protected file.
 Help: Used to access the various types of “Help” such as CONNECT Advisor and Product Support.
4. Review file Properties:
The Backstage view is also the location where you access the file properties.
a. From the Backstage view, pick Properties.
The Properties dialog opens, displaying information related to the active design file such as scale and lock properties. This same
dialog is used to display many types of property information in MicroStation.
b. Place the cursor over the title bar of the Properties dialog, press and hold the left mouse button, and begin dragging the dialog.
Observe the docking indicators that are displayed in the View Window. Properties may be “docked” into the MicroStation interface on
either the right or left sides of the application window.
c. Drag and drop the dialog on the indicator shown on the left side of the interface.
Once docked into the interface, the docked dialog may be resized (width) as well as “pinned”.
(The Properties dialog “pinned” to the left side of the interface)
d. Take a few moments and continue to review the properties in the Properties dialog.
NOTE: Multiple dialogs may be docked in the same docking region.
e. In Properties, locate WorkSet Properties.
Here we can see the WorkSet properties that are assigned to a design file associated with the active WorkSet. These are the same
properties that were viewed from the Work Page and may be used in annotation commands.
5. Pick File, again opening the Backstage view.

The Backstage view contains many other tools and settings. Some are used to open additional tool boxes or provide access to printing
and publishing features while others allow you to optimize the way MicroStation operates.
NOTE: Be careful! Making changes in certain areas of the Backstage view can also affect other users. Contact your CAD Management
Team for assistance.
6. User Preferences:
User preferences are settings that control the operation of MicroStation in ways that are specific to the active user and do not affect other
team members. Contained here are settings that control the mouse behavior, allow you to change view related settings, and more.
a. Pick Settings > User > Preferences.

The Preferences dialog opens.
b. Select the Input Category and enable ESC exits command.

When this preference is activated, pressing the <ESC> key will stop the current command. This is a convenient way of terminating the
current command that you are working with. We will be using the <ESC> in this manner during this course.
Similar to AutoCAD, this is a convenient method of stopping a command in MicroStation.
c. Click OK to close Preferences and press the <ESC> key to return to the design canvas.
Observe that MicroStation did not prompt to save changes to the preferences. While this is not true for all settings, changes made to
preferences are saved automatically. This is similar to the behavior for changes made to the content of your drawing. Modifications to
geometry in the drawing are also auto-saved.
NOTE: Changes made to other settings and properties may require that you exit and restart MicroStation to take effect.
7. Close (File > Close) the active design file topord.dgn.
Create the Proposed Building Plan
A MicroStation document file is called a design file (DGN file). It is composed of one or more models, each of which is
used to store related elements such as lines, arcs, and shapes.
When you create a DGN file, MicroStation copies one of the provided templates, or seed DGN files, to the new file. You
can have only one DGN file open at a time. If you open a DGN file when one is already open, the first file automatically
closes.
In this lesson, you will create a new “Building Plan” DGN file that will contain the design graphics for a proposed
restaurant.

 Create a DGN file
 Use a seed file
1. Continue in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.
2. A new design file will now be created for the project:
a. From the Work Page, click New File.
The New dialog opens.
b. In Save in: navigate to the ..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\01 - Introduction to MicroStation folder.

This is the location that you will save the new file to.
c. Next to Seed, click Browse.
d. In the course dataset navigate to the folder ..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Seed picking the seed file _2dDesignSeed.dgn.
e. Click Open to select it.
f. Name the new DGN file proposed restaurant.dgn and click Save.
The new DGN file is created and opened.
g. From the title bar of the MicroStation Application window, observe that the new file is 2D.
This was determined by the seed file.
Seed files help bring consistency to a project. When a DGN file is created, a seed file is identified as a template for the new DGN file.
The new DGN file is actually a copy of the seed file containing the same settings and properties as that of the “seed”.
This also includes any models, design graphics (geometry), reference file attachments (references will be discussed in another
lesson), etc. It is because of this that organizations may have different seed files based upon department, discipline, or the type of
content that will be in the DGN.
In this case, the seed file that was used was adapted from a seed file obtained from the customer. As such, it contains many of the
basic settings they want in their project design files.
In AutoCAD, the process is very similar. To create a new file, you must first click a drawing template file (the AutoCAD name for a
seed file) which has a DWT extension. In MicroStation, the Seed file has the same extension (DGN) as a regular MicroStation
design file. You can create DWT files from MicroStation seed files using the Save As feature and selecting DWG as your file
format. Then, rename the DWG to a DWT in Windows Explorer.
3. From the view tools along the edge of the View window, click Fit View.
The tool settings are set to Files: All.
MicroStation immediately attempts to fit any geometry that has been created within the view window.
The AutoCAD command Zoom Extents is similar to MicroStation's Fit View.
4. View the status bar. A message is reported stating No Elements Found. The file contains no graphical content that is displayed.
NOTE: MicroStation has the ability to display up to 8 view windows simultaneously in the active design session.
MicroStation, in general, follows a “3-step rule” when working with tools.
This 3-step rule typically is:
 1) Pick the tool
 2) Adjust the settings (of the active tool)
 3) Follow the command prompt
In this case,
 1) “Pick the tool” was choosing the Fit View icon.
 2) “Adjusting the tool settings” was not necessary because the tool was already set to Files: All.
 3) Here, the tool was executed immediately because there is a single view window in use. With other tools, this is not the case.
The command prompt will “walk you through” the use of the active tool.
Following the Command Line prompts and the results give the same functionality in AutoCAD.
Explore Design File Settings
A MicroStation design file (DGN) contains a variety of settings that govern its operation. The initial settings are derived
from the seed file that is chosen when a new file is created, but may need to be adapted for use within specific design
parameters. In this lesson, the settings within the proposed restaurant will be altered to meet the design requirements.

 Review Working Units
 Adjust Angle Readout
 Save Design File Settings
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\01 - Introduction to MicroStation).
2. Observe the title bar of the MicroStation application window.
The title bar states that the file is 2D.
This is but one example of a setting that was determined by the seed file chosen when proposed restaurant.dgn was created. Some
settings are more rigid and may not be changed (such as 2D vs. 3D), while others are easily altered to match the design requirements of
the user when working on a project.
An example of this is Working Units. The Working Units of the active design may be set as desired. This is to enable the precise creation
of the project geometry in the easiest possible manner.
NOTE: While it is a “best practice” to make any required settings changes when the file is created, most design file settings can be set
at any time without adversely affecting the content of the design.
3. From the Home tab, in the Placement ribbon group, pick Place SmartLine.
The similar command in AutoCAD is the PolyLine
4. Anywhere in the view, place a data point (left click) to begin placing a line.
5. Observe the coordinate readout in AccuDraw.
AccuDraw is a precision drawing tool that works in conjunction with element placement commands to help ensure the accurate placement
of geometry.
The illustration above represents AccuDraw in the rectangular coordinate readout mode as illustrated by the square compass, and the
coordinate readout showing X and Y values.
A similar tool in AutoCAD is called Dynamic Input. Here you can enter distance and angle data about the next point you need to
draw. You can also enter this data in the command prompt.
6. Issue the AccuDraw Mode shortcut by pressing “M” on the keyboard.

The Mode shortcut acts as a toggle, changing AccuDraw from a rectangular to a polar coordinate readout. This is indicated by the
compass changing from a square to a circle.
HINT: It is important that the AccuDraw dialog has the input focus when a shortcut is invoked or the shortcut will not work. If AccuDraw
in not currently in focus, pressing <F11> will redirect the focus to AccuDraw.
7. Again, observe the AccuDraw coordinate readout.
The first field now represents distance, while the second field displays angle.
The distance displayed is the current length of the element being created, with accuracy to 2 decimal places displayed. MicroStation uses
an explicit unit of measure such a Meters, Millimeters, Feet, or Fathoms. However, from here there is no way to know what units of
measurement is being represented. In the angle field, we can see that angle values are being read out, in a counterclockwise direction,
set to round to the nearest tenth of a degree.
These “units” are settings of the design file and were inherited from the seed file used to create proposed restaurant.dgn. We wish to
review, and as needed, set the readout for these values to match our needs.
NOTE: AccuDraw will be discussed in greater detail in future exercises.
8. Setting design file settings:

a. Click File to open the Backstage View.
From the Backstage View, click Settings > File > Design File Settings.
The Design File Settings dialog is opened.
b. Pick the Working Units category.

This category displays Linear Units.
Observe that Format is set as MU. This setting can be changed to show both Master Units and Sub Units as desired. Currently, this
displays only the Master Unit of measurement, with this being set to Millimeters, with an accuracy of 2 decimal places. The sub unit
is also visible in the dialog, set as Millimeters as well, but is irrelevant due to the Format setting.
The Labels do not affect measurements but are typically used when measuring, labeling, and dimensioning elements in the design.
It is desirable to have this set to display 1 decimal place, along with angular accuracy showing 0.1 decimal degrees.
c. In Linear Units, change the Accuracy to 0.1
This will cause coordinate readout information to display to the closest 1/10 of a millimeter.
d. In Design File Settings, click the category Angle Readout, and verify that the Accuracy is set to 0.1.
e. Click OK.
The UNITS command in AutoCAD provides access to similar functions.
9. From the upper left corner of the Backstage View, click the arrow to return to the design canvas.
The settings changes that were made take effect immediately but are temporary. To permanently store the changes, the settings must be
saved.
10. From the Quick Access toolbar, click Save Settings.
HINT: When both the major and minor units of measurement are being displayed by the Working Units, referred to as “Master Units”
and “Sub Units” (MU:SU), a colon can be seen in distance-related fields within AccuDraw and various tool settings. The colon is
the delimiter between the Master and Sub Units. In the following illustration, both the master and sub units are illustrated, with
accuracy to 2 decimal places on the sub unit.
Models
A Design file is composed of one or more design, drawing, or sheet models. A design file and models are similar to a
workbook and worksheets of a spreadsheet. When geometry is created, it is added to the active model. A model can be
either 2D or 3D and is stored as a discrete object in the design file. You can have an unlimited number of any model
type in a DGN.

 Rename a model
 Adjust model properties
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\01 - Introduction to MicroStation).
2. In the Home tab of the ribbon, from the Primary ribbon group, click Models.
Design files are composed of one or more models.
Our design file contains a single design model.
A model can be either 2D or 3D with each model stored as a discrete object in the design file. When geometry is created, it is added to
the active model. You can have an unlimited number of any model type in a DGN.
There are three types of models:
 Design Models: A design model can be either 2D or 3D and is intended to store design geometry. MicroStation provides the ability
to have an unlimited number of design models in a single DGN file.
 Drawing Models: A drawing model is a subset of a design model that is typically used to apply annotations such as text, notes, and
dimensions to embellish the design.
 Sheet Models: Sheet models are used for composing a finished “sheet” used for printing the design. It is possible for sheet models
to be scaled or used at 1:1.
In AutoCAD, there is only one Model, which is the same as the Design Model in MicroStation. You can have unlimited Layouts in
one file, which are similar to Sheet Models in MicroStation. AutoCAD has no equivalent to the Drawing Model.
3. In the Models dialog right-click on the model name, pick Rename, changing the name to Floor Plan - Design.
Models also have other properties that may be viewed in the Properties dialog.
4. With the Floor Plan - Design model highlighted, click Edit Model Properties from the icon bank of the Models dialog.
The Properties dialog is opened with the model properties displayed.
5. In General properties, change the following:

 Description: Proposed Floor Plan Design
 Ref Logical: Floor Plan
 Annotation Scale: 1:50
These changes take effect immediately.
6. In Properties, scroll down locating Angle Readout.

Here you can observe the values for Direction Base, Direction Mode, Format and Accuracy that were viewed in a previous lesson.
These settings are model-specific, and can also be set in the Properties dialog.
7. The settings for Working Units are also available.
Take a moment to review the current Working Units settings.
8. Close Properties and the Models dialog.
Working with Multiple Models
You have been tasked with reviewing several elevation details pertaining to the proposed restaurant. These details are
all stored in the elevations_details.dgn design file as individual models.
MicroStation provides for an unlimited number of models, of any type, to be stored in a DGN file. This can be especially
useful when working with project details. Multiple details may be stored within the same design file, along with any
associated sheet layouts that are used for printing purposes.

 View models
 Change the active model
 View model properties
 Use the View Groups toolbar
1. Open elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\01 - Introduction to MicroStation).
This design file contains a variety of details related to the proposed restaurant. There are some settings that need to be verified for these
details.
2. From the Home tab, in the Primary ribbon group, click Models.
The Models dialog opens displaying the list of models contained in this DGN file. As can be seen from the Type column, this design file
contains multiple Design Models. The active model has its name displayed in the highlight color.
3. In the Models dialog, double-click the model Women's Restroom, making this the active model.
Observe the view window. You can now see the geometry displayed for this detail.
4. From Models, click Edit Model Properties.

In the General properties, observe the current Annotation Scale is set to 1:50 and Propagate Annotation Scale is Off.
5. From the View Groups toolbar (located along the bottom edge of the MicroStation Application window), browse the available view groups,
and click Restroom Accessories Views.
The active model becomes Restroom Accessories.
The View Groups toolbar is a convenient way to switch between models in the active DGN. When creating a model, a setting (on by
default), provides for creating a view group. It is also possible to have multiple view groups for a single model, with each displaying the
content of the model differently.
Observe that here Propagate Annotation Scale is On.
6. Using View Groups, take a few moments to review the models contained in the DGN file.
NOTE: It is possible to move the View Groups toolbar to a different location within the MicroStation interface. If you have trouble
locating the View Groups toolbar, from the keyboard press <CTRL+T> to open the list of available tool boxes and toggle the
display of Manage View Groups.
7. Once again, open the Model Women’s Restroom.

As seen previously, Annotation Scale is currently as 1:50 and Propagate Annotation Scale is Off.
8. In the (model) Properties dialog, in General properties, set the following (set them in this order):
 Propagate Annotation Scale: On
 Annotation Scale: 1:25
Observe the changes to the model. The geometry for the restroom remains the same, but the size of the annotation in the model has
been updated reflecting the Annotation Scale of 1:25.
HINT: There is no need to save settings when changing the Annotation Scale. This setting is saved automatically.
In AutoCAD, the Annotation Scale is typically used in the Model and rarely in the Layouts.
9. From View Groups, open the model Details.

In the view window, observe the drawing title. This title gets its value, “Details”, automatically based upon the name of the model. This is
done through the use of a text filed. A field is a piece of text whose content is derived from object properties such as file, model, or
element.
The name of the model needs to be updated.
10. From Properties, in General, change the following:

 Name: Door Types
 Description: Interior and Exterior Door Types
 Ref Logical: Door Types
The model name has now been updated and can be seen in the Models dialog.
You can use the Properties windows in AutoCAD to do the same type of things.
11. Again, review the “title text” in the view window.
This text has not changed even though the name of the model has been updated. This is due to a setting in the model properties.
12. From Properties, in General, change the following:

 Update Fields Automatically: True
Observe the change to the drawing title text in the view window.
13. You may close both the Properties and Models dialogs.
Practice Workbook

Controlling the Display of Designs


Course Description
There are many ways to control how you view your designs. The exercises in this workbook show you how to control
the display of levels in both the active model and in attached references, control Annotation Scale, and you will also set
View Attributes by creating a Display Style that will be associated with a Display Rule.
Skills Taught
 Attach references of project-related data
 Control levels through Level Display
 Set Annotation Scale
 Create and apply Display Styles

Note that the exercises contained in this workbook are designed to use a custom WorkSpace, BentleyCONNECTTraining, and several
WorkSets including the WorkSet MSBasicsBldg. The default installation folder for the datasets is:
Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Reference Project Related Data
In the previous exercise, a new design file was created. This file will contain the proposed restaurant design. Work will
begin with creating the exterior and interior walls of the building. To assist in the layout of the walls, the project's
Structural Engineer has made available the Structural Grid. This grid will be “referenced” to the proposed building
design file to help in the placement of the geometry that will compose the walls. Referencing allows for multiple people
to work on a single project at the same time by splitting related project data into separate design files.

 Attach references of project-related data
 Work with reference attachment settings
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\dgn\02 - Controlling the Display of Designs).
2. Along the ribbon, from the Home tab, in the Primary group, select the Attach Tools icon.
The References dialog opens. This dialog box is where the references are attached to the active model and tools may be found to work
with attached reference files.
3. Attach the Structural Grid reference file:

a. From the icon bank of the References dialog, click Attach Reference.
b. Navigate to the …\MSBasics\dgn\Ref\ folder of the dataset and select the structural grid.dgn file.
c. Ensure the Attachment Method is set for Interactive and click Open.
4. In the Reference Attachment Properties dialog, set the following:
 Model: Structural Grid
 Logical Name: Structural Grid
 Description: Structural Grid
 Orientation: Coincident
 Detail Scale: Full Size 1=1
 Nested Attachments: No Nesting
5. Click OK when finished.
6. If you plan on stopping this exercise and coming back later to complete, select File > Save Settings. This will store the window placement
and location of what is displayed in the view.
Control the Display by Setting the Level Display
Now that you have the necessary project-related reference attached, you will need to adjust the display in a more
detailed way. You will begin by turning off several levels from the structural grid reference, followed by setting the
Annotation Scale to the desired plan scale.

 Control levels through Level Display
 Set Annotation Scale
1. Continuing in the proposed restaurant.dgn file, from the Primary ribbon group of the Home tab, open Level Display.
The Structural Grid reference has more graphics displayed than what is required to be displayed for your floor plan.
2. Turn off the display of Structural Grid levels:

a. In the list of files in the Level Display dialog, select the Structural Grid reference.
b. Then from the list of levels, turn off the following:
 S-SLAB
 S-FND-FTNG
HINT: A blue background indicates that level is displayed and conversely, white is off.
Next, you need to adjust the Annotation scale to the desired scale factor.
The Layer Properties Manager has functions similar to the Level Display dialog.
3. Along the ribbon, click the Utilities tab. From the Drawing Scale ribbon group, click the drop menu for Annotation Scale. From here, select
the scale, 1:50.
After setting the annotation scale, you will now notice the Column ID tags, which are annotative cells, size up and display correctly at the
given scale factor.
Use of Annotation Scale is mostly restricted to Models since Layouts are usually 1:1.
4. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
Control the Display by Setting View Attributes
MicroStation allows you to use View Attributes to change the way you view a design by determining whether or not
some types of elements are displayed, or how some elements are displayed.

 Toggle View Attributes
1. Open the elevations_details.dgn (..\dgn\02 - Controlling the Display of Designs).
2. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary). Double-click the Door Types model to make it active.
3. Zoom In to the location illustrated by placing a data point near the point you wish to zoom in:
4. From the View Control tools along the edge of the View window, click the View Attributes icon and observe the dialog window:
View Attributes allow you to enable/disable the display of a variety of different features.
5. In View Attributes, turn off the display of Text and Dimensions.
Observe the update in the view window. Text and dimensions are no longer visible. While this particular design is not overly busy, graphic-
wise, this provides for a simpler, less cluttered display of the geometry. In another example (not part of the dataset), the floor plan shown
includes dimensions, labels, and symbols as well as building features such as walls, stairs, doors, etc… It contains so much information
that showing all of it at once can make the drawing hard to read.
6. Close the View Attributes dialog.
7. Save Settings (File > Save Settings)
NOTE: The changes to View Attributes are temporary and will revert to their original state when the file is closed. These changes can
be permanently saved in the file by selecting Save Settings.
Control the Display by Setting a Display Style
Now that you have referenced the Structural Grid and displayed the appropriate levels, you will create a Display Style,
which in turn, you will then associate it to a Display Rule. A display rule is a set of display criteria that is processed on
any view of a design model. Display rules allow you to control the symbology, appearance, and display of design
elements. This control is based on the property of the element, view, model, reference, or file.
Often is the case when referencing data across design teams, disciplines, or outside contractors where you do not
“own” the files that you are referencing. This may prohibit physically modifying the file to suit your needs or standards.
In this situation, as an Architectural Designer, you need to visually sub-due the Structural Engineer’s structural grid
symbology. One way you can achieve this is through the use of a Display Style.

 Create a new Display Style
 Associate a Display Style to a Display Rule
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\dgn\02 - Controlling the Display of Designs).
2. Along the ribbon, click the View tab. In the lower-right corner of the Presentation ribbon group click the dialog launcher to open the
Display Styles dialog.
The Display Styles dialog opens. This dialog is used to define and manage display styles in the active file and to view display styles
available from DGN libraries. A display style is a predefined collection of display overrides and settings that can change the appearance
of design graphics without modifying the original elements.
You can use the Visual Styles dialog to control some of these options in AutoCAD.
3. Create a new display style:

a. From the icon bank of the Display Styles dialog, click the New icon.
b. Name this new style, Structural.
c. Then, on the right-side of the Display Rules drop-down menu, click the adjacent icon to open the Display Rules dialog.
The Display Rules dialog is used to create and manage the display rules.
4. Create a new display rule:
a. From the Display Rules dialog, click the New Display Rule Set icon.
The display rule set appears in the display rule set list box, where you can give it a name.
b. Name this Structural.

c. Next, click the New Display Rule icon for the selected, Structural display rule set.
The rule appears in the display rules list box, where you can modify the rule. Conditions for display rules are based on data available
in context objects. Context objects are elements, models, references, views, files, and named groups. Conditions also support items
and custom item types.
d. Under the Condition column, click the Applies always condition, opening the Condition Editor.
5. Create a condition for the display rule:

a. In the Condition Editor dialog, click the Pick property drop-down list.
The property types are listed.
b. Type Logical into the Search field.

c. Select the Logical Name property (REFERENCE > References > Attachment > Logical Name) from the search results.
d. Ensure that the = comparison operator is selected.
e. Type Structural Grid into the Value field to the right.
6. Add another criterion to the condition:

a. To add another criteria, click Add new criterion icon from the Condition Editor.
b. In the Condition Editor dialog, click the Pick property drop-down list.
c. Type Level into the Search field.
d. Select the Level property (Elements common properties > General > Level) from the search results.
e. Set the <> comparison operator.
The <> comparison operator is used compare the left side of the equation to the right, reporting valid (true) when the two sides are
not equal to each other.
f. Next, select S-COLS from the drop-down list of levels.

g. Press the <Tab> key.
h. Click OK when finished.
7. Create an action for the display rule:

a. Under the Actions column of the Display Rules dialog, click the green plus sign to create a new action.
You can assign one or more actions to display rules. These actions are executed if the set conditions are met for the display rules.
b. From the drop-down list, select Symbology Overrides.

c. In the Actions column, click the Symbology Overrides icon.
d. From the window, enable the Element Color Override checkbox and then select color 22 from the Index.
e. Enable the Line Weight Override and then select the line weight override 0 from the drop-down list next to the checkbox.
Now that you created your first display rule, you will now apply that to the Structural Display Style to see if the condition was met and
the action applied.
f. When finished, close the Display Rules dialog.
8. Associate the Display Rule to the Display Style:

a. Return to the Display Styles dialog.
HINT: If you closed the Display Styles dialog, from the Display Rules dialog you can click the Show Display dialog icon.
b. In the Display Styles dialog, double-click the Structural display style from the list on the left to apply it to the active view
c. Then in the Display Rules section, select Structural from the drop-down list.
The display rule was effective in the sense that you were able to control the overriding symbology without the need to physically change
the colors or line weights for the reference. It is important to note here that this display rule was created in the active dgn. A more desired
approach would be to create display rules in a configured dgnlib (Design Library). That way the display rules would be accessible to all
the dgn’s, project-wide.
9. Save Settings (File > Save Settings) and close the dgn.
Practice Workbook

Using General Tools


Course Description
This workbook contains exercises to further enhance your skills by becoming more familiar with the MicroStation
drawing environment, making you a more efficient and productive user. Covered during this course will be general tools
and features found within the MicroStation CONNECT Edition. Topics included will range from basic mouse functions
and interacting with tool settings to snapping and measuring.
Skills Taught
 The mouse
 Tool settings
 Snaps
 Change Element Attributes
 Element properties
 Element Selection
 Measuring

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Basic Tool Operations
MicroStation contains a variety of different types of placement tools. These are meant to accommodate different
requirements when working with design geometry. Regardless of the active tool, the same basic principles of tool
operation may be applied. In this lesson, you will explore basic tool operation.

 Zoom In
 Basic mouse functions
 View tool settings

 View Attributes
 Access the right-click context menu
 Place SmartLine
1. Open elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\03 - Using General Tools).
The ribbon-style interface of the MicroStation CONNECT Edition can be seen.
2. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary).
3. Double-click the Door Types model to make it active.

The view windows help you make the most of your system. The view windows are where you view the geometry of your design.
MicroStation provides support for using up to 8 views simultaneously. You can configure and save the view window arrangement for
maximum efficiency, taking into account your system, your project, and your working style.
4. From the View tools along the edge of the View window, click Zoom In. Observe the tool settings window and enter the following value:
 Zoom Ratio: 3.00
5. From the keyboard, press <Tab> to apply the new value.
Observe the change to the zoom window that is attached to the cursor. The window has resized to match the value of the Zoom Ratio.
Each time a zoom is performed, the window will zoom in making the geometry that is displayed in the view 3 times larger.
NOTE: It is considered a “best practice” to press the Tab key after inputting the last changed value in dialogs and the tool settings
window. This typically applies the change without initiating an action, allowing modifications to other settings to be made as
required.
6. Zoom In to the location illustrated by placing a data point near the point you wish to zoom in:
This will be the door type that leads in and out of the kitchen area.
7. Press Reset (right-click) to stop the zoom command, returning to the previous tool.
MicroStation contains the following basic mouse functions:
 Left button: Data, is used to provide input and select elements and commands (known as “entering a data point").
 Right button: Reset, cancel or complete an operation.
 Left-Right button chord: Tentative, used to provide tentative snap points.
 Right button press-and-hold: Access the context menu.
In AutoCAD, through the right-click menu, the mouse can be used to cancel during a command. This is the equivalent to the Reset
in MicroStation (right mouse click).
HINT: Through Preferences, accessed from the Backstage, the functions of the mouse may be defined to suit your needs.
8. As was just seen, MicroStation typically follows a 3-step process when using a command, sometimes referred to as the 3-step rule.
The basic 3-Step rule:
 Step 1: Pick the command
 Step 2: Adjust the settings
 Step 3: Follow the prompt
9. From the Placement ribbon group, click Place SmartLine. Observe the tool settings. The available settings shown in the tool settings
window will vary based upon the specific tool chosen.
10. From the Annotate ribbon tab, in the Patterns ribbon group, pick Hatch Area, observing the tool settings.
It may also be necessary to expand the tool settings window to view all available settings, and these settings may vary based upon the
placement method chosen.
11. Near the top of door type 1, there is some geometry missing (you may need to zoom/pan to view this area).
12. In the Home tab of the ribbon, observe the active Attributes.
The Attributes need to be set correctly, before creating new geometry. One of the easiest ways to do this is by matching an existing
element that has the correct attributes.
Attributes are accessed frequently in most design and review workflows.
13. In the ribbon, place the cursor over Attributes, and press and hold the right mouse button to open the right-click menu.
From the right-click menu, you can pick Pin to current workflow. This will make Attributes always visible in this workflow, regardless of
the active ribbon tab.
HINT: Pinning Attributes is an optional step. Providing access to a frequently used set of tools can be a time-saving benefit.
14. Make the Element Selection tool active (Home > Selection).
15. Hover the cursor over the linework that makes up the door framing. The element should highlight and produce a tool-tip (feature of
AccuSnap) when fully hovered-over.
16. From the keyboard, hold down the <ALT> key and left-click the line, and observe the active attributes.
This allows MicroStation to match the attributes of the element on the fly!
HINT: This can be done at any time, even if a command has already been started.
17. Draw a line to complete the door framing:

a. From the Home tab, in the Placement ribbon group, pick the Place SmartLine tool.
b. Place a data point at the end of the line segment at location 1, snapping to the end of the original door frame line.
c. Place a second data point at location 2, again snapping to the end of the existing door frame line.
d. Press Reset (right-click).

Observe that the line segment is terminated, but the Place SmartLine command remains active.
e. Press <ESC>.
The second line is completed and the SmartLine command terminated, returning to Element Selection.
NOTE: Element Selection is the default command in MicroStation. Enabling the setting ESC exits command in User Preferences
makes it easy to return to this useful tool.
Clean Up Detail Geometry
When working with designs, it is inevitable that changes to the design geometry will be required. Attributes such as
level, color, line style, and weight are easily modified in a variety of ways. Modifications can be applied individually or to
multiple elements. In this lesson, you will observe detail geometry and make changes to element attributes.

 Change Element Attributes
 View element properties
1. Continue in elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\03 - Using General Tools).
2. Open the View Attributes dialog (View > Presentation) and ensure that Dimensions and Text are toggled on.
3. Review and change properties of an element:
a. Navigate the view to where door type 3 is located.
b. With Element Selection as the active tool, position the cursor over the horizontal lines at the top of the door frame.
The tool tip displays showing the name of the level the element is drawn on. This line represents the door framing.
c. Place the cursor over the line segment to the right of the door frame and observe the tool tip displays the Default level.
NOTE: Both line segments represent the door framing, but the line to the right was drawn with the wrong attributes.
d. From the Home tab, in the Modify ribbon group, pick the Change Element Attributes tool.
e. Set the following options in the tools settings window:
 Active Attributes: Enabled
 Level: Enabled (A-DOOR-FRMG)
 Color: ByLevel
 Style: ByLevel
 Weight: ByLevel
In AutoCAD, the command equivalent to Change Element Properties is the Quick Properties Palette which is opened by double-
clicking on an element.
f. Now, select the vertical line of the door framing that was drawn incorrectly.
The line updates, displaying the correct attributes. You will now verify these settings.
g. From the keyboard, press <ESC>.

h. MicroStation returns the Element Selection command.
Reset (right-click) will terminate the command, but with most tools, the command stays active. ESC terminates the command and returns
MicroStation to the Element Selection tool (Element Selection is the default tool).
NOTE: Use of the ESC key was enabled in User Preferences in a previous lesson (contained in the course Introduction to
MicroStation).
To quit a command in AutoCAD you can use the ESC key. This can also be done in MicroStation if the User Preference allowing
the use of the ESC key (ESC exits command) has been enabled.
4. Reviewing element properties:

a. From the Home tab, in the Primary ribbon group, click Properties.
The Properties dialog opens.
HINT: This dialog may also be docked into the interface.
b. With a data point, identify the line that was just modified.
The properties of the line are displayed. In General properties, you can see the level is A-DOOR-FRMG and color, line style and weight
are ByLevel.
c. De-select the element by placing a data point in a blank area in the view window.
5. Navigate the view where door type 2 is located.
Here you will find several additional “door frame” segments that need to be updated.
6. Update additional “door frame” segments:

a. With Element Selection as the active tool, select one of the lines.
b. Press and hold <CTRL> and select the remaining line segments (adding them to a selection set for a total of 6 lines).
c. View the Properties. Here you can see the 6 lines and the General properties as they apply to the selection set.
All of the lines are all on the Default level, have a color, line style, and weight of 0.
d. In Properties, set the following for the selection set:
 Level: A-DOOR-FRMG
 Color: ByLevel
 Line Style: ByLevel
 Weight: ByLevel
The elements update as each attribute is changed.
e. De-select the elements by placing a data point in a blank area.
7. Navigate the view over to where door type 1 is located.

8. Modify the element attributes of the notes for door type 1:
Next, you will update the notes for the swing door to their proper level.
a. With the Element Selection tool active, position the cursor below the bottom note (Heavy Duty Top/Bot Pins).
b. Press and hold the data button and then drag the selection area up and to the left, capturing the notes and their respective leader
lines.
c. Make the Change Element Attributes tool (Home > Modify) active.
d. In the tools settings window, set the following:
 Level: A-ANNO-LABL
 Color: ByLevel
 Style:ByLevel
 Weight: ByLevel
e. Issue a data point into the view to commit the changes.

f. De-select the elements by placing a data point in a blank area.
9. Fit View.
If you were to investigate, all of the dimensions are placed on a particular level, A-ANNO. They need to be placed on the level, A-ANNO-
DIMS. Next, you will update the dimensions to their proper level. To be efficient in selecting these, you will select the dimensions by their
attributes.
10. Selecting the dimensions:

a. With the Element Selection tool active, click the down arrow in the lower-right corner of the tool settings window to show the
extended settings.
The Element Selection tool expands, revealing attribute tabs.
b. Select the Level tab.
c. Then from the list of levels, select A-ANNO.
All the elements that reside on the A-ANNO level will be selected. As you can see, this has selected all the dimensions, however, it
has selected Text elements as well.
d. Next, in the Element Selection Extended Settings, click the Element Type attribute tab.
The attributes that exist within the selection set (block) are highlighted and displayed in the list box. In this case, Dimension, Text, and
Text Node.
e. From the list of elements, click on Text Node to remove text nodes from the selection set.
The attribute is no longer highlighted and the elements with that attribute are unselected.
11. Updating the dimensions:

a. Make the Change Element Attributes tool (Home > Modify) active.
b. In the tools settings window, set the Level to A-ANNO-DIMS and Color, Style and Weight to ByLevel.
c. Issue a data point into the view to commit the changes.
d. De-select the elements by placing a data point in a blank area.
12. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
Verify Your Work
As a member of the architectural design team, you have been tasked with verifying the preliminary structural design.
This will be done by measuring the design that was obtained from the Structural Engineer.

 Measurement tools
 Snap mode
1. Open structural grid.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\Ref )
2. Open the Level Display dialog (Home > Primary).
3. From the list of levels, turn off S-FNDN-FTNG (Footings).
4. The overall size of the building design needs to be verified:
a. From the Analyze ribbon tab, pick Measure Distance (Analyze > Measure) and set the following:
 Method: Between points
b. Using AccuSnap, snap to the slab (light tan shape) corner near column A1 (location 1 from the image below).
c. Issue a data point for the measure start point.
d. Then, move your cursor to the right, and snap to the slab corner at column A9 (location 2)
e. Issue a data point to define the distance to measure.
The distance measured is found to be 43066.0mm.
f. Press Reset (right-click) to clear the measurement counter.
HINT: The Measure Distance tool is cumulative. With each subsequent data point placed, the measured distance will be added to the
total. Pressing Reset will zero the measurement counter.
In MicroStation, Measurement and Snap technology is similar to that found in AutoCAD, essentially working the same way.
5. Continue to measure each side of the design. This will help in determining the space programming.
NOTE: The intersection points are easily located due to the active snap mode, Multi-snap 1. Currently, Multi-snap 1 is configured to
locate intersections, keypoints, and nearest points. The Snap Mode can be changed (with any tool) to place points with
precision.
6. With the Measure Distance tool still active, begin the measurement at the slab corner at column A9.
7. Move the cursor vertically and press <Enter> key to activate the AccuDraw shortcut SmartLock.
The measurement command is constrained to vertical movement.
8. With a data point, click the slab corner at column E6. The distance is found to be 17472.0mm.
Any text within the tool settings window can be copied to the clipboard. This proves to be very useful since it can be pasted into the
MicroStation’s Text Editor or even into other applications. For instance, a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
9. Make the Measure Angle tool (Analyze > Measure) active.
10. Click each line segment as illustrated.
The angle between the two segments is found to be 90 degrees.
With these measurements, the design is determined to be rectangular with overall dimensions of 43066.0mm x 17472.0mm.
The Measure command in AutoCAD lets you measure Distance, Angle, Radius, Area, and Volume.
11. Next, make the Measure Area tool (Analyze > Measure) active.
12. With the Method set for Element, identify the slab shape for the main building anywhere along the perimeter.
The area of the building is immediately calculated in millimeters.
13. From the Measure Area tool settings window set the following:
 Area Unit: Square m
 Perimeter Unit: Meters
Observe the area and perimeter calculated in meters.
 Area: 539.2 Square m
 Perimeter: 121.1m
NOTE: It is because the building is a complex shape (segments are joined) that it was able to be measured as a single element.
Practice Workbook

Drawing with MicroStation


Course Description
This workbook contains exercises that introduce basic element placement tools and techniques. When you create a
design, you begin by adding elements such as lines, arcs, and circles to the design. While creating these elements, it is
considered a best practice to utilize AccuDraw for precision placement. As part of AccuDraw, the AccuDraw Shortcuts
are intuitive and allow you to accurately and efficiently work with the placement tools.
Skills Taught
 Draw Walls with Place SmartLine and Place Line
 Draw Arcs and Circles
 Precision placement via AccuDraw
 Utilize AccuDraw shortcuts

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Drawing the Exterior Walls
In this section, you begin the design of the proposed restaurant by drawing the exterior walls for the building. This will
be done using the Structural Grid as a reference. You will utilize the Place SmartLine tool along with the aid of
AccuDraw for precision placement.

 Set symbology to follow specific standards
 Draw walls with Place SmartLine
 Use AccuDraw for precision placement

1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\04 - Drawing with MicroStation).
2. From the Home tab of the ribbon, in Attributes, set the following:
 Active Level: A-WALL-FULL-EXTR
The Level Picker is used to set the Active Level that new graphics will be placed on. In this case, those graphics will be used to represent
exterior walls.
HINT: Type part of the level name into the search field to truncate the list of levels.
3. Placing walls with SmartLine:

The value of any tool lies in its impact on productivity. As you will see, Place SmartLine can greatly increase drawing productivity. This tool
combines the functions of several individual tools into a single placement command, streamlining the drawing process.
The tool can place a chain of connected lines and arcs as individual elements or as a string, creating a complex chain or complex shape.
The segment vertices can be sharp points, rounded (tangent arcs), or chamfers.
a. Make the Place SmartLine (Home > Placement) the active tool.
b. In the Place SmartLine tool settings window, verify the following options are enabled:
 Join Elements
 Rotate AccuDraw
SmartLine, AccuDraw, and AccuSnap, in combination, provide a powerful toolset for creating designs in MicroStation. With the active
level set to A-WALL-FULL-EXTR and the Place SmartLine tool active, you are ready to start creating lines that will represent the
exterior walls of the building.
HINT: As you step through this, feel free to pan and zoom to make it more convenient to snap to the proper locations.
4. Creating exterior walls:

a. Move your cursor to the upper-right corner of column A1.
A bold, yellow “X” will appear, indicating that you have snapped to the exact corner of this column.
b. Click the Data Button (left mouse button) to start drawing the new line from this point as shown.
HINT: When you move the pointer over an element in the design, AccuSnap displays the nearest keypoint snap with a hint, or the
tentative point marker if the pointer is within the Keypoint Sensitivity range. To select a different keypoint, simply move the
pointer to the required region of the element and AccuSnap will again show you where the nearest keypoint is located.
c. Move the cursor to the right to start drawing the line.
Use AccuDraw to keep the thick “indexing line” displayed, allowing the line to be locked to the horizontal axis.
d. Using AccuSnap, select the upper-left corner of column A9 as shown.
e. Enter a data point (left mouse click) to accept.

NOTE: Do not press the right button (or reset). This would reset the command, stopping the placement of the current SmartLine.
f. Continuing in the upward direction, AccuSnap to the lower-left corner of column C9.
g. Enter a data point.
h. Moving to the left now, AccuSnap to the lower-left corner of column C7.
i. Enter a data point.
j. Move upward, using AccuSnap to the lower-left corner of column D7.
k. Enter a data point.
You can easily proceed from here as you were by snapping from column to column to finish the wall. However, as an alternative for
the next several points, you will utilize AccuDraw for precision placement by providing exact values.
5. Completing the building walls:

With the Place SmartLine tool still active, the AccuDraw compass is currently located at the last vertex that was placed at column D7.
a. Move the cursor to the left.

b. With the Input Focus in the Distance field of the AccuDraw window, type 5485.
c. Indexing the X-axis (green tick mark in this case) and issue a data point.
d. Continuing from the last vertex placed at column D6, move your cursor in the upward
direction.
e. Type 3048 into the Distance field of the AccuDraw window.
f. Press the <Tab> key and type 90 in the Angle field.
NOTE: Here, AccuDraw is shown “undocked” for clarity. The AccuDraw dialog may also
be docked into the interface.
g. Issue a data point to place the vertex.

h. Move the cursor to the left while the line is relatively aligned to the Horizontal Axis (thick
indexing line), press the <Enter> key on the keyboard locking the line to the Horizontal
Axis.
i. Press the <Tab> key to put focus into the Distance field. Type 10767.
j. Issue a data point.
k. Complete the exterior walls by snapping to the lower-right corners of columns D4, D3, B3, B1, and then finally the upper-right corner
of A1, completing the placement of the SmartLine.
For now, you are finished working on the exterior walls. In a real-world workflow, you would address the exterior wall’s thickness by
offsetting this single line that you created. This will be covered, along with various other manipulation tools, in another module.
NOTE: By default, when you use SmartLine to place more than one element in succession (for instance, a line, an arc, and then
another line), MicroStation automatically assembles the resulting graphics into a complex chain. Since you finished where you
started ("closed" the shape), SmartLine created a complex shape. On the other hand, if you only place two data points to make
a line, then you get just a line. The same goes for a single arc. SmartLine keeps the resulting element as simple as possible.
6. To view the entire design, double-click the mouse wheel.
(Completed exterior building walls)
HINT: Double-clicking the wheel on the mouse issues a Fit View command, zooming to the extents of what is visible in the design file.
7. Save Settings.
Creating the Interior Walls via Place SmartLine
In this section, you will start to layout the interior walls of the building. Similar to how the exterior walls were created, a
single-line wall representation will be created via the Place SmartLine tool. Along with that, in support of creating the
geometry, AccuDraw will be utilized for precision placement.

 Draw Walls with Place SmartLine
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\04 - Drawing with MicroStation).
2. Set the active level:
 Active Level: A-WALL-FULL-INTR
The Active Level is the level you will place your graphics on that represent the interior walls. Interior walls will now be added to the floor
plan.
3. Creating the office walls:

The first interior walls being added will make up what is the office area.
a. Make Place SmartLine (Home > Placement) the active tool.

b. In the tool settings window, ensure that the option, Join Elements, is disabled.
c. Using AccuSnap, locate the lower-right corner of column B3 and issue a data point.
d. Move your cursor in a downward direction, and key-in the following:
 Distance: 3962
 Angle: 90
e. Issue a data point to place the vertex (do not reset).

f. Next, move the mouse straight across to the left, and key-in a distance of 3099.
g. Place a data point.
h. Continue by moving the mouse in an upward direction, press the <Enter> key (this invokes SmartLock), and then snap to either the
right or left side of the bottom of column B3.
i. Place a data point.

j. Reset to complete the placement of the office walls.
4. Creating the restroom walls:

Next, you will layout the single-line wall that will make up the restrooms.
a. With the Place SmartLine tool still active (in the tool settings window) ensure that the option, Join Elements, is enabled.
b. Snap to the lower-right of column C3.
c. Place a data point.
d. Continue placing vertexes at the lower-right of column C4 and then the lower-right of column D4.
e. Press Reset.
f. Start a new wall line at the lower-right of column E5.
g. Move your cursor in a downward direction and key-in the following:
 Distance: 4087
 Angle: 90
h. Issue a data point to place the vertex.

i. Next, move your cursor to the left and press the <Enter> key (SmartLock).
j. Snap to the right-side of either columns C4 or D4.
k. Issue a data point.
l. Reset when complete.
(Completed restroom walls)
5. Restroom screening wall:
In this next part, utilizing AccuDraw, you will do a construction offset for the starting point of a screening wall adjacent to the
restrooms.
a. Snap to the wall intersection created by the end-point of the wall you just placed and the previous wall (between columns C4 and
D4).
b. Press the <O> on your keyboard to invoke the AccuDraw “origin” shortcut.
This will set the Origin of the AccuDraw compass at this point.
c. From here, move your cursor to the right.

d. While indexing to the red tick mark of the AccuDraw compass (X-axis), in the distance field input a distance of 1524.
e. Issue a data point to start the line at this location.
f. Move the cursor downward and key-in 1806 for the distance and 90 angle.
g. Place a Data point.
h. Reset.
(Completed screening wall)
Creating Interior Walls via Place Line
In this section, you will continue to layout a single-line for the interior walls. Again, you will later come back and offset
these walls based on their respective thicknesses.
As you saw, the Place SmartLine tool is a complex, comprehensive tool. Whereas the Place Line is a simple line tool. It
creates one line segment at a time rather than line strings or connected segments. It has two tool settings, Length and
Angle. Length lets you enter a specific value for the length of the line you are placing. Use the Angle setting to enter a
specific angle of rotation for the line.
These settings are optional. You do not have to use both settings together, or even use one of them. When you don’t
use these settings, or use only one, Place Line requires you to enter two data points to place the line. If you use both
settings, then you only need to enter one data point to place the line. Only one data point is needed because the length
and angle of the line have already been established in the tool settings. Place Line also works well with AccuDraw.

 Draw walls with Place Line
 Precision placement via the Tool Settings
Several additional interior walls will be added to the building plan.

 Active Level: A-WALL-FULL-INTR
3. Placing a wall segment:

The first interior wall that you will create will make up what is the kitchen.
a. From the Placement ribbon group, pick Place Line (Home > Placement).
HINT: As mentioned, the Place Line tool is very simple to use, and for precision, you will be relying on the tool’s settings rather than
utilizing AccuDraw.
b. Disable AccuDraw (Drawing Aids > AccuDraw).
c. In the Place Line tools settings window, set the following options:
 Length: 9577
 Angle: 0
d. Bring your cursor into the view, snap to the lower-right corner of column B3, and issue a data point to place the described line.
This line, which represents the wall line that will separate the kitchen from the rest of the restaurant, is placed and as such, a new line
with the very same parameters is attached to your cursor. You will now continue to layout the wall lines for the kitchen with the Place
Line tool.
4. Continue placing interior walls:

a. Return to the Place Line tool settings, set the following:
 Length: 839
 Angle: 90
b. Place this described line at the end point of the 9577mm wall line placed previously.
c. Change the Place Line tool settings Length to 1067 and the Angle to 270.
d. Place this described line at the intersection point of the 9577mm wall line and the 839mm wall just placed.
e. From here, set the Place Line tool settings Length to 8080 and the Angle to 0. Place this described line from the end point of the last
wall segment (839mmwall line).
f. Change the Place Line tool settings Length to 1906 and the Angle to 90.
g. Place this described line at the end point of the 8080mm wall line.
5. Completing the wall segments:

a. In the Place Line tool settings, disable Length and change the Angle to 270.
b. Place this described line with a data point at the intersection point of the 8080mm wall line and 1906mm wall line previously placed.
HINT: You are currently constrained to drawing a line at a 270-degree angle but unconstrained by length.
c. Move the cursor in a downward direction and snap to the upper-side of either columns A6 or A7.
d. Issue a data point.
6. Press Escape <ESC> to stop the Place Line command.
7. Toggle ON AccuDraw (Drawing Aids > AccuDraw).
(Completed wall segments)
Working with Arcs and Circles
In this section, you will add additional detail to your drawings by adding elements such as arcs and circles to your
design. Here you will be drawing the countertop which will comprise a sushi bar and adding a handicap turn-around
circle.

 Draw arcs and circles
 Active Level: A-FLOR-WDWK
3. Create the curved countertop:

To create the curved countertop for the sushi bar, you will utilize the Place Arc tool. Arcs can be placed clockwise or counterclockwise.
Where an arc is constrained by a snap, such as tangent or perpendicular, more than one result is possible, MicroStation displays icons
representing each possible result. In these cases you can use the pointer to select the required solution.
a. From the Placement ribbon group, pick the Place Arc tool (Home > Placement).
b. In the tools settings window, set the following options:

 Method: Start, End, Mid
 Radius: 9450 (Enabled)
 Direction: CW (Enabled)
c. Snap to the end point of the interior wall near column B5.
d. Issue a data point here to identify the start of the arc.

As you move your cursor away from this point, take notice in the tool setting window of a new setting -- solution.
Along with this, you will also notice that there are some on-screen dynamics as well. As shown, the current solution, 0, is not
desirable. Conversely, solution 1 is. You can either select the correct solution from the drop-down menu in the tool settings or press
the Alt key.
e. From the keyboard, press the <Alt> key (ensure that Solution: 1 is selected) and move the cursor slightly to see the update.
f. Snap to the end point of the interior wall near column B6.
g. Issue a data point to identify the end of the arc.
4. Completing the countertop:
Next, you will create lines for the depth of the countertop.
a. Activate the Place SmartLine tool (Home > Placement).

b. Place a 1220 long line at 90 degrees at both the beginning and end of the countertop arc previously created.
c. Switch back to the Place Arc tool, and in the

tool settings window set the following:
 Method: Center, Start
 All other settings: Disabled
d. Press <F11> to bring AccuDraw into focus.

e. From the keyboard, press the <C> key.
This will invoke the AccuDraw shortcut, Center Snap.
f. Hover the cursor over the existing countertop arc and issue a data point.
g. Snap to the upper end point of the vertical line on the left that was placed for the countertop and issue a data point.
h. Sweep the arc in a clockwise fashion as illustrated:
i. Snap to the upper end point of the right vertical line that was placed for the countertop.
j. To complete the arc, issue a data point.
(Completed countertop)
5. Create a wheelchair turnaround:
To meet the requirement for the Disabilities Act, you need to demonstrate space for wheelchairs to turn around. To aid in the eventual
layout of the fixtures and toilet partitions, you will place 1524mm wheelchair turn-around circles inside the both restrooms.
a. From Attributes (Home > Attributes), set the following:

 Level: A-ANNO-TEXT
 Line Style: 3
b. Make Place Circle (Home > Placement) the active tool.
c. In the tool settings window, set the following:

 Method: Center
 Diameter/Radius: disabled
d. Issue a data point in one of the restrooms.

e. In the Distance field of the AccuDraw window, key-in 762.
f. To place the circle, issue a Data point.
HINT: If AccuDraw is in rectangular mode (XY readout or square compass), press “M” to change to Polar mode.
As an alternative method for precision placement, in the tool settings, you can set either the diameter or radius to place circles of an
exact size.
g. In the tool settings window, enable Diameter and set the diameter to 1524.
h. Place this circle in the second restroom.
(Completed walls and countertop)
Challenge Exercise(s)
You have now learned the workflows and processes in this workbook. You have begun to store them into memory and you are now ready for
a Challenge Exercise.
Challenge Exercises are designed to further cement those same workflows and procedures into memory. This is accomplished by hands-on
practice. They are not meant to be a step by step, directed, “click here” exercise but rather begin with a small amount of guidance and a
general understanding of the outcome.
It allows the learner to take charge of their own learning. We guide less, you explore more. It let’s you guide and deepen your personal
learning experience and realize the joy of self discovery.
We also encourage you to create your own versions of these exercises, using your own data based on your own unique experience.
Challenge Exercise: Layout Remaining Walls
For this challenge exercise you will finish laying out the single-line wall representations for the restaurant. Using the
correct levels, create the lines based on the dimensional data provided in the following images.
1. Add the wall lines for the storage areas using the illustrated dimensions.
2. Add the janitor’s closet in the kitchen area and the server station based on the dimensions shown below.
(Note: The image has been altered to make Challenge Exercise linework stand out verses the existing linework.)
3. Add a partial height wall (level: A-WALL-PRHT) in the main dining area.
(Note: Image has been altered to make Challenge Exercise linework stand out verses the existing linework.)
4. Add a partial height wall (level: A-WALL-PRHT) in the main dining area near columns B7 and B8.
5. Add partial height wall (level: A-WALL-PRHT) in the main dining area between column A6 and A7.
(Completed challenge exercise)
Practice Workbook

Manipulating Elements

Course Description
You have just learned how to use some of MicroStation’s tools to create basic design components. However, there is more to designing than
just drawing elements on the screen. Enhancing your designs includes manipulating drawing elements after they have been created. In this
lesson, you will learn about the tools, procedures, and techniques for manipulating the drawing elements.
Skills Taught
 Copy and Move
 Move/Copy Parallel
 Rotate and Mirror
 Array and Stretch
 Align Elements by Edge
 Measure Distance

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Copy Parallel
Move/Copy Parallel (offset) relocates a selected element to a new position by modifying the individual vertices of the
target element to maintain a path parallel to the original path. If you select Make Copy from the tool settings, Move
Parallel becomes Copy Parallel. The Copy Parallel tool creates a duplicate of an existing element into a position parallel
to the original element. In this section, you will create the exterior and interior wall systems by offsetting the single-line
walls.

 Copy Parallel
 Draw lines
1. Begin by opening the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements).
2. From the Home tab, in the Attributes group, set the active level, to A-WALL-FULL-EXTR.
The active level is the level you will place your graphics on that will represent the exterior walls.
3. Zoom into the area of the southwest corner of the restaurant near column B3.
Here you will start to construct the exterior wall system.
4. Construct the exterior wall system:

a. From the Home tab of the Manipulate group, select the Copy Parallel tool .
b. Set the following options in the tool settings window:

 Method: Element
 Mode: Miter
 Distance: 203
 Use Active Attributes: Enabled
 Make Copy: Enabled
c. Issue a data point on the exterior wall line of the

restaurant.
d. Then, moving your mouse to the outside as shown, provide a data point, followed by a reset or right mouse button.
You now have created a 203mm CMU wall line.
e. In the tool settings window, set the Distance to 102.
f. Then, offset (copy parallel) the exterior wall lines for the restaurant, creating the 102mm brick veneer.
With the exterior wall now complete, you turn your focus inward to offset the interior walls. Since there are existing interior wall lines, you
can simply match the properties to set the active level. The quickest and the most effective way to match properties of an existing element
is to hover your cursor over an existing element, hold down the Alt key on the keyboard and then issue a data point.
5. Match the properties of interior wall:

a. Hover your cursor over the interior wall line (purple lines near column B3) that makes up the office space.
b. Hold down the <Alt> key on the keyboard and then issue a data point.
c. Confirm that the active level is now A-WALL-FULL-INTR.
6. Construct the interior wall systems for office and storage area:
a. With the Copy Parallel tool still active, change the Distance to 127.
b. With the tool now set, bring your cursor into the view and issue a data point on all of the vertical lines, offsetting them in the leftward
direction each time.
c. Then repeat this by issuing a data point on all of the horizontal lines, offsetting them in the upward direction each time.
d. Reset when complete.
7. Construct the interior wall systems for restrooms:
a. Navigate the view to the vicinity of column D4. This is where the restrooms are located.
b. Copy Parallel both interior walls at the restrooms inward.
c. Reset.
d. Offset the screening wall at the restrooms to the right.
e. Reset.
f. Make the Place SmartLine tool active (Home > Placement).
g. Cap-off the screening wall by placing a line between the end points.
8. Construct countertop for Lounge/Waiting area:
a. Navigate the view to the vicinity of column C4. This is where the Lounge/Waiting area is located.
b. Make the Copy Parallel tool active and set the
following options in the tool settings window:
 Method: Portion of Element
 Distance: 380.0
The method, Portion of Element, allows you to copy only the selected portion of an element.
c. With the cursor in the view, hover over an existing countertop segment, matching the properties using <Alt + data point>.
d. Confirm that the active level is now A-FLOR-WDWK.
e. Following the Status Bar prompt, specify the first point by snapping to the upper-left corner of the countertop and issuing a data
point.
f. Next, move your cursor to the right, along the line, around the arc, snapping to the end of the arc.
g. Then, issuing a data point to specify the second point.
h. Again, move your cursor to the right, this time defining the direction of the parallel copy. Issue a data point, however, do not reset.
i. From the ribbon, in the Attributes button group of the Home tab, set the active line style to 3 and the weight to 0.
j. In the tool settings window, set the Distance to 127.

k. Press <Tab> or <Enter> to set the value.
l. Move your cursor to the right, and issue two data points creating two new elements.
m. Reset when complete.
9. In the Home tab of the Attributes group, set the active line style and weight to ByLevel.
10. Construct the interior wall systems for the kitchen:
a. Navigate the view to the kitchen area.
b. Make the level A-WALL-FULL-INTR active by matching the properties of the existing interior wall linework.
c. With the Copy Parallel tool active, set the following:
 Method: Element
 Distance: 127.
d. Complete the task of offsetting the walls that will comprise the kitchen area: Cap-off any walls, if necessary, using the Place
SmartLine tool. However, do not trim/extend any linework at this time. You will take on that task in the next module, Modifying
Elements.
Rotate Element
The Rotate tool rotates a selected element, or copy of the element, about a specified pivot point. In this section, you will
rotate furniture and equipment cells.

 Rotate elements by Active Angle and 3 points
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements).
2. Zoom into the area where column D7 is located.
Here, in the open space, you will find lounge furniture that needs to be placed in the waiting area. A couple of operations need to be
performed, starting with rotating the furniture to the proper angle.
3. Along the ribbon, from the Home tab of the Manipulate group, select the Rotate tool.
To rotate a selected element at the Active Angle, select Active Angle from the method menu and key-in the rotation angle in the angle field
or click the scroll arrows on the right-side of the angle field, to select standard angles such as 180 or 270 degrees. The selected element
is rotated for the chosen angle in a counter-clockwise direction, starting at an imaginary line from the point on the element where it was
originally identified to the rotation point.
4. Set the following options in the tool

settings window:
 Method: Active Angle
 Angle: 45.0
 Copies: Disabled
5. Rotate the Lounge Seating cell:
a. Identify the Lounge Seating 4 cell with a data point.
You are then prompted to enter the pivot point (the point to rotate about).
b. Issue a data point near the center of the cell, thus rotating it the described 45 degrees.
You will eventually move this inside the floor plan in an upcoming step. For now, you will continue to rotate equipment elsewhere.
6. Navigate the view to the sushi bar area near columns B5, B6.
7. Rotate refrigerator at sushi bar:
a. With the Rotate tool still active, set the Method to 3 points.
b. At the mid-point of the counter, there is a refrigerator. Identify this as the element to rotate.
c. Press the <C> key to invoke the Center snapmode.
d. Issue a data point on either arc of the countertop to establish the pivot point.
Next, you are prompted to enter the point to define the start of rotation.
e. Snap to the mid-point along the back of the refrigerator and issue a data point.
You are prompted to enter the point to define the amount of rotation. In this case, you will be using precision via AccuDraw.
f. Press the Tab key to put focus into AccuDraw’s Angle field.
g. Key-in -5.0.
h. Issue a data point to accept the rotation.
8. Rotate and copy the refrigerator using the 3 points method:
a. Back in the tool settings window, enable Copies.
b. Like the steps before, identify the refrigerator.
c. Select the arc element with the Center snapmode.
d. Snap to mid-point along the back of the refrigerator, and issue a data point.
e. Move your cursor to the left and in the AccuDraw Angle field, key-in 10.0.
f. Issue a data point to place the rotated copy.
g. Reset when finished.
Move Element
The Move tool relocates an element to a new location without changing its orientation or size. In this section, you will
continue to work with existing elements by moving them into the correct location relative to the floor plan.

 Move Element
1. Continuing in the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements).
2. Zoom into the area where the restrooms are located near column D4.
In an earlier task, you placed circles that would represent a wheelchair turn-around. With the restroom fixtures and partition walls now in
place, you need to verify and show that the design is compliant.
3. Move wheelchair turn-around circles:

a. Along the ribbon, from the Home tab of the Manipulate group, select the Move tool.
Move relocates an element to a new location without changing its orientation or size. After identifying the element to be moved, enter
a second data point to define its new location. The data point used to identify the element is the (base) point by which the element will
be moved.
Careful selection of this point combined with the tentative snap (with the appropriate snap mode selected) will facilitate precise
element location. Furthermore, use AccuDraw in conjunction with the Move tool for precise element relocation. A final reset releases
the element.
b. Select one of the circles.

c. Enter a data point to reposition the element into the open space between the fixtures and partition walls.
d. Repeat for the second restroom.
4. Navigate the view to where the Lounge Seating cell is currently located (near column D7).
In an earlier task, you rotated the Lounge Seating cell. You will now move this cell onto the floor plan into the waiting area. When
relocating this, you will need to be more precise with your movement. The backing of the chairs need to be 150mm from any wall.
5. Relocating the lounge seating cell:

a. With the Move tool active, snap to the chair in the upper-right, along the backside, right corner.
b. From here, press the <O> on your keyboard.
This will set the AccuDraw origin at this snap point. Remember, in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition, AccuDraw always has focus
rather than in previous editions MicroStation where you needed manually shift focus to run AccuDraw shortcuts prior to working with
a tool.
c. Confirm that AccuDraw is in the Rectangular coordinates mode (square compass). If not, press the <M> key to toggle from Polar to
Rectangular mode.
The similar function is in the Dynamic Input mode, use the up arrow key to switch between polar and rectangular.
d. Move your cursor in the upward direction and then hit the <Enter> key. This activates the SmartLock AccuDraw shortcut.
e. From status bar set the active snapmode to Keypoint.
f. Perform a tentative snap (press the left and right mouse buttons simultaneously) on the left corner along the backside of the same
chair as shown below.
This with give you the horizontal and vertical intersection point from the two rear corners of the chair.
g. Accept this with a data point.
6. Position the lounge seating:

After accepting the intersection point, you are prompted to define distance and direction.
a. Here you will snap to the lower-left corner of column D7 (do not issue a data point).
b. When snapped, rather, press the <O> key to set the origin.
c. Move your cursor to the left and key-in 150 (mm) on the X-axis.
d. Next, bring your cursor downward, in the Y-axis, and key-in 150.
e. Issue a data point to place the furniture.
Copy Element
Copy creates a duplicate of an existing element without affecting the original element. It is one of the most popular tools
used in MicroStation. In this section, you will utilize the Copy Element tool to determine and illustrate ADA compliance
in the restrooms as well as laying out restroom fixtures and restaurant furniture.

 Copy Elements
 Place Circle by Edges
 Precision Placement via AccuDraw and AccuSnap
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements).
2. Zoom to the area where the restrooms are located (columns D3, D4). In particular, the men’s restroom.
In an earlier task, you placed circles that would represent a wheelchair turn-around. The circles were placed in an open area, but
compliance still needs to be verified and demonstrated inside the design. You will utilize the existing circle by making a copy and placing
it inside the accessible stall.
3. Along the ribbon, from the Home tab of the Manipulate group, select the Copy tool.
The Copy tool places a copy of the selected element at a specified location and leaves the original element intact. The copy is identical to
the original and as many copies of the original as needed may be made. Each copy is independent of the original and can be manipulated
and modified like any other element. The data point entered on the element to copy is the (base) point on the element to which the pointer
is attached. Careful selection of this point combined with the tentative snap (with the appropriate snap mode selected) will facilitate
precise element location. Furthermore, use AccuDraw in conjunction with the Copy tool for precise element relocation. A final reset
releases the element.
The AccuSnap feature in MicroStation is similar to the Object Snap feature in AutoCAD.
4. Copy circle that represents a wheelchair turn-around:

a. With the Copy tool active, snap to the far right quadrant of the circle inside the men’s restroom.
b. Issue data point here for the base point.
c. Move the cursor to the left.
d. Press the <Enter> key to invoke the AccuDraw shortcut, SmartLock.
e. Snap to the inside of the partition wall and then issue a data point.
A copy is placed and the tool remains active and ready for additional copies.
f. Bring your cursor into the accessible stall inside the women’s restroom and observe the result without placing a copy.
As you can see, due to the layout there is less space.
g. Reset (right-click).
To confirm if the design is compliant, a circle will placed to represent the wheelchair turn-around utilizing a different method. For now,
return back to the men’s restroom.
5. Copy restroom fixtures:

a. In the tool settings window, set Copies to 3.
b. In the men’s restroom, snap to any point on the urinal and issue a data point for the base point.
c. Move your cursor to the right, and while indexing to the X-axis of the AccuDraw compass, key-in 762.
d. Issue a data point, creating the copies.
Observe the result. 3 copies were placed at equal spacing, 762mm apart. An array if you would.
6. Navigate your view (if necessary) to the women’s restroom.

7. Make the Place Circle tool (Home > Placement) active and
set the following options in the tool settings window:
 Method: Edge
 Area: Solid
 Fill Type: None
 Diameter: 1524
The Place Circle By Edge method is used to draw a circle by defining three data points on the circle. When selecting Diameter or
Radius from the options menu located in the tool settings window, MicroStation prompts for two data points, instead of three, to place
a circle by edge.
8. In Attributes, set the following:
 Level: A-ANNO-TEXT
 Line Style: 3
NOTE: You can quickly match properties at any point of time, regardless of the active tool, by hovering over the existing element and
pressing the Alt key + data button (left mouse click).
To place the circle by edges, you will use the Tangent snap mode twice. The first will be the arc on the sink and the second will be the
arc on the toilet.
9. Place a circle representing a wheelchair turn-around:

a. Make the Tangent snap mode active.
NOTE: There are a variety of ways to select snap modes. A popular way is via the Snap Mode toolbar. Another way is by holding down
the Shift key and simultaneously pressing the left and right mouse buttons (chord). This will bring up the Snaps pop-up menu.
b. With the Tangent snap mode active, snap to the arc

in the lower-left of the sink.
c. Issue a data point to define the first point of the
circle.
d. Make the Tangent snap mode active again.
e. Snap to the lower-right arc of the toilet.
f. Issue a data point to define the second point of the circle.
10. Copy seating in lounge area:

a. Navigate the view back to where the lounge seating that you placed near column D7.
b. Make the Copy tool (Home > Placement) active.
NOTE: The value for Copies will always reset to one after the tool has been used with the multiple copies option.
c. Snap to the back-right corner of the chair in the upper-right of the configuration.
d. Issue a data point to establish the base point.
e. Next, snap to the back-left corner of the chair in the upper-left and press the <O> key to set the AccuDraw origin at this point.
f. Move your cursor to the left, and while indexing to the X-axis, and then key-in 457(mm).
g. Issue a data point to place the copy.
h. Reset when finished.
Mirror
The Mirror tool creates a mirror (backward) image of an element about a horizontal line, a vertical line, a user-defined
line, or about the element center. In this section, you will mirror the dining booths, making a copy of the selected
elements to the opposite wall in the main dining area.

 Mirror an element
2. Zoom to the location where the main dining area is located on the right-side of the building.
During the planning process, a concept for the dining booths was drafted. This concept has met the approval of the customer. So, you as
the designer, just need to reflect this concept for the other half of the main dining area.
3. From the Home tab, in the Manipulate ribbon group, select the Mirror tool.
4. Set the following options in the tool settings window:

 Mirror Direction: Horizontal
 About Element Center: Disabled
 Make Copy: Enabled
You are prompted to identify the element to mirror.
5. Select anywhere on the booths with a data point.
6. Snap to the column grid line B and issue a data point.
A mirrored copy is placed and the tool remains active. As you can see, another mirror preview is being presented.
7. Issue a reset.
Construct Array
Construct Array creates multiple copies of a single element or groups of elements and places them in rectangular or
polar (circular) patterns, or along a path, at regularly spaced intervals. In this section, you will utilize the Array tool to
create copies of furniture along a selected element. In this case, the chair selected will follow the curvature of an arc
element. And with each copy created, the chair will rotate and maintain the same alignment and offset, relative to the
path.

 Array elements
2. Zoom to the where you constructed the countertop at the sushi bar (columns B5, B6).
Here you will find a single chair that was placed, aligned with the arc of the countertop. You will now utilize the Array tool to make copies
at a certain distance and maintain the same offset from the path element. In this case, the path element is the countertop.
3. From the Home tab, in the Manipulate ribbon group, select the Construct Array tool.
The Construct Array tool makes multiple copies of a selected element in a rectangular, polar, or along path method.

 Method: Along Path
 Mode: Both
 Copies: 9
 Distance: 762
 Rotate Items: Enabled
5. Construct an array of chairs at the sushi bar:

a. Begin by issuing a data point thereby identifying the chair. The location on the chair is not critical.
b. Next, issue a data point on the arc directly in front of the chair to identify this as the start point on the path element.
c. Then, move your cursor to the right to give direction.
d. Since the Mode is dictating the path end point, simply issue a data point to place the array.
Take note how with each copy of the chair that was placed, it rotated to maintain the same orientation relative to the arc element that was
chosen as the path. Furthermore, each copy maintained the same offset distance relative to the arc element. You will now repeat this
procedure in the lounge area.
6. Construct an array of chairs at the lounge area:
a. Navigate your view to the countertop in the lounge area.
b. Ensure that the Array tool is still active. In the tool settings window set Copies to 2.
c. Just like before, issue a data point on the chair.
d. Next, issue a data point on the arc directly in front of the chair as the path element.
e. Move your cursor in the upward direction and issue a data point to place the 2 chairs.
f. Select the first (original chair), then the arc directly in front of the chair, and now move your cursor in the downward direction.
g. Issue a data point to place the arrayed copies.
Stretch Element
Stretch Element allows you to extend or shorten elements by moving the end points and vertices that lie within a fence.
In this section, you will need to adjust the location of several walls due to a slight design change. You will utilize the
Stretch Element tool to quickly and efficiently perform this task, otherwise avoiding numerous steps from a variety of the
manipulation and modification tools.

 Stretch Element
 Measure distances
1. Continuing in the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements folder).
2. Zoom to the where you constructed the janitor’s closet, near column B7.
The janitor’s closet was slightly oversized when initially laying out the linework. You need to adjust several walls in order to make the
space smaller. To avoid numerous steps with a variety of manipulation and modification tools, you will utilize the stretch tool to quickly and
easily adjust the location of the walls.
3. Along the ribbon, from the Manipulate group of the Home tab, select the Stretch tool.
The Stretch tool allows you to extend or shorten elements by moving the end points and vertices that lie within a fence. The tool operates
on elements as follows:
 A vertex of a line, line string, multi-line, or shape is moved if it is inside the fence. A vertex outside the fence is not moved.
 An endpoint of an arc is moved if it is inside the fence. An arc endpoint outside the fence is not moved.
 An ellipse, circle, or cell is moved if it is completely inside the fence.
 One or more poles (control points) of a B-spline surface, that are located inside the fence, are moved
4. Let’s resize the janitor’s closet:
a. Following the status bar prompt, define the fence block by entering a data point up and to the left of the janitor’s closet.
b. Next, move your cursor down and to the right, and issue a data point to define the opposite corner.
c. You are prompted to identify the first point. For this, issue a data point anywhere in view, preferably near the fence you just placed.
d. Next, move your cursor in the upward direction and index to the Y-axis (green tick mark) of the AccuDraw compass.
e. Key-in the distance of 430 (mm) and issue a data point.
The tool remains active and ready for another potential stretch operation.
f. Instead, press reset.
The space has now been adjusted to reflect the lesser requirement for the space. You just need to verify your work by measuring the wall
lengths.
5. :
a. From the Analyze tab, in the Measure ribbon group, select the Measure Distance tool.
b. Measure the inside edge of the long wall, as shown.
c. Verify your design that the distance measures 2183.
6. Next, we are going to verify the server station:
a. With the Measure Distance tool still active, we’re going to measure the inside wall of the server station next to the sushi bar/dining
wall.
As you can see, the measurement indicates that this is a 635mm section. You need to adjust this wall so that it measures 762mm.
7. :
a. As such, we are going to make the Stretch tool (Home > Manipulate) active again.
b. Like before, create a rectangular fence by placing two opposite points around the t-wall, as shown.
When using Stretch, the most important thing is to place the fence carefully, so that it includes the vertices that you want to move.
c. Issue a data point for the first point.

d. Next, move your cursor to the right and key-in 127.
e. Data point to accept, followed by an immediate reset.
8. Again, verify the new wall’s length by utilizing the Measure Distance tool.
NOTE: Dimensions are shown for illustration purposes only. Dimensions are not required at this time and will be covered in detail later
in this course.
Align Edges
Cleaning up a design file often requires common repairs such as aligning elements that were placed slightly askew. The
Align Elements By Edge tool can make this task easier. The tool provides an easy way to align two or more elements to
a common edge. In this section, you have notes and symbols relative to the different wall types utilized in the
restaurant. All the information is correct, it just needs you to align the elements that were placed slightly askew.

 Align elements
1. Here we are in MicroStation and we have the elevations_details.dgn file open. (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements).
2. We want to work on the Wall Types model. So from the Models dialog (Home > Primary), we’re going to make the Wall Types model
active.
NOTE: As an alternative to using the Models dialog, you can switch models using the View Groups toolbar.
3. From the Home tab, in the Manipulate ribbon group, make the Align Elements By Edge tool active.
The Align Elements By Edge tool provides an easy way to align two or more elements to a common edge. An edge is defined as the X, Y,
or Z-axis normal to the view. You can select the edge by which the elements are aligned from the tool settings. The first element selected
is the element to which all the others will be aligned.
In this design file, you have notes and symbols relative to the different wall types utilized in the restaurant. All the information is correct, it
just needs you to align the elements that were placed slightly askew.
 Align: Left
 Make Copy: Disabled
5. So now we are going to Align the notes:

a. You are prompted to select a base element for alignment. Select the first note, “92mm EXTERIOR BRICK VENEER...”
The other notes will be aligned with this one.
b. Select the second note, “26mm Drywall...” with a data point.

This note will be aligned with the first note.
c. Select the third note, “16mm Drywall...” with a data point.
It aligns directly underneath the other notes.
d. Issue another data point to accept the on-screen preview.
e. Reset when finished.
Now that the notes are aligned, the next task would be to align the symbols with their respective notes.
6. :
a. In the tool settings window, set Align to Top.
b. Select the first note, “92mm EXTERIOR BRICK VENEER...”
c. Next, select the symbol, “A” as the element to align.
d. Then issue a data point to accept the preview. Reset.
e. We are going to repeat this process for the remaining two symbols.
7. Now that we are finished aligning the symbols, we will now align the drawing title:
a. In the tool settings window, go ahead and set Align to Vert Center.
b. We’ll start by selecting the first note, “92mm EXTERIOR BRICK VENEER...”
c. Next, we’ll select the drawing title, “WALL TYPES” as the element to align.
d. Then issue a data point to accept the preview.
e. Reset.
You have now learned the workflows and processes in this workbook. You have begun to store them into memory and
you are now ready for a Challenge Exercise.
Challenge Exercises are designed to further cement those same workflows and procedures into memory. This is
accomplished by hands-on practice. They are not meant to be a step by step, directed, “click here” exercise but rather
begin with a small amount of guidance and a general understanding of the outcome.
It allows the learner to take charge of their own learning. We guide less, you explore more. It lets you guide and deepen
your personal learning experience and realize the joy of self-discovery.
We also encourage you to create your own versions of these exercises, using your own data based on your own unique
experience.
Challenge Exercise
For this challenge exercise, you will continue to develop the floor plan of the restaurant by utilizing the manipulation
tools. Using the correct levels, manipulate the features based on the dimensional data provided in the following images.
 File: proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\05 - Manipulating Elements)
1. In the main dining area, there are single-line, partial height walls that need to be offset. All walls are 127mm wide. Ensure that all linework
is on the correct level and add lines where necessary to cap off walls. Using modifications tools to trim and extend at this point is not
required. Modify tools are covered in the next module.
2. The screening wall located at the restrooms currently has a 1524mm width. This needs to be 1220mm instead.
3. Place 2 more sets of lounge/waiting tables based on the dimensional data shown below.
4. Construct the linework at the sushi bar based on the image below. You may match the symbology from the lounge area countertop.
Again, use strictly the manipulation tools. Modification will be covered in the next module.
Practice Workbook

Modifying Elements

Course Description
MicroStation not only facilitates the placement of elements but also provides tools that give you the ability to quickly
modify data. The Modify Element tool in MicroStation is one of the best examples of this. However, there are other tools
that are just as impressive. This workbook contains lessons that will explore some of the tools and methods utilized in
modifying elements.
Skills Taught
 The Modify Element tool
 Break Element, Extend Line, Extend Element and Trim Element tool

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Modifying Existing Elements
Modify Element is a multi-purpose modification tool that is used to change the spatial coordinates of an element’s
geometry. In this section, you will modify existing linework for some of the walls rather than taking time-consuming steps
to delete and redraw the linework.

 The Modify Element tool
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\06 - Modifying Elements).
2. From the ribbon (Home > Modify), make Modify Element the active tool.
Modify Element changes an element’s spatial attributes. The type of change that can be made depends on the type of element you select:
 Move a vertex or segment of a line, line string, or shape.
 Scale a block about the opposite vertex.
 Modify rounded segments of complex chains and complex shapes created with the Place SmartLine tool.
 Change a circle's radius.
 Modify an arc in various ways.
HINT: The tool settings will change depending upon the element or vertex selected.
3. Modify the partial height wall:

a. Zoom to the area near column B7.
Here you will find a partial height wall. Upon taking a closer look, you will notice the end cap for the wall was not properly snapped to
the end points of the wall. You need to utilize the Modify Element tool to come in here and fix the end cap, ensuring that it snapped
properly.
b. With the Modify Element tool active, identify one of the vertices on the end cap linework.
c. Then, snap this vertex to the corresponding end point on the wall section.
d. Repeat this for the other vertex on the end cap.
(Completed wall modification)
4. Modify the kitchen wall:

a. Next, navigate the view to the kitchen, between columns B5 and B6.
Here you will find a screening wall that needs to be modified.
b. With the Modify Element tool active, snap to either the lower-left or lower-right corner of the screening wall.
c. Issue a data point.
d. Then, moving your cursor in a downward direction, hit the <Enter> key in invoke the AccuDraw SmartLock shortcut.
e. With the direction constrained, snap to the corner of the adjacent wall, thus making it flush with the face of the horizontal wall.
f. Issue a data point.
(Completed wall modification)
The wall updates to reflect the modification.
HINT: For now, you are finished working with the Modify Element tool. In an upcoming task, you will utilize this same tool to modify
dimensions.
Break Element
The restaurant design is progressing, and doors are starting to be placed. In this section, you will utilize the Break
Element tool to remove linework where the doors have been inserted into the floor plan. Break Element is used to
remove unwanted portions of elements.

 Break Element
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\06 - Modifying Elements).
2. Navigate the view to the kitchen, between columns B5 and B6.
3. Create a door opening:

a. From the ribbon, make Break Element (Home > Modify) the active tool.
The Break Element has four methods:
 Break by Two Points – To delete part of an element by defining two points.
 Break by Point – Breaks the element at a defined point.
 Break by Drag Line – Breaks the element(s) by drawing a virtual line that intersects the element(s).
 Break by Elements – Breaks the element(s) by one or more intersecting elements.
b. In the tool settings window, select the method Break by two points.
c. Bringing your cursor into the view, snap to the upper-left corner of the door jamb of the swing-door that leads into the kitchen.
d. Issue a data point here to define the start point of the partial delete.
e. Next, snap to the upper-right corner of the door jamb of the swing-door.
f. Issue a data point here to define the direction and extent of the deletion.
The tool resets and is now ready to continue modifying additional elements.
g. Repeating the previous steps, perform a partial delete on the linework of the swing-door that runs from the lower-left to the lower-right
corner.
(Completed door opening)
4. Clean up a wall intersection:

a. Locate the screening wall.
Just to the left of the swing-door is the screening wall that was modified
earlier. The geometry where the two wall sections come together needs
to be “cleaned up”.
b. Make Break Element the active tool.

c. Remove the unwanted portion at the T-intersection.
5. Using the Partial Delete tool, continue to remove excess wall

linework in the following locations:
 The swing-doors leading out to the main dining area
 The swing-doors leading into the sushi bar
 The doors leading into the janitor’s closet
NOTE: Later, in a Challenge Exercise, you will utilize

Partial Delete for the remaining doors.
Trim to Element
The Trim To Element tool lets you extend or shorten an open-element, or multiple open elements simultaneously, to
their intersection with one other element. In this section, you will explore this tool by operating on the counter top.

 Set Mark
 Trim To Element
2. Navigate the view to the sushi bar, near column B6.
3. From the Quick Access toolbar, click Set Mark.

The Set Mark tool will set a “marker” in the undo buffer back to which subsequent operations can be undone. This is in essence a
bookmark that will allow you to quickly undo operations that are performed after the mark is added, returning the DGN to the point where
the mark was created.
4. Trimming countertop geometry:

a. From the ribbon, make the active tool Trim To Element (Home > Modify).
The Trim To Element tool is used to extend or shorten lines, line strings, or arcs to their intersection with another element. The
selected element is modified to intersect with the element chosen for intersection, with no overlap.
b. In the tool settings disable Select cutting element first.
c. At the countertop, select one of the vertical countertop lines with a data point (that was offset in an earlier task).
In this case, make sure that you select the line closer to the end point that you want to extend.
d. Issue a data point on the outer-most arc to identify this as the element to extend to.
e. Repeat this step for the adjacent, vertical line, extending this as well to the edge of the counter.
HINT: As you just saw, the Trim to Element tool can be used to extend elements but it can also trim or shorten elements as well.
f. Select the upper arc (of the pair of continuous arcs drawn in line style 0) as the element to modify.
It is critical to select this element to the left of the vertical lines since this is the portion that you wish to keep.
g. Next, from the pair of vertical lines that you offset in an earlier task, select the vertical line on the left as the cutting element/edge.
The arc is trimmed back to the intersection of the arc and line.
h. This time, repeat this process by selecting the lower arc as the element to trim and the right vertical line as the cutting element.
(Completed trimming operations)
5. Complete the countertop trimming:

As seen earlier, the Trim to Element tool can be used to extend elements by selecting the elements individually. However, through an
option in the tool settings, you can also perform these operations on multiple elements at a given time.
a. Pan to the left-side of the counter.
b. With the Trim to Element tool active, in the tool settings window enable the following option:
 Select cutting element first: Enabled
This essentially reverses the click order of the elements.
c. With a data point, pick the vertical line at the left edge of the countertop.
At the left edge of the countertop, there are two vertical lines. Of this pair, select the line on the right, identifying it as the cutting
element.
At this point, if you wanted to select more cutting elements, you would need to hold down the <Ctrl> key while selecting each
element. Since that is not the case here, the elements to be modified will now be selected. Four arcs (two continuous, two dashed)
will be modified. You could identify each arc individually, but there is a faster way.
d. In the open space below the arcs, press-and-hold the left mouse button.
Picking a point away from graphics and holding down the left mouse button initiates a drag line.
e. Next, drag over the four arcs.
This allows multiple elements to be identified as the desired elements to be modified.
f. Release the mouse button.
All the arcs are extended to the cutting element in one operation.
HINT: While the Trim To Element is a good tool in certain applications, there are other trimming/extending tools that would better suit
your needs. In the next couple of exercises, you will explore these so you can see for yourself.
6. Reviewing the recent changes:

At the start of this task, you selected the icon Set Mark in the Quick Access toolbar. Now you want to undo the design to the state when
you first began.
a. From the Quick Access toolbar, click the down-arrow next to the Undo to expose a menu.
b. From here, pick To Mark.
As can be seen, all changes made to the design file after the Mark was set have been removed from the model.
c. From the Quick Access toolbar, pick Redo.
In a single operation, all of the changes have been returned to the design.
HINT: This can be a way to see a “before and after” representation of changes being made to a design.
Trim To Intersection
The Trim To Intersection tool is used to extend and/or shorten two elements of any element type to their intersection. In
this section, you will utilize this tool to clean-up linework at a countertop and wall section.

 Trim elements to an intersection
2. Navigate the view to the sushi bar, at column B6.
3. Completing countertop geometry:
The Trim to Intersection tool is used to trim/extend two elements to their intersecting point. Both elements’ lengths are modified using the
command, and the lengths can be lengthened or shortened. When an element is extended, the end nearest the point where it was
selected is moved, and the other end remains unchanged. When an element is shortened, the part of the element that is selected is kept.
a. Make the active tool Trim To Intersection (Home > Modify).
b. On the right-side of the countertop, pick the top arc with a data point as the first element to modify.
c. From the pair of vertical lines that were offset earlier, pick the line on the left with a data point.
The resulting selected lines and arcs are trimmed to their respective intersecting points.
d. Repeat this trimming process by selecting the lower arc and then the right vertical line.
4. Modify the half-height wall:
As you just saw, the Trim To Intersection tool trimmed both elements back to their respective intersecting points. Now in this situation, the
partial height wall’s two line segments will be extended to meet at their respective intersecting points.
a. Pan slightly up and to the right, in the vicinity of column C7.
b. Pick the Trim To Intersection tool.

c. Select the first element.
d. Select the second element.
The elements are extended to their intersection.
Trim Multiple
Trim Multiple allows you to trim and extend one element or multiple elements simultaneously to their intersection with
one or more other elements. In this section, you will take another approach at cleaning up the linework for the
countertop and wall with a more efficient and versatile modification tool.

 The Trim Multiple tool
2. Navigate the view to the kitchen, between columns A6 and B6.
3. Trimming wall intersections using Trim Multiple:

The Trim Multiple tool is used to trim, extend, or trim and extend elements to their intersection with one or more cutting elements. The
cutting element and the element that is trimmed and/or extended can be lines, line strings, arcs, curves, B-spline curves, shapes, ellipses,
complex chains, or complex shapes.
a. From the ribbon, make the active tool Trim Multiple (Home > Modify).
The tool has three methods -- Trim and Extend, Trim, or Extend. In the tool settings window, select the Method, Trim and Extend.
You are prompted to identify the cutting elements. In this situation, you are going to create a crossing selection window, capturing
numerous elements in which will be cutting elements.
b. Place the cursor to the right of the swing-door near column A7.
c. Press-and-hold the left mouse button.
d. While holding the mouse button down, drag the mouse up and to the
left until your cursor is to the left of the column B7 as shown.
e. Release the mouse button

Every element that was either inside or touching the selection window is considered a cutting element.
NOTE: By dragging the selection window from right-to-left, the selection mode was set to overlap. This means that anything that was
either inside or that touched the selection window was chosen. If the selection window had been created by dragging the
window from left- to-right, the selection mode would have been set to inside. Only elements that were completely contained
inside of the selection window would have been chosen.
f. Begin to click on the geometry directly or create drag lines to trim away any unnecessary linework for the walls at the joints/
intersections.
g. Reset when finished.
4. Trimming the door openings:

The door openings will now be trimmed.
a. With the Trim Multiple tool still active, in the tool settings window, set the following:
 Method: Trim.
b. Navigate the view to the door of the women’s restroom near column D4.
c. Select one of the door frames with a data point.
d. On the keyboard, hold down <CTRL>.
e. Select the second door frame with a data point.
f. Release <CTRL>.
g. Pick each wall segment to be trimmed with a data point.
h. Reset when complete.
i. Repeat this process for the men’s restroom door.
5. Completing the sushi bar:
a. Navigate the view to the sushi bar, at columns B5 and B6.
b. With the Trim Multiple tool still active, in the tool settings window, set the following:
 Method: Extend
c. Pick the left vertical line on the right-side of the countertop.
d. Extend each of the two dashed arcs by picking each in turn with a data point.
e. Reset when complete.
We also encourage you to create your own versions of these exercises, using your own data based on your own unique
experience.
Challenge Exercise: Clean-up Remaining Interior and Exterior Walls
For this challenge exercise, you will continue to clean up any remaining interior and exterior walls, using the tools and
techniques learned in the previous lessons.
 Remove unnecessary linework at all wall joints/intersections (in addition to the door openings).
 The tool that you utilize is completely up to you.
 Add lines where necessary to cap off walls and ensure that all linework is on the correct level.
Challenge Exercise: Clean-up Linework at Countertop
For this challenge exercise, you will continue to develop the floor plan of the restaurant by utilizing the Modify tools.
Here you will clean-up the arcs as part of the lounge countertop.
 The countertop arcs located at the lounge need be extended.
(Completed challenge exercise)
Practice Workbook

Working with Cells


Course Description
Cells are symbols that allow you to re-use existing geometry that you regularly use in your designs without the need to redraw the geometry
each time it is required. A cell may either be 2D or 3D and can vary from simple to quite complex. Cells are saved in a cell library that may
later be recalled for repeated use in any design file. In this section, you will focus on the creation and placement of various furniture and
equipment symbols.
Skills Taught
 Work with cell libraries
 Place cells
 Cell creation
 Replace/update cells
 Create a Cell Index
 Modify linework
 Construct chamfers and fillets

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Place Cells: Doors and Windows
Placing symbols, or cells, are performed using the Place Active Cell tool. There are a variety of settings to control size,
rotation, and AccuDraw can also be useful in aligning cells correctly. In this section, you will start place door and window
cells along the exterior.

 Attach a cell library
 Place Active Cell
 Element properties
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\07 - Working with Cells).
2. Zoom to the area where columns E5 and E6 are located.
3. Attaching a cell library:

a. From the ribbon (Annotate > Cells), pick the Place Active Cell tool.
b. In the tool settings window, click Browse Cell(s).
The Cell Library dialog opens.
The equivalent to a Cell in AutoCAD is the Block. A block library is a collection of block definitions stored in a single drawing file.
The same action in AutoCAD is to attach a Block Library file and use the Place Block command.
The equivalent to a Cell in AutoCAD is the Block. A block library is a collection of block definitions stored in a single drawing file.
c. In the Cell Library dialog, pick File > Attach File.

d. In the course dataset, navigate to the cell library folder (..\Standards\Cell).
e. Select the pick Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel.
f. Click Open.
4. Adding the entryway doors:

The entryway doors for the restaurant will now be added to the design.
a. From the list of cells, pick DblDoorSidelite.

b. Set this as the active cell for placement.
c. You may then close the Cell Library dialog.
d. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Active Angle: 180.0°
 X Scale: 1.0
 Y Scale: 1.0
 True Scale: Enabled
NOTE: True Scale, when enabled, allows cells that were created with units different than the active model to be scaled to adjust them
to the units of the active model.
e. Utilizing AccuSnap and AccuDraw, snap to the upper-right corner of column E5 and press the letter “O” on your keyboard.
This places the AccuDraw origin of the compass at this snap location.
f. Next, snap to the upper-left corner of column E6 and press the </>.
This will invoke the AccuDraw “Pop-up” calculator. Through the calculator operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication,
and division are possible based on the values in the AccuDraw window’s fields. Here you notice an additional window overlayed with
the division operation active.
g. While maintaining the current snap location, key-in 2 into the calculator (dividing the total distance, 5282mm by 2 = 2641mm).
h. Issue a data point to place the cell.
5. Adding windows to the entryway:

a. In the Place Active Cell tool settings, set the Active Cell to Window 914mm.
b. Bring the cursor into the view, snapping to the upper-left corner of the door frame that was just placed.
c. Issue a data point to place the window.

d. In the tool settings window, click the down arrow in the lower right corner to show the Cell Placement Options.
e. Enable Mirror, selecting Vertical from the drop-down menu.

f. Bring your cursor into the view and snap to the upper-right corner of the door frame that you just placed.
g. Issue a Data point to place the window.
6. Cleaning up wall geometry:

Next, you will clean up the line work around the door and sidelights that you just placed.
a. From the ribbon (Home > Modify), pick the Break Element tool.
b. Set the Method as Break by two points.
c. Utilizing the Break Element tool, remove the portion of the exterior wall where the doors and windows are located.
d. Using Place SmartLine (Home > Placement), add lines (matching the symbology), forming caps over the brick veneer as shown.
7. Adding an end unit window to the entryway:

Utilizing the Place Active Cell tool, you will add an End Unit Window to the restaurant’s entry.
a. Activate the Place Active Cell tool.

b. In the tool settings, make the Window 1219mm EU the active cell.
c. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Angle: 90.0°
 Mirror: Enabled, Vertical
d. Snap to the lower-right corner of column E6 and press <O> (for origin).
e. Move the cursor in a downward direction while maintaining the indexing with the Y-axis, key-in 152mm.
f. Data point to place the cell.
8. Mirror the end unit window:
a. Activate the Mirror tool (Home > Manipulate).
b. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Mirror Direction: Horizontal
 Make Copy: enabled
c. You may identify the window anywhere on it to identify

the window for mirroring.
HINT: While the location where you selected the window
is not critical, where you select the mirror line is.
d. Snap to the bottom line of the window frame.

e. Data point to place the mirrored copy.
9. Verify the window placement:

The precision placement of the window will be verified using the Measure Distance tool.
a. Make Measure Distance the active tool (Analyze > Measure).

b. Using snap points, measure the distance of the first end unit window from column E7.
c. Measure the offset of the second end unit window from column D7.
HINT: If the measurements do not match with the values shown, use the Move tool to achieve the correct distances. When the
measurements are correct, as before, remove the portion of the exterior wall and cap off the brick veneer.
(Window offset measurements
10. Add seating area windows:
a. Pick the Place Active Cell tool.
b. In the tool settings window, set the following:
 Active Cell: Window 1524mm EU
 Mirror: Enabled, Horizontal
c. Using AccuDraw and the Origin shortcut <O>, place the window to be 414mm to the right of column D6.
d. Without resetting the tool, change the Active Cell to Window 1524mm MU.
HINT: Rather than bringing up the Cell Library and selecting the cell, you can type the desired cell name into the Active Cell name field.
Press <Tab> or <Enter> after typing in the name.
e. Snap to the upper-right corner of the window frame.

f. Issue a data point to place the cell (but do not reset).
g. In the tool settings window, change the Active Cell back to Window 1524mm EU.
h. Change the Mirror option from the drop-down menu to Both.
i. Bringing your cursor back into the screen, snap to the upper-right corner of the Window 5-0 MU cell that you just placed and press
<O>.
HINT: In order to run AccuDraw shortcuts, AccuDraw must have focus. If you find that the Origin <O> shortcut is not working, it may be
that another window (such as the tool settings) has focus. Press <F11> or click the AccuDraw window to give focus to AccuDraw
and then initiate the shortcut.
j. Move your cursor to right, indexing to the X-axis, key-in 1524mm.

k. Issue a data point to place the window.
l. Press Reset to complete the cell placements.
11. Use Break Element and Place SmartLine to clean up the wall linework and cap off the brick veneer as illustrated below:
12. Make the active command Element Selection (Home > Selection).
13. Hover the cursor over the double door at the entrance, making the tool tip appear:
Here you can see the specific element type nearest the cursor, in this case a cell, as well as the name of the cell, and the level the
element is on. While this can be helpful, additional information may be seen by viewing the cell properties.
14. With the cursor over the cell, press and hold the right mouse button, and pick Properties.
In properties, you will be able to see detailed information for the cell and each element the cell is made of.
Creating “Furniture” Symbols
Symbols provide the ability to place objects in your designs that may be used to identify specific features without the
need to recreate these graphics each time they are used. This increases drawing quality and speeds production while
allowing for consistency within and across projects.
In MicroStation, symbols are known as cells and are stored in cell libraries. In this section, you will create cells of
furniture and equipment symbols that will be placed on the floor plan.

 Place Fence
 Define a cell origin
 Create cells
1. Open furniture_equipment scratch file.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\07 - Working with Cells).
This file contains the geometry for “furniture and equipment” symbols that will be used in the creation of floor plan cells. Here you will see
furniture and equipment in its completed state. You will formerly create cells from this geometry, however, you will first design a table with
chairs component for use in the main dining area. Then you will subsequently create cells from the existing geometry.
2. Pan to the right, away from other graphics.

You are going to start with the creation of the geometry for a table and chair set.
3. Create the table geometry:

a. Ensure that the active level is A-FURN-SEAT.
b. Make the active tool Place Block (Home > Placement).
c. Issue a data point in the view for the first corner of the block.
d. Move the cursor to the right and key-in 914mm.
e. Move the cursor up and key-in 914mm.
f. Issue a data point for the opposite corner.
4. Create the chair geometry:

a. With the Place Block tool still active, in the area adjacent to the table, issue a
data point for the first corner of the chair.
b. Move your cursor to the right and key-in 458mm.
c. Move the cursor up and key-in 508mm.
d. Issue a data point.
5. Complete the chair:
a. Make the active tool Copy Parallel (Home > Manipulate).
 Method: Segment of Element
 Mode: Miter
 Distance: 50mm
c. Pick the top horizontal line of the rectangle that just placed. Move the cursor downward, placing a single copy.
d. Make Construct Circular Fillet the active tool (Home > Modify).
The Construct Circular Fillet tool is used to construct a circular fillet (arc) between two elements (lines, line strings, circular arcs,
circles, or shapes), two segments of a line string, or two sides of a shape.
When you construct a circular fillet between two segments of a line string, the line string is broken into two independent line strings
and arc. When you construct a circular fillet between two sides of a shape, the shape is broken into a line string and an arc.
The Truncate setting sets which side(s) of the fillet are truncated:
 None — Neither element or segment is truncated.
 Both — Both elements or segments are truncated at their point of tangency with the fillet. If a fillet is constructed between two
closed elements or an open and a closed element, the closed element(s) are not modified.
 First — The first element or segment selected (step 2) is truncated at its point of tangency with the fillet.
e. In the tool settings window, set the following:

 Radius: 50mm
 Truncate: Both
f. Bringing the cursor into the view, at each vertex of the chair select both line segments.
The result is an arc tangent to the two line segments that you selected. Furthermore, the selected lines are trimmed back to the point
of tangency.
g. Repeat this for the other three corners.
6. Orienting the chair with the table:

The chair will now be precisely oriented with the table.
a. Select the Move tool (Home > Manipulate).

b. Position the cursor up and to the left of the chair.
c. Then, press and hold the left mouse button and drag down and to the right, creating a selection window.
d. Release the mouse button, selecting the graphics.
e. Along the bottom of the chair, snap to the mid-point.
f. Issue a data point to establish this location as the base point for the move.
g. Next, snap to the mid-point of the top, horizontal line segment of the table.
h. On the keyboard, press the letter <O> invoking the Origin AccuDraw shortcut.
i. Move the cursor in the upward direction, indexing to the Y-axis.
j. Key-in 76mm for the distance and issue a data point to move the chair.
7. Adding additional chairs to the table:

a. Select the Rotate tool (Home > Manipulate).
b. In the tools settings, set the following options:
 Method: Active Angle
 Angle: 90.0°
 Copies: 3
c. As before, create a selection window around the chair.

d. Press the <C> key invoking the Center Snap.
e. With a data point, select the table as the base point.
The center snap will automatically locate the center of the table as the base point for the rotation.
f. Press <C>, again invoking the Center Snap.
g. Select the table as the pivot point.
The selected graphics for the chair are both rotated and copied.
8. Create a dining table cell:

a. Select the Place Fence tool (Home > Selection).
 Fence Type: Block
 Fence Mode: Inside
c. Place a fence around the geometry representing the table and chairs.
A similar command in AutoCAD is the Group command.
d. Pick Define Cell Origin (Annotate > Cells).
e. Press <C>, invoking the Center Snap.

f. Pick the table and issue a data point to place the cell origin.
This is how the insertion point of the cell will be determined.
9. Adding a cell to a cell library:

a. From the Cells ribbon group, click the dialog launcher to open the Cell Library dialog.
b. From the Cell Library dialog, click File > Attach File.
c. Select the cell library named Bldg_Furniture.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).
This will open the cell library. You will now create several new cells, adding them to the library.
d. In the Cell Library dialog, click Create... and set the following:
 Name: Dining Table 4
 Description: Dining Table with 4 Chairs
 Type: Graphic
e. Click Create.
The new cell is added to the library and is available for use.
f. Review the newly added cell.
NOTE: Graphic cells retain their original attributes, with the geometry of the cell being placed with the original level, color, line style, and
line weight that is was drawn with.
10. Using the same techniques, create cells (graphic) for the following:
Cell Graphics Name Description

Counter and Fish Tank Counter and Fish Tank Counter, Storage Underneath, Fish Tank above
Waiting Fish Tank Waiting Fish Tank Waiting area with Fish Tank
Waiting Hostess Station Waiting Hostess Station Waiting area with Hostess Station
Lobster Tank Lobster Tank Lobster Tank
NOTE: Use snap points as illustrated for placing the cell origin. Utilize the Intersect snap mode at the corners of the walls and the
Center snap mode for the lobster tank. When placing a fence as part of the steps for cell creation, ensure that the fence
includes all of the furniture but do not include the wall segments. The walls are for construction purposes and not intended to be
part of the cell in the library.
11. Take a moment and review each of the cells in the cell library.
Placing Cells: Furnishing the Floor Plan
In the previous lesson, furniture cells were created and placed into a cell library. Those cells will now be used to further
embellish the floor plan.

 Attach a cell library
 Place cells
 Construct Array
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\07 - Working with Cells).
2. Zoom to the area where columns E5 and E6 are located.
3. Add the waiting area fish tank:

a. From the ribbon, make Place Active Cell the active tool (Annotate > Cells).
b. In the tool settings window, click Browse Cell(s).
This opens the Cell Library dialog.
c. In the Cell Library dialog, click File > Attach File.
d. Pick Bldg_Furniture.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).

e. Click Open.
f. From the list of cells, pick Waiting Fish Tank and set this as the active cell for placement.
g. Returning to the Place Active Cell tool settings, set the following:
h. Snap to the lower-right corner of column E5 and issue a data point to place cell.
4. Adding the hostess station:
a. Continuing with Place Active Cell, set the active cell as Waiting Hostess Station.
b. Snap to the lower-left corner of column E6.
c. Issue a data point to place the cell.
5. Adding the sushi counter fish tank:

a. Zoom to the area where column B5 is located.
b. Open the Cell Library and set Counter and Fish Tank as the active
cell for placement.
c. Snap to the wall corner and issue a data point to place the Counter and Fish Tank cell, as shown (do not reset).
d. Expand the tool settings window by clicking the down arrow in the lower-right corner.
e. In the Cell Placement Options, set the following:
 Mirror: Enabled, Vertical
f. Snap to the wall corner near column B6.

g. Issue a data point to place the mirrored cell here.
6. Adding the lobster tank:
a. Navigate the view to the area where columns C5 and C6 are located.
b. With the Place Active Cell tool still active, make Lobster Tank the active cell for placement.
c. In the tool settings, disable Mirror if necessary.
d. From the keyboard, press <F11>.
This will give focus to AccuDraw.
e. Snap to the upper-right corner of column C5 and press the <O> key.
f. Ensure that you are in Polar coordinates mode (distance and angle).
HINT: Press the <M> key to toggle AccuDraw between rectangular and polar input modes.
g. Move the cursor to the right, snapping to the upper-left corner of column C6.
h. Press the </> key to invoke AccuDraw’s calculator.
i. Key-in 2 to divide the distance between the two columns in half.
j. Issue a data point while maintaining this snap point.
7. Adding dining tables:

a. Navigate your view to where column B7 is located.
b. Make the Place Active Cell tool active.
You will now place the table and chairs cell that was created in an earlier exercise.
c. In the tools settings window, set the following:
 Active Cell: Dining Table 4
 X Scale: 1.0
 Y Scale: 1.0
d. Utilizing AccuDraw, place the Dining Table 4 cell using the dimensional data based on the image below.
HINT: Use the rectangular AccuDraw coordinate mode (X, Y).
e. From the ribbon, make Array (Home > Manipulate) the active tool.
f. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Method: Rectangular
 Rows: 2
 Columns: 5
 Row Spacing: -2743.0
 Column Spacing: 2105.0
g. In the view window, pick the existing Dining Table 4 cell with data point.
h. Issue a second data point to accept the on-screen preview.
(Completed table cell placements)
Updating Existing Cells
After being placed onto the floor plan, there was a design flaw in the hostess station that will need to be addressed.
Also, it was discovered that the exterior door cells need to have some of the symbology changed to match standards.
Rather than delete and recreate the cells, the cells may be edited and the existing instances of the cells in the floor plan
globally updated.

 Open cells for editing
 Trimming, extending, and changing properties of elements
 Replace Cells
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\07 - Working with Cells).
2. Navigate the view to the lobby/waiting area where columns E5 and E6 are located.
3. Verify entryway accessibility:

Here is where the two cells were placed for the waiting area and hostess station. These two were designed separately and an issue didn’t
present itself until the two were brought together on the floor plan.
a. Make Measure Distance (Analyze > Measure) the active tool.
b. In the tool settings window, set the Method to Minimum Between.
c. Select the outer arc of Waiting Fish Tank and then the outer arc of the Waiting Hostess Station.
Once the measurement is performed, the distance is reported in the tool settings window as well as the Message Center (middle of
the status bar). In addition to that, a temporary graphic is displayed on-screen indicating the shortest, straight-line distance between
the two elements. This graphic will disappear once you reset or select another tool.
d. The distance of 1490.9mm is less than the requirement for the minimum clear-isle standard. The hostess station will need to be
adjusted since the size of the fish tank, being supplied by the owner, cannot be changed.
4. Updating the hostess station cell:
a. Open the Cell Library dialog (if needed, attach the cell library Bldg_Furniture.cel).
b. From the list of cells, select the Waiting Hostess Station cell, and view the preview of the cell.
You will now edit the content of the cell.
c. In the Cell Library dialog, with the cursor over Waiting Hostess Station, right-click and pick Open for Editing.
NOTE: A cell library, similar to a DGN file, is composed of models with each cell being a model in the file. When the cell was opened for
editing, the file was opened and Waiting Hostess Station made the active model.
d. Select the Stretch tool (Home > Manipulate).

HINT: Be sure to place the fence so it captures the arc portion and part of the straight
section.
e. Issue a data point anywhere into the view for the base point.
f. Move your cursor to the right, indexing to the X-axis, and key-in 337mm.
g. Issue a data point followed by an immediate reset.
5. Creating a Lounge Seating 3 cell:
You are finished making the changes to the hostess station, however, there are some additional tasks that need to be taken care of while
the Bldg_Furniture cell library is open. What you are tasked with now is creating two variants of the lounge seating.
a. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary).

b. Right-click on the model name, Lounge Seating 4, and choose Copy from the contextual menu.
The Copy Model dialog opens.
c. Change the name of the new cell being created by replacing the “4” with “3”.
d. Update the Description: Lounge Seating with 3 Chairs

e. Click OK when finished.
The newly copied model opens. From here you will remove one chair.
f. Make Delete the active tool (Home > Modify).
g. Press-and-hold to create a selection window around the bottom chair.

h. Issue a data point to accept.
6. Creating a Lounge Seating 2 cell:
a. From the Models dialog, create a copy of Lounge Seating 3, naming the new model Lounge Seating 2.
b. Update the Description: Lounge Seating with 2 Chairs
c. Click OK.
d. As before, delete a chair, this time deleting the chair on the left side
With the edits and additions completed within this cell library, there are additional modifications that need to be performed in another
cell library.
7. Modifying the Doors and Windows cell library:

a. From the Cell folder of the dataset, open Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).
b. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary).
c. Make the active model Door Ext by double-clicking the model name.
Two corrections need to be applied here. The first being that the door swing needs to be extended to meet the door frame. And
Second, the symbology for the header (yellow lines) needs to be a dashed line style.
d. Utilizing Trim Multiple (Home > Modify), extend the door swing.
e. Activate the Change Attributes tool (Home > Modify).
f. Position the cursor over the door header (yellow lines) and while holding down the <Alt> key, issue a data point (Alt + Left-click).
This should match the properties (in this case level) of the door header line.
g. In the tool settings, set the following:

 Active Attributes: Enabled
 Style: Enabled, (3) ByLevel.
h. In the view window, pick the yellow door header lines with a data point.
(Updated door header lines)
8. Updating the cells in the design:

a. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\07 - Working with Cells).
b. Open the Cell Library dialog (Annotate > Cells > dialog launcher).
HINT: Remember, dialog launchers can be found in the lower-right corners of some ribbon groups.
c. Attach the cell library Bldg_Furniture.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).
d. Along the icon bank of the Cell Library, click the icon, Display All Cells in MS_CELLLIST.
View the Cell Library. There are a total of 3 different cell libraries in this WorkSet. This tool button allows you to see all of the cells
from all of the cell libraries in the WorkSet.
e. Make the active tool Replace Cells (Annotate > Cells).

f. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Method: Update
 Mode: Single
g. In the view window, pick the hostess station and accept with a data point.
9. Verify the accessibility clearance:

a. Select the Measure Distance tool (Analyze > Measure).
b. Set the Method to Minimum Between.
c. Select the two arcs (at the hostess station and waiting fish tank).
Observe the results. You now have an isle that is 1827.9mm in width.
10. Updating the exterior doors:

The exterior door cells that were created with improper symbology for the header now need to be updated. Also, take notice that the
swing arc for the doors does not extend fully. These changes have been addressed in the cell library. You just need to update the cell
definitions in the floor plan.
a. Zoom In to the area where columns A2 and A3.

b. Select Replace Cells and set the following:
 Method: Update
 Mode: Global
c. Pick the exterior door with a data point.
An Alert window will appear stating how many cells are to be replaced:
d. Click Yes to confirm the replacements.

HINT: It is possible to perform cell replacement in multiple files using the Batch Process Utility.
You can use the Block Editor to change an existing Block in AutoCAD. To Update or Replace Blocks in AutoCAD use the
Synchronize command.
11. Utilizing AccuDraw, place the Lounge Seating 3 and Lounge Seating 2 cells near column C6 using the dimensional data based on the
image below. Hint: use Rectangular coordinates mode (X,Y) and the active angle per the tools settings should be 45°.
(Completed seating area)
Document a Cell Library
Documenting the content of a cell library is often a necessary task but can be a tedious process that is prone to errors
and update issues. If new cells are added or the graphics of a cell are updated, the documentation needs to be updated
as well. In this exercise, we will “document” a cell library using Place Cell Index.

 Place a Cell Index
1. Open Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).
2. Placing a Cell Index:
The Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel cell library will be “documented” using a Cell Index.
a. Make Annotate the active ribbon tab.

b. From the Cells ribbon group, click Place Cell Index.
c. In the tools settings, set the following options:

 Box Size (in characters): 20
 Cells per Row: 11
 Grid Lines: Enabled
 Names: Enabled
 Insertion Points: Enabled
d. Press <F11> to give AccuDraw focus.

e. From the keyboard, press the <P> to access the AccuDraw Point Shortcuts.
A pop-up menu will appear at the cursor prompting for either multiple or single points
f. Press <P> a second time to select Point: Keyin (Single).
This will bring up the Data Point Keyin.
g. From the here, type a “,”
h. From the keyboard, press <Enter>.

HINT: By entering the comma <,>, the coordinate 0,0 was automatically used. If another coordinate was desired, this could have been
input in the Data Point Keyin. Had the active file been 3D, 3 values would be input separating the values by commas.
3. Review the cell index:

a. Fit the view
b. Observe the completed Cell Index.
(Completed Cell Index)

c. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
The frame and label graphics are stored in the active model. Each of the cells in the index are reference file attachments of the actual
cell geometry.
The Cell Index in MicroStation CONNECT Edition is similar to the visual index of Blocks in AutoCAD.
4. Document the furniture cell library:

Using the same process, the furniture cell library will be documented.
a. Open Bldg_Furniture.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).

b. Using the same process and settings, document the kitchen equipment cell library.
c. Fit the view and observe the completed Cell Index.
d. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
5. Document the kitchen equipment cell library:
a. Open Kitchen_Equipment.cel (..\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Cell).
b. Using the same process and settings, document the kitchen equipment cell library.
c. Fit the view and observe the completed Cell Index.
d. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
Challenge Exercise: Placing Windows
Much of the restaurant floor plan has been completed. Doors, windows, furniture, and equipment symbols have been
added using the cell libraries and cells created in the lessons in this workbook. In this challenge exercise, you will
continue to place the windows in the main dining area of the restaurant based on the dimensional data in the images
shown.
 Cell Library: Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel
 Cells Used: Window 1524mm, 1524mm EU, and 1524mm MU

 Remove and add linework as appropriate
(Completed window placements)
Challenge Exercise: Placing Office Furniture
Much of the restaurant floor plan has been completed. Doors, windows, furniture, and equipment symbols have been
placed using the cell libraries and cells created in lessons in this workbook. In this challenge exercise, you will place
furniture in the office area of the restaurant based on the data in the images shown.
 Cell Library: Bldg_Furniture.cel
Challenge Exercise: Placing Casual Dining Furniture
Much of the restaurant floor plan has been completed. Doors, windows, furniture and equipment symbols have been
placed using the cell libraries and cells created in lessons in this workbook. In this challenge exercise you will place four
additional tables in the casual dining/sushi bar area of the restaurant based off the dimensional data shown.
 Cell Library: Bldg_Furniture.cel
 Dining Table 4 cell starting angle is 45°
 Table centers will be offset from the edge of the counter by 1950mm with 10.0° between each table
 The lobster tank needs to be moved in order to make room for tables
Practice Workbook

Annotating Designs

Course Description
This workbook contains exercises to embellish a design with a wide variety of annotation tools found in the MicroStation
CONNECT Edition.
Skills Taught
 Apply Annotation Scale
 Place text with different text styles
 Create Text Favorites
 Utilize Text Fields to automatically generate MicroStation text based off element properties
 Edit and change text
 Place a table
 Place notes and callouts
 Create element dimensions, linear dimensions, and radial dimensions
 Create a custom dimension via Text Favorites
 Change existing dimensions using standard modification tools
 Apply patterns and hatch

WorkSets including the WorkSet MSBasicsBlding. The default installation folder for the datasets is:
Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Annotation Scale
The annotation scale is an optional scale factor that can be applied to text elements (and to several other elements).
For example, when you intend to print a design with the scale 1/4” = 1’-0”, the text has to be placed 48x larger than you
want them to appear on paper. So, if the text height on paper should be 1/8th of an inch, the text height in the design
must be 6”. The annotation scale can take care of this.
 First, set the annotation scale for the model in the model properties, via the Models dialog or from the ribbon
(Utilities > Drawing Scale).
 Optionally apply the annotation scale when you place text in the model by turning on the annotation scale lock.
 Applying the annotation scale will ensure that, when the scaled print is created, annotations are at the correct
physical size.
(The annotation scale can also be applied to dimensions, annotation cells, the sheet boundary in a sheet model, detailing symbols, tags,
and (cosmetic) line styles.)
1. Begin by opening the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
At this stage, you start to consider annotation that will be displayed ultimately on your sheets.
2. Along the ribbon, from the Utilities tab, in the Drawing Scale ribbon group, verify that the annotation scale is set to 1:50.
This scale has been predetermined to be a desirable scale, however, you will change to scale for a moment.
You can control the text height with Annotation Scale in AutoCAD for each Layout or the Model
3. From the annotation scale drop-down menu, set the scale to be 1:100.
While just a few text elements (found in cells) exist in the file, you can see how annotation scale can influence the size of these annotative
elements.
4. Set the annotation scale back to 1:50.
Placing Text with Different Text Styles
The easiest way to define the appearance of text is by using predefined text styles. Text elements placed with a text
style are automatically updated if the text style is modified. In this section, you will place text quickly and correctly to
label features.

 Place text while utilizing Text Styles
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. Set the active level to A-ANNO-RMNM.
3. Make the Place Text tool (Annotate > Text) active.
The Place Text tool most common tool for placing text. Using this tool, you can place single-line as well as multi-line text. You can activate
this in a number of ways from the ribbon. One way is from the Text group of the Annotate tab.
The easiest way to define the appearance of texts is by using predefined text styles. Text elements placed with a text style are
automatically updated if the text style is modified.

 Method: By Origin
 Annotation Scale: Enabled
 Active Angle: 0.0
5. In the Text Editor window Set the following options:

 Select from the Text Styles drop-down menu, Bldg-3.5mm
 Set the Justification to Middle Center
6. Then in the Text Editor window type LOBBY/WAITING in all caps.
7. Bring your cursor into the view, and issue data point to place the text in the open space representing the Lobby/Waiting area near
columns E6 and E7.
8. Continue to place text to label the areas of the restaurant, as shown below (image altered for exercise clarification purpose only):
 1.) CASUAL DINING
 2.) SUSHI BAR
 3.) KITCHEN
 4.) JANITOR
 5.) MAIN DINING
9. Continue to place text to label the areas of the restaurant, as shown below (image altered for exercise clarification purpose only):
 1.) FROZEN STORAGE
 2.) COLD STORAGE
 3.) DRY STORAGE
 4.) OFFICE
 5.) KITCHEN
 6.) LOUNGE/WAITING
 7.) MENS RESTROOM
 8.) WOMENS
RESTROOM
10. Reset to clear the contents within the Text Editor.
11. Zoom In to the restrooms.
12. Set the active level to A-ANNO-TEXT.
13. Label Turn Around circles:

a. With the Place Text tool still active, in the Text Editor, select Bldg-2.5mm from the Text Style drop-down menu.
b. Within the Text Editor type, 762mm TURN.
c. Press <Enter> for the second line of text and type, AROUND.
d. Bring your cursor back into the view and place this multi-line text inside the Turn Around circles, placing one instance in each
restroom.
e. Reset.
14. Label Accessible Stall symbols:
a. Back in the Text Editor type, ACCESSIBLE.
b. Press <Enter> for the second line of text and type, STALL.
c. Place an instance of this multi-line text in the accessible stall for both restrooms.
Edit Text
Once text is placed into a design, often is the case that you will need to come back and make some sort of edits to that
existing text. This can range anywhere from adding or removing text, fixing misspellings as well as changing the
properties of text. In this section, you will use the Find/Replace utility to quickly fix a text error in a detail.

 Edit Text
 Quickly find and replace text
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. From the Annotate tab of the Text group, select the Edit Text tool.
3. Edit Turn Around circles:
a. Select the 762mm TURN AROUND multi-line text that you just placed in one of the restrooms.
The Text Editor opens with the highlighted text string, 762mm TURN AROUND.
b. In the Text Editor, click in after the last word, AROUND. Type, (TYP.).
c. Issue a data point within the view to accept and commit this change to the selected text.
d. Repeat this step for the turn around circle in the other restroom.
4. Place Door Type IDs:

a. Make the Place Active Cell tool (Home > Placement) active.
b. In the tool settings window, click the Browse Cell(s) icon.
c. Attach the cell library, Bldg_DoorsWindows.cel if necessary.
d. Make the Door Type ID the active cell for placement.
e. Back in the tool settings, ensure that X and Y Scale are set to 1.0 and that Mirror is disabled.
f. Place cells at the restroom doors and lobby door.
The Edit Text tool can edit text elements inside a cell, without the need to drop the complex status.
5. Edit the Door Type IDs:
a. Select the Edit Text tool (Annotate > Text) and identify one of the cells that you placed by the restroom door.
b. The Text Editor opens with the highlighted text.
c. Change this to, 2.
d. Repeat this for the other restroom.
e. Select the Door Type ID cell in the lobby.
f. Change this text to, 4.
6. Open the elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
7. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary). From here, double-click the Building Codes model to make it the active model.
8. Change the Building Codes to Upper Case:
a. Select the Edit Text tool (Annotate > Text) and identify the body of text.
The Text Editor opens with the highlighted text.
b. Right-click into the Text Editor where the highlighted text is and then choose from the contextual menu, Change Case > All Upper.
9. Spell Check the Building Codes:

a. Along the icon bank of the Text Editor, select the Spell Check icon.
The first item is an acronym. You can add acronyms (or any word you wish) to your personal spelling library.
b. Click Ignore until the Spell Checker displays, FLORDA.

Clearly, this a misspelling. Like most word processor applications, a list of suggested words display. This error occurs several times
for this note.
c. Within the Check Spelling dialog, along the bottom, click Change All.
All instances of Florida are corrected. The next misspelling is displayed.
d. Click Ignore until the Spell Checker displays, DISABILITIES.

e. Select the appropriate spelling of the word, DISABILITIES and click Change.
f. Data point into the view to commit the changes.
10. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary). From here, double-click the Door Types model to make it active.
The door frame thickness has changed and you need to update the detail text to reflect this change. This text that needs to be updated
occurs several times in this note. Instead of manually searching for every instance and then correcting it, you can use the Find/Replace
Text tool. This allows you to edit multiple text elements in the design in one action.
11. From the Annotate tab, in the Text ribbon group, click Split Button down arrow.
Split buttons contain a set of tools in a drop-down list. There is also an icon of the active tool on the left side of the drop-down arrow.
Clicking the icon activates that particular tool. If you select any other tool from the drop-down list, the selected tool replaces the active
tool.
12. From the list, select Find/Replace Text.
The Find/Replace Text dialog opens.
13. Change gauge for door frames:

a. From here, type into the Find field, 14 GA.
b. Then in the Replace field, type in 16 GA.
c. Click Find.
The utility will find any instance of text that contains “14 GA.”
d. Click the Replace button.

e. Continue doing this until all instances of “14 GA” have been replaced.
When the search is complete a message appears.
f. Enable Restore Original View and click OK.
Changing Text
When a text string is selected for editing, it appears in the text editor. In addition to changing the text content, you can
also change the text style and a variety of text attributes. Once the changes have been made, enter a data point in the
view to update the text in the design. In this section, you will fix a note on a detail that was placed incorrectly.

 Match and change existing text
1. Continue in the elevations_details.dgn, the Door Types model.
2. From the Annotate tab, in the Text ribbon group, select the Match Text Attributes tool.
To change the appearance of text, you can use:
 Match Text Attributes - To set the active text attributes to match those of a selected text element.
 Change Text Attributes - To change the text attributes of existing text elements to the active text attributes.
It may not seem so, but the note for door type 2 is different than door type 3. This issue needs corrected.
3. Now select the body of text that is directly to the right of door type 3.
4. After you identify the text string, following the prompt, accept with a data point.
5. Then select the Change Text Attributes tool.
6. Verify the following options in the tool settings window:
 Font: Enabled = Arial
 Height: Enabled = 2.5
 Width: Enabled = 2.5
 Line Spacing: Enabled, 0.660
 Line Space Type: Disabled
 Intercharacter: 0.0
 Justification: Left Top
7. Now select the body of text that is to the right of door type 2.
The appearance of this text is changed.
Place Note
When using the Place Note tool, you can place lines of text with a leader line and arrow, or a callout without a leader. In
this section, you will use the place note method to label the building features such as Wall Types and equipment.

 Place Notes
1. Open the proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. Ensure that the level, A-ANNO-TEXT is the active level (Home > Attributes).
3. Zoom In to the area where the sushi bar is located.
4. Call out Saltwater Fish Tanks:
a. Along the ribbon, from the Annotate tab, in the Notes ribbon group, make the Place Note tool active.

 Method (icon): Place Note
 Dimension Style: Notes Arrow
 Text Rotation: Horizontal
 Location: Automatic
 Start At: Terminator
 Horizontal Attachment: Auto
 Annotation (icon): Enabled
c. In the Text Editor, confirm the Text Style is set to Bldg-2.5mm.

d. Then go ahead and type, SALTWATER.
e. Press Enter for the second line.
f. Type, FISH TANK and then press Enter.
g. And then for the third line type, 1372mm AFF.
h. Define the start point by issuing a data point on the fish tank along the backside of the wall in the sushi bar area.
i. Next, bring your cursor up and issue another data point to place the note.
j. Without resetting, place another note on the fish tank on the other side.
k. Reset the tool when finished.
5. Set the active level to A-WALL-IDEN.
6. Call out Wall Type systems:
Next, you will call out Wall Type systems utilizing the Place Note tool.
a. With the Place Note tool still active, set the Dimension Style to Wall ID.
b. In the Text Editor, set the Text Style to Bldg-2.5mm.
c. Type, B into the Text Editor.
d. Define the start point in the middle of the side-wall in the sushi bar that connects with the counter-top. Bring your cursor out, away
from the wall, and issue a data point to place the callout.
e. Repeat this on the opposite wall.
f. Returning back to the Text Editor type in, C.
7. Place this callout along the back wall in the sushi bar area.
8. Continue to place Wall Type IDs via the Place Note tool, as shown below (image altered for exercise clarification purpose only):
Multi-leadered Notes
When placing notes, it is possible to draw multiple leaders from the same text by holding the <Ctrl> key while placing
data points. In this section, you will callout two walls that are the same Wall Types.

 Edit Text
 Place Note with Multiple-leaders
1. Continuing in the proposed restaurant.dgn file, ensure that the level, A-WALL-IDEN is the active level (Home > Attributes).
2. Pan to the area where the janitor’s closet is located.
3. Select the Place Note tool (Annotate > Notes).
4. Type, B, into the Text Editor.
5. Bring your cursor into the view, defining the start point with the wall inside the janitor’s closet.
6. Next, bring your cursor down, to the area outside the doorway of the janitor’s closet.
7. While holding down the <Ctrl> key, issue a data point.
This action will place the first leader and note, however, you will now be able to place an additional leader.
8. You may release the <Ctrl> key now.

9. Issue another data point on the adjacent wall of the janitor’s closet as shown, thus placing the second leader of the multi-leadered note.
Labeling Kitchen Equipment
Elements in a design frequently need to be labeled to help better designate the type of data that an element represents.
The Place Label tool does this by placing label cells that are used to describe elements. If the label cell definition
contains text fields, the fields will be updated based on the individual element being labeled, including any attached
item data. The label cell can then maintain association to the element. The Place Label tool will be used to label kitchen
equipment that was previously attached with Item Types.

 Review element properties
 Label Cell
 Place Label
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn file, ensure A-EQPM-IDEN is the active level.
2. Navigate the view to the kitchen area, specifically the Range/Griddles near column B4.
3. Label kitchen equipment:
a. Make the active tool Place Label (Annotate > Notes).
b. Set the following options in the tool settings
window:
 Method (icon): Place a label with a leader
 Cell Name: Eqmt ID Label
 Dimension Style: Equipment LabelLabel

Rotation: Horizontal
 Start At: Terminator
 Horizontal Attachment: Auto
 Annotation (icon): Enabled
 Create Association to elements (icon): Enabled
 Create Relative Association to elements (icon): Enabled
c. Snap to the Range/Griddle to define the start point of the leader.
This also associates the note, updating the text field with the respective property.
d. Bring your cursor down and issue another data point to place the note/callout.
e. There are two Ranges/Griddles here so go ahead and label the other fixture.
f. Continue on down the wall, labeling each fixture.
g. When complete, press reset (right-click).

HINT: As an option, you can place a label without a leader.
4. Place callouts for kitchen refrigerators:
a. Set the following options in the tool settings window:
 Method (icon): Place a label without a leader
 Cell Name: Eqmt ID Callout
b. Using Center snap, issue a data point selecting refrigerator 4A.

c. Repeat for the remaining three refrigerators, placing the callouts.
5. Place labels for the remaining kitchen equipment:

a. Select the Place Label tool again.
 Method (icon): Place a label with a leader
 Cell Name: Eqmt ID Label
 Dimension Style: Equipment Label
c. Place labels on the kitchen equipment, as shown:
6. Place labels on the remainder of the kitchen equipment, as shown:
Place Linear Dimensions
MicroStation has many dimensioning tools. In addition, a variety of dimension attributes defines the appearance of
dimensions. The easiest way to set these dimension attributes is by using predefined dimension styles. Dimension
elements placed with a dimension style are automatically updated if the dimension style is changed.

 Place Linear Dimensions
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn file.
2. Set the level, A-ANNO-DIMS.
3. Make the Dimension Linear tool (Annotate > Dimensioning) active.
With the Dimension linear size (distance) tool, each dimension is placed in-line (chained) and is computed from the endpoint of the
previous dimension.

 Dimension Style: Arch Slash
 Alignment: View
 Dim Offset: 900.0
 Linear Size (icon): Enabled
 Annotation Scale: Enabled
 Association: Disabled
5. Dimension building exterior along north side:
a. Zoom into the area where column E4 is located.
b. Snap to the outside corner of the building and issue a data point here to select the start of the dimension.
c. Move the cursor to the right, snap to the start of the window near column E5.
d. Issue a data point to select the endpoint of the dimension.
e. Issue a data point to place the dimension (do not reset).
As you can see, the tool remains active, hence allowing you to string together more points along the dimension.
6. Continue placing the dimension string:

a. Move your cursor to the right, snap to where the brick veneer starts again, near column E6.
b. Issue a data point.
c. Move to the right, snap to the building corner at column E6, and issue a data point.
d. Continue this pattern, of placing extension lines at either wall openings (windows) or building corners. Traverse the building to the
right until you reach the last point at column C9.
e. Reset to complete the dimension string.
7. Navigate the view to where the restrooms are located.

8. In the tool settings window, disable Dim Offset.
9. Provide both vertical and horizontal linear dimensions for both restrooms:
 Try to place your start and end points of the dimension string in the exact locations, as shown below (image altered for clarification
purposes only).
 In areas that are short distances, such as wall thicknesses, leave as they are placed.
 You will come back at a later time to clean up the dimension text locations.
(image altered for clarification purposes)
10. Navigate the view to the southeast corner of the building, at column A9.
11. Set the following in the tool settings window of the Dimension Linear tool
(Annotate > Dimensioning):
 Dim Offset: Enabled, and set to 900.
12. Dimension building exterior along the east side:

a. Start a new dimension here by snapping to the building corner at column A9
and issuing a data point.
b. Move in the upward direction, snapping to the first wall opening and issuing a
data point.
c. Move out to the right and issue a data point.
d. Like the pattern before, place extension lines at either wall openings or
building corners, and ending at column E6.
13. Create a stacked dimension along the east side:

a. In the tool settings window, change the Dim Offset to 1370.
b. Start the dimension at column A9 and set the dimension endpoint at column
E6.
c. Move your cursor to right and issue a data point to place the dimension.
14. Dimension the storage area:
a. Zoom to the southwest corner of the building.
b. Right-press-and-hold and from the contextual menu select the tool,
Level Off.
c. Issue a data point on the storage racks, turning off the level A-EQPM.
d. Set the following options in the Dimension Linear tool settings window:
 Alignment: View
 Dim Offset: Disabled)
 Select Multiple Elements: Enabled (icon)
e. You are prompted to the select start of selection line. For this, issue the
first data point in between the wall line and the column grid line.
f. Next, issue a data point inside the opposite wall line and between the
column grid line.
g. And then the final step is to place the dimension. As you can see, whatever geometry that the selection line crossed, it dimensioned
to that intersection. You will use modification tools to clean up the dimensions in the next module.
15. Open the Level Display dialog.

16. Turn the level, A-EQPM, back on.
Element Dimensioning
Which capabilities the Dimension Element tool offers depends on the type of element you select. If you select a linear
element, the tool presents itself with linear options. However, if you select a radial element such as an arc or circle, the
tool will present itself with radial options within the tool settings window. In this section, you will dimension both linear
and curved features throughout the building.

 Element Dimension
 Radial Dimension
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn file, ensure that the level A-ANNO-DIMS.
2. Next, make the Dimension Element tool (Annotate > Dimensioning) active.
The Dimension Element tool is used to dimension an element (line, line string, multi-line, shape, circular arc, or circle).

 Alignment: View
 Mode (icon): Dimension Element
 Annotation Scale (icon): Enabled
4. Dimension west exterior side of the building:

a. Zoom into the southwest corner of the building.
You are prompted to select an element to
dimension.
b. Go ahead and select the outside wall line at

columns B1,B2.
c. Bring your cursor in the upward direction and
key-in a distance of 900.
d. Repeat dimensioning by selecting the wall line along the left at columns A1,B2. Be sure to place the dimension 900 away from the
building.
5. Dimension partial height wall in the dining area:

a. Navigate the view to where column C7 is located.
Here you will dimension the partial height wall.
b. Give a dimension offset distance of 450 away from the wall.
6. Dimension counter-top at the sushi bar:

a. Navigate the view to where column B6 is located.
Observe the tool settings window. So far in this exercise, you have been selecting linear elements, so hence, the options displayed
are for working with linear elements. Next, you will select a curved element. In this case, the arcs that make up the counter-top at the
sushi bar.
b. With the Dimension Element tool still active, select the inside arc of the counter-top.
Notice how the tool settings window has now changed to reflect options for working with this particular element type.
c. Change the Dimension Style to Arch Arrow.
d. You will need to re-select the arc.

e. Bring your cursor down and in the open space, issue a data point to place the radial dimension.
f. Next, select the outer arc and then place the radial dimension near the previous radial dimension.
g. With the Dimension Element tool still active, select the vertical, outside line of the counter-top at the right-side.
Notice how the tool settings window has changed back to reflect the options for working with a linear element. You will need to
change the dimension style to be consistent with the other linear dimensioned elements.
h. Make the active Dimension Style be Arch Slash.
i. Select the counter-top edge at the far right and offset the dimension a distance of 450.
Modifying Dimensions
When placing dimensions, you may need to come back and modify or edit the dimension in one way or another to
further embellish the design. It is possible to edit the dimension text of existing dimensions, or to change its appearance
by applying another dimension style. You can even modify the geometry of a dimension element, by moving the
dimension line or text, or by adding, moving, or removing extension lines.

 Add and remove extension lines with the Insert/Remove Dimension tools
 Relocate dimension text with the Modify Element tool
1. Continue in the proposed restaurant.dgn file, navigate to where columns E4 and E5 are located.
In an earlier exercise, you dimensioned part of the exterior. You are going to add new points to this existing dimension. You will also clean
up dimension text by relocating them to areas where they are more legible.
2. From the Annotate tab, in the Dimensioning group, select the Insert Dimension tool.
This is the “right tool for the job.” However, simply put, it is actually the Insert Vertex tool. It can be found in the Modify group on the Home
tab, as well.
3. Add to north side exterior dimension string:

a. Issue a data point on the left extension line.
b. Then snap to the building corner at column D3 and
issue a data point.
This dimension string still needs more clean-up,

however, you will now place a stacked dimension.
After you create the stacked dimension you will then
clean-up the dimension string.
4. Construct stacked dimensions for north side:
a. Make the Dimension Linear tool active.
b. Make sure to toggle off the tool setting, Select Multiple Elements.
c. Make the building corner at column B1 be the start of the dimension.
d. Make the building corner at column C9 be the dimension endpoint.
e. Snap to the dimension line on the north side of the building and press the <O> key.
f. Move upward, key-in a distance of 450.
g. Data point to place the dimension followed by a reset.
5. Perform cleanup on dimension text:
a. Navigate the view to where the restrooms are located.
Here you can see that in tight spaces, the dimension text becomes harder to read. You can use the standard Modify Element tool to
interact with existing dimensions in a variety of ways to make your dimension more presentable.
b. Make the Modify Element tool (Home > Modify) active.

c. Identify the 127 dimension text at the entrance of the womens restroom.
When you select it, you are able to relocate it. As you do, a leader line will appear. This leader line is a dimension style setting.
d. Relocate this dimension text slightly down and to the right, placing it into the open space away from graphics.
e. Do the same for the other 127 dimension text so that it does not overlay any other dimensions or wall linework.
f. Repeat this process relocating any dimensions as needed to improve the legibility of the floor plan.
Earlier you laid out dimensions, knowing that they would need further cleaning up. As you saw, the Insert Dimension tool (a.k.a.
Insert Vertex) allows you to add to an existing dimension. Conversely, the Remove Dimension tool (a.k.a. Delete Vertex) will remove
unwanted extension lines from a dimension string.
6. Make the Remove Dimension (Annotate > Dimensioning) tool active.
7. Issue a data point on the 127 extension line at column D5, hence removing only the 127 dimension while retaining the rest of the string.
8. Utilizing the Modify tool, clean up the dimension text for both restrooms, relocating the dimension text where necessary.
NOTE: The Modify tool not only can be used to relocate the dimension text, but you can also move extension lines. For example, when
placing a dimension, you make an error and snap to the wrong location. Instead of deleting the dimension, you can identify the
extension line that is in error and then snap to the correct location using the Modify tool.
In addition, you may also use the Modify tool to relocate the dimension line. For example, the exterior dimension line may be
too close to the building. You can simply click on the dimension line and adjust the offset distance.
Changing Dimensions
Style definitions provide a great way to control a named set of properties for a certain element type when that style
definition is used in multiple files. When a property requires a change that needs to be propagated across multiple
designs, the change is best performed in the host file that contains that style (such as a design library). Once saved,
those changes can be propagated to the designs, globally updating the elements.

 Change a dimension through Changing Styles
1. Open elevation_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. From Models (Home > Primary), make the CW Details model active.
This model contains three details pertaining to the curtain walls. These details were copied from a previous metric project and need to be
updated to match the standards for the current project.
3. Zoom In, locating the Curtain Wall detail.

4. Set the active level to A-ANNO-DIMS.
5. From the Annotate tab, in the Dimensioning group, select Change Dimensions.
6. In the tool settings window, select the Dimension Style, Arch Arrow.
7. There are four dimensions that need updated, two on each side of the detail. Identify all of these, hence, updating these dimensions.
8. Continue to locate and change all dimensions for both the CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 1 and CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 2 details.
9. Complete the dimension updates by using Modify Element to relocate dimension text as needed.
(Completed dimension updates)
Hatching
Hatching can be a great way to embellish a design. There are three tools you can use to pattern areas:
 Hatch Area - To pattern an area with parallel lines in one direction.
 Crosshatch Area - To pattern an area with parallel lines in two directions.
 Pattern Area - To pattern an area with cells.
In this section, you will use the Hatch Area tool to create the appearance of sectioned graphics in some curtain wall
details. In this lesson you will:
 Hatching and cross hatch
 Match pattern attributes
1. Continue in elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs), in the CW Details model.
2. Set the active level to A-DETL-PATT.
3. Open the View Attributes dialog (View > Presentation).
4. From the View Attributes dialog, toggle on Constructions.
These details have shapes that were placed as construction class elements that will serve as boundaries for creating hatching/patterns.
By convention, elements with the class attribute of Construction are used as drawing aids. For example, you might place a construction
element in a particular location as an element to snap other elements to, but you would not plot the construction element when the DGN
file is complete. The elements that are actually part of the DGN file usually have the class attribute of Primary.
5. Zoom In to the Curtain Wall detail on the left.
6. Along the ribbon, from the Patterns group of the Annotate tab, select Hatch Area.
This tool lets you place hatch lines at a specified spacing and angle.

 Method (icon): Flood
 Spacing: 1.5
 Angle: 45.0°
 Drop Pattern: Enabled
 Locate Interior Shapes: Enabled
 Maximum Gap: 1.0
If you look, there are two areas that need to be hatched within the Curtain Wall detail. They are indicated by the areas filled in red (image
enhanced for exercise clarification purposes only).
8. Hatch the Curtain Wall detail:
a. Begin hatching by bringing your cursor within one of the open areas, as indicated, and issue a data point.
The enclosed area will fill with a preview fill.
MicroStation will then prompt to accept @ pattern intersection point. This allows you to enter a data point to define a point through
which a hatch line must pass. Using a common point will give the appearance that hatching lines are coincident, or line-up when
having multiple hatched areas, as is the case here.
b. Snap to the end point of the linework, as indicated in the image below. Issue a data point to create the hatch.
c. Repeat these steps to create a second hatched area as indicated on the image. Utilize the same snap point as before.
9. Navigate the view to the Curtain Wall at Footing 2 detail, on the far right-side.
10. Adding crosshatch to details:
In the Curtain Wall at Footing 2 detail, there are similar spaces that require hatching as was done in the Curtain Wall detail. Utilize a
common snap point when creating the hatches.
a. From the Annotate tab, in the Patterns group, select Crosshatch Area.
The Crosshatch Area tool is used to place crossed hatch lines which run in two directions. This tool offers all of the same tool settings
as the Hatch Area tool with two additional fields to enter the spacing and angle of the second set of hatch lines.

 Method (icon): Flood
 Spacing: 7.0, 7.0
 Angle: 45.0°, -45.0°
 Locate Interior Shapes: Enabled
 Maximum Gap: 1.0
c. Place the crosshatch in the area at the top of the detail as indicated. Snap to the lower-right corner of the detail and issue a data
point.
11. Match attributes from an existing hatch:

Additional crosshatching will be added to the detail Curtain
Wall at Footing 1. This new crosshatching should look the
same as that placed in the detail Curtain Wall Footing 2.
a. Make the Match Pattern Attributes tool active

(Annotate > Patterns).
b. Issue a data point on the large crosshatch pattern in
the middle of the Curtain Wall at Footing 2 detail to
match the attributes.
NOTE: The active pattern settings have been updated
to match the crosshatch just selected.
12. Crosshatch Curtain Wall at Footing 1:
a. Make the Crosshatch Area tool active (Annotate > Patterns).
The tool settings reflect the attributes that you matched from
the existing hatch.
b. Change the Method to Element.

c. At the Curtain Wall at Footing 1, issue a data point
selecting the construction shape element.
d. Then snap to the lower-right corner of the detail.
e. Issue a data point to complete the crosshatch.
(Completed crosshatch)
Pattern Area
Patterning can be a great way to embellish a design. In this section, you will use the Pattern Area tool to create a
concrete stippling pattern for the Curtain Wall detail.

 Pattern Area
1. Continue in elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. Make the Match Pattern Attributes tool active (Annotate > Patterns).
3. Issue a data point on the concrete pattern in the middle of the Curtain Wall at Footing 2 detail to match the attributes.
4. Along the ribbon, from the Patterns group of the Annotate tab, select Pattern Area.
Pattern Area lets you pattern an area by repeating a cell at defined intervals. The values you enter in the Scale, Row Spacing, and
Column Spacing fields determine the number of times the cell placement is repeated in the designated area.
5. Confirm the following options in the tool
settings window:
 Method: Element
 Pattern: CONCR2
 Scale: 0.2
6. At the Curtain Wall at Footing 1, issue a data point on the construction shape element. Then snap to the lower-right corner of the detail
and issue a data point.
7. Back in the tool settings window, change the value for Scale to 0.3.
8. At the Curtain Wall at Footing 1, issue a data point on the construction shape element.
9. Then snap to the lower-right corner of the detail and issue a data point.
10. Open the View Attributes dialog (View > Presentation) and toggle off Constructions and Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
Placing a Table from Excel
You can place tables in MicroStation using the Place Table tool. The options that you have range from placing an empty
table to placing a table from a report definition or placing a table using the data in an excel workbook or .csv file.
Once placed, you can perform formatting operations on a table. If you ever have worked with Microsoft Excel, then your
experience will be very similar to working with tables in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition. In this section, you will
place a table from Excel.

 Place a table from Excel
 Work within the table tools contextual ribbon tab
 Set table symbology
exercise end result
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. Set the active level to A-ANNO-SCHD.
3. Pan the view to an open space, away from graphics. To the right of the floor plan would be ideal.
4. Placing the Room Finish Schedule table:
a. From the Annotate tab, of the Tables ribbon group, select the Place Table tool.

 Method: From File
 Seed: None
 Text Style: Bldg-3.5mm
 Retain Association: Enabled
c. To select the Excel file, click the Browse button to the right of the File Name field. Navigate to the ..\MSBasicsBldg\data\ folder and
select Room Finish Schedule.xlsx.
The Select Cells dialog opens.
d. From here, retain the default settings and click OK.
NOTE: This may take a moment. You will see a brief progress bar as the table is brought in.
e. Bring the cursor into the view. Once displayed at your cursor, place the table in the open area.
Once placed, you can perform the following formatting operations on a table:
 Add and remove rows
 Add title row, header row, first column, last column, and footer row, which can contain different formatting then the body rows
 Break a table
 Change height and width of rows and columns
 Merge and split cells
 Change cell margins
 Set cell fill color
 Add and remove borders
 Set border color, linestyle, and line weight
You can also perform the following operations on the text in the table cells:
 Set text alignment
 Set text direction
5. Updating the table body text style:

a. With the Annotate tab still active, select the dialog launcher icon in the lower-right corner of the Text group.
As part of the process of bringing in the table from Excel, a new text style was created that does not conform to the company
standards. You will now remap this text style to a company standard text style.
b. From the Text Styles dialog, in the list of styles,

right-click on Body Row.
c. From the contextual menu, select Delete.
The Alert dialog opens, warning you that the style is

“in use”.
d. Click the Destination drop-down menu and select

Bldg-3.5mm style.
e. Click the Remap button.
f. You can dismiss the Text Styles dialog as well.
6. Edit the table symbology:
Next, you will turn off the fill, set the cell margins for the body cells, and set the text style for the Header row.
a. Make the Element Selection (Home > Selection) tool active and then issue a data point to select the table element.
Once a table element is selected, you notice that along the ribbon a new contextual tab will appear. It is here that you can select
operations that are specific to working with a table.
b. With the table selected, from the Table Symbology group, click the Fill button.
c. From here, click No Fill.
7. Adjust table symbology:
a. Next, from the Table Symbology group, set the Borders to All.
b. From the same Table Symbology group, set the Line Weight to 1.
c. Change the Borders to Outside.
d. Set the Borders Line Weight to 2.
e. Next, in the Alignment group, from the Cell Margins drop-down menu, select Normal.
8. Edit the header row text:

a. Make the Edit Text tool (Annotate > Text) active.
b. Select the text, ROOM FINISH SCHEDULE, in the header row.
The Text Editor opens.
c. From here, change the Text Style to Bldg-5.0mm.

d. Enable BOLD, and set the Justification to Middle Center.
e. Data point into the view to accept.
f. De-select the table when finished.
(Completed Room Finish Schedule)
Placing a Table from a Report Definition
A Report Definition is a way to extract and present data from a DGN file in tabular format. This data can range from
MicroStation element properties such as the length of a line to an area of a shape or Item Types (non-graphical,
business data). With regards to Explorer, you can create a report definition of the Sheet Index and place it as a table. In
addition, when you perform an Advanced search or Criteria search in Explorer, you can save the search results as a
report definition. In this section, you will build a report based on the Item Type data attached to the kitchen equipment.
Once the report is generated, you will then place that report as a table.

 Generate a report
 Place a table from a report
 Work with the table tools within the ribbon tab
 Set table symbology
1. Continue in proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\08 - Annotating Designs).
2. Set the active level to A-ANNO-SCHD.
3. Create a kitchen equipment report definition:
a. From the Analyze tab, in the Reports group, select Reports.
The Reports dialog opens.
b. From here, along the icon bank, click the New category icon.
c. Name this new category, Restaurant Equipment and Furnishings.
d. With the Restaurant Equipment and Furnishing category selected, click the New report definition icon.
e. Name this new report definition, Kitchen Equipment.
The kitchen equipment cells that were placed here in the floor plan contain Item Types. Item types can be used to store information
about elements in the form of properties. In this case, Items were attached to the models within a cell library, and hence, every time
that the models were placed as a cell, the attached items were copied to the new cell.
f. With the Kitchen Equipment report definition selected, over on the right-side in the Search Location panel of the Properties, set
Include Cell Contents to Yes.
g. In the Included Items panel of the Properties, click the browse button for Item Types.
4. Set Item Types:

a. Next, click the drop-down menu for Include these Item Types.
b. Expand Kitchen Equipment and select Kitchen Equipment.
c. Click OK.
d. From the left-side of the Reports Dialog, expand the Kitchen Equipment report definition and select Columns.
e. In the Properties on the right, click Add columns.
The Select Columns to Add dialog opens.
f. From here, expand Kitchen Equipment, then Kitchen Equipment.
g. Select the following properties: ID, Description, Manufacturer/Model, Gas - Size, Elec - HP, and Notes.
h. Click OK when finished.
i. Right-click on the column, ID, and select Sort on this column.
The report is now finished. You will now place a table based upon the report you just created.
5. Place the Kitchen Equipment report as a table:

a. Along the icon bank of the Reports dialog, click Place as table.
b. In the tool settings window, ensure that the Text Style is set for Bldg-3.5mm and Retain Association is toggled on.
c. Place the table near the ROOM FINISH SCHEDULE table.
6. Adjust table columns and make text edits:

a. Make the Element Selection (Home > Selection) tool active and issue a data point to select the table element.
b. Resize columns A, D, E, and F to fit the contents of the cells by moving the column lines.
c. Select columns A, D, E, and F and then from the Alignment group select, Center Justify. This will align the text with center justification.
d. Make the Edit Text tool (Annotate > Text) active.
e. Select the text, Kitchen Equipment, in the header row.
The Text Editor opens.
f. From here, change the Text Style to Bldg-5.0mm, enable BOLD, and set the Justification to Middle Center.
g. Inside the Text Editor right-click on the text, Kitchen Equipment, and select Change Case > All Upper.
h. Data point into the view to accept.
7. Adjust the table symbology:
a. Next, from the Table Symbology group, set the Border to All from the drop-down menu.
b. Then from the same Table Symbology group, set the Line Weight to 1.
c. Change the Border to Outside.
d. Set the Line Weight for this to 2.
e. De-select the table when finished.
8. Fit View.
9. Save Settings.
(Completed Kitchen Equipment table)
Challenge Exercise: Exterior Dimensions
Much of the dimensioning along the exterior of the restaurant has been completed. In this challenge exercise, you will
continue to place the dimensions along the south and west side of the building, based on the dimensional data in the
images below.
 Provide wall opening/building corner dimensions as well as an overall dimension for the south and west side of the
building
 Clean-up dimension text where necessary
image altered for exercise clarification purposes only
Challenge Exercise: Interior Dimensions
Much of the dimensioning along the interior of the restaurant has been completed. In this challenge exercise, you will
continue to place the dimensions along the interior of the building, based on the dimensional data in the images below.
 Provide interior dimensions in the kitchen and office areas
 Clean-up dimension text where necessary, including the storage building
Challenge Exercise: Door Types and Labels
Much of the annotation in the restaurant has been completed. In this challenge exercise, you will continue to place
annotation for the building, based on the data in the images below.
 Provide annotation in the kitchen as indicated (in black on the image below)
 Provide door types where indicated (in black on the image below)
 Provide annotation at the sushi bar as indicated (in black on the image below)
 Provide Door types and Wall types where indicated (in black on the image below)
 Provide Door Types and Wall Types where indicated (in black on the image below)
 Provide Wall types where indicated (in black on image below)
Practice Workbook

Composing Sheets

Course Description
As you move into the Sheet Composition stage, a pain that you may encounter is that laying out drawings onto sheets is a time consuming
and error-prone process. It is often done differently by team members and can cause inconsistencies and delays in getting projects delivered.
Fortunately, with the new innovations found in MicroStation’s CONNECT edition’s Documentation Center, the solution is the Accelerated
Sheet Creation and Layout. Here you can create multiple sheets in a single operation. The Automated layout can be based on scale, location
& along path. Once generated, the Sheet layouts can be modified for fine adjustments.
Skills Taught
 Sheet Index
 Place Named Boundaries
 Create Drawing Boundaries

 Attach a raster image
 Manipulate a raster image

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
The Sheet Index
A sheet index is a centralized and structured collection of sheets in a project. You may link any sheet model from any
design file of a project into a sheet index. At this point in the project, you have several sheets in some sort of state of
completion. In this section, you will add these sheets to their respective folders within the Sheet Index.

 Create rule-based folders with Explorer
 Link sheet models
1. Open COVER SHEET.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\09 - Composing Sheets).
2. The Sheet Index:
A sheet index is a centralized and structured collection of sheets in your project. A Sheet Index can be useful in creating a construction
document set (also called a sheet set or construction set) that contains all the sheets of your project. You may link any sheet model from
any design file of your project into the sheet index. Sheets may also be organized hierarchically in folders, with the ability to override
sheet numbering rules for sheets in each folder. You can then manage the properties of all the sheet models within the sheet index
collectively. Sheet indexes may also be added to print organizer print sets for printing.
A similar tool is the Sheet Set Manager in AutoCAD.
a. From the ribbon, click Explorer (Home > Primary).
The Explorer dialog builds upon the foundation of the Project Explorer found in earlier editions of MicroStation. In MicroStation
CONNECT Edition, you can manage the project data using the Explorer dialog. It is a single interface that provides a browsing
function for files, links, items, resources, and the Sheet Index.
b. On the Explorer dialog, expand the Sheet Index panel.

By default, the Sheet Index is read-only. This allows multiple users to access
the Sheet Index for navigation of sheet models and printing without a sharing
violation (file is in use).
c. Next, expand MSBasicsBldg, then Proposed Seafood Restaurant.

Here a set of folders can be seen in the Sheet Index. These are place holders
for the various disciplines that are working on the project.
d. In the icon bank of the Sheet Index panel, click Open Sheet Index for Edit.
The Sheet Index can now be edited. Opening the Sheet Index for editing is required for adding sheets to the index, modifying the
Sheet Index Properties, etc. From here, you can separate the sheets according to your organizational needs within the Sheet Index.
e. Select the Architectural folder.

f. Click the Create Folder icon.
g. Name the newly created folder, 000 - General.
NOTE: You may need to click the Refresh icon/expand the tree from time to time to see your changes.
3. Under the Architectural folder, create five additional folders using the names below:
 100 - Plans
 200 - Elevations
 300 - Sections
 400 - Enlarged Detail Plans

 500 - Details
4. Adding Sheet Index folder properties:
a. Right-click on the 000 - General folder.
b. From the menu choose Properties.
c. In the Sheet Number Prefix field of the Properties dialog, type A-.
d. With both the Explorer and Properties dialogs still open, pick (left-click) on the 100 - Plans folder.
e. Again, type in A- for the Sheet Number Prefix.
f. In the Start Number field type in 101.
g. Continue adding the properties to the remaining folders as per the table shown below:
Folder Name Prefix Start No.

200 ‐ Elevations A‐ 201
300 ‐ Sections A‐ 301
400 ‐ Enlarged Detail Plans A‐ 401
500 ‐ Details A‐ 501
5. Adding sheets to the Sheet Index:

Now that you have built the drawing sheet index folder structure, you will add the project’s sheets to their respective folders.
A Sheet model in MicroStation is similar to the Layouts in AutoCAD.
a. With the 000 - General folder selected, click the Add Sheet icon from the icon bank of the Sheet Index panel.
b. Select the file COVER SHEET.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\09 - Composing Sheets).

c. Click Open.
The Add Sheets dialog opens.
d. Expand to view the available sheet model by clicking the arrow next to the file path/name.
e. Select the COVER SHEET and then Click OK.
The Cover Sheet is now part of the sheet index.
6. Continue adding sheets to the Sheet Index:

a. Select the 200 - Elevations folder and then click the Add Sheet icon.
b. Select the ELEVATIONS.dgn and then the ELEVATIONS sheet model.
c. Select the 500 - Details folder and then click the Add Sheet icon.
d. Select the DETAILS.dgn and then the DETAILS sheet model.
e. Within the 500 - Details folder, double-click the A-501 DETAILS sheet.
The Details sheet opens. Observe in the lower-right corner of the title block that the naming conventions/rules that were assigned to
the 500 - Details folder were applied to this sheet. Observe as well the detail drawing titles. They too have been affected by adding
this sheet to the index. For instance, the sheet numbering found within.
Take note of the numbers within the sheet index. The number next to the project root folder indicates the total number of sheets for
the set. Beside each folder name, the number shown represents the total number of sheets within that respective folder. And within
each folder, there are two numbers in brackets next to each sheet. The first number represents the sheet sequence within that folder
and the second number indicates the overall sequence relative to the sheet set.
Place Named Boundary
At this point in the project, you are far enough into the design composition of the proposed building where you are into
the View Composition stage. This is where you compose all the desired views (sections, plan views, etc.) in the project.
And then from there, the Sheet Composition stage is where you create sheets that represent finished work, ready for
publication. In this section, you will use the Place Named Boundary tool to rapidly place the contents of a design onto a
new sheet.

 Create a Named Boundary
 Rapid sheet creation via Dynamic Views
1. Open proposed restaurant.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\09 - Composing Sheets).
2. Placing a Named Boundary:
A named boundary is any closed element that has a name associated with it. Previously, you could create named fences from fences, clip
volumes, and clipped masks. Named fences have been renamed as named boundaries.
a. Make the active level G-ANNO-NAME-BNDY (Home > Attributes).

a. From the ribbon, pick Place Named Boundary (View > Named Boundaries).
While not exactly the same, the AutoCAD Boundary tool provides similar functionality.
b. In the tools settings, set the following:

 Method (icon): From Drawing Boundary
 Drawing Boundary: Border_Iso A0
 Name: FLOOR PLAN
 Detail Scale: 1:20
 Mode (icon): Place a Single Named Boundary
 Create Drawing: Enabled
c. Bring the cursor into the view, but do not issue a data point. Rather, observe the rectangle attached to the cursor.
The rectangle’s size is being controlled by two factors. The first being the Drawing Boundary that was selected. A Drawing Boundary
is a predefined area on a sheet model. In this case, the Border_Iso A0 drawing boundary being read from the Design Library (dgnlib).
Another factor controlling the aspect ratio of the drawing boundary (rectangle) is Detail Scale, which is currently set at 1:20 in the tool
settings window.
d. With the Place Named Boundary tool still active, hover the drawing boundary over the proposed restaurant and observe the result.
The drawing boundary at the given detail scale is not big enough to encompass the whole building. That being said, you need to
adjust the detail scale in the tool settings window.
e. Back in the tool settings window, set the Detail Scale to 1:50.
f. Bring your cursor back into the view and now observe the results of changing the detail scale.
Clearly, this is large enough to fully encompass the building and surrounding dimensions.
3. Placing a Named Boundary:
a. With the proposed building positioned slightly more towards the top of the drawing boundary, issue a data point.
Immediately, the Create Drawing dialog opens. The Place Named Boundary tool is the latest part of the Dynamic Views portfolio of
tools -- whose goal is to make model analysis and documentation more interactive and intuitive with the ability to create live,
intelligent views of a design that update automatically as the design evolves.
b. In the Create Drawing dialog, enable the check box for Create Sheet Model.
c. Next, enable the check box for Filename.
d. To the right of the Filename field click the icon, Create a New Sheet File.
e. In the Create Sheet Model Destination File dialog, next to the Seed field, click the Browse button.
f. Select Bldg_ModelSeed.dgn (..MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Seed).
g. Click Open.
h. In the File Name field type-in, FLOOR PLAN.
i. Click Save.
4. Set the Sheet Index folder:
a. In the Create Drawing dialog, enable the check box for Add To Sheet Index.
b. Click the icon (to the right) to Select a folder from Sheet Index.
c. Expand the folders and select the 100 - Plans folder.
d. Click OK to confirm the selected folder in the Sheet Index.

e. In the Create Drawing dialog, click OK.
The sheet is created, with several things having just happened:
 A new DGN file called “FLOOR PLAN” was created
 Within this file, a sheet model based upon the seed file was created
 Accompanying the sheet is the company’s title block and border
 The contents of the named boundary was referenced to the sheet
In the previous section, several existing sheets were added to the Sheet Index in Explorer. In this section, you created a new sheet
file while simultaneously adding it to the Sheet Index. As before, the sheet has inherited the naming rules applied to the folder. Take
a moment and observe the new sheet and its title block.
5. Move the “drawing title”:

"Drawing title" is the term often used when referring to the graphic (cell) that is placed automatically when the named boundary tool is
used. This cell typically includes a title, the scale of the drawing, and an automatically assigned drawing number.
a. Pick the Move Element tool (Home > Manipulation).
b. Select the drawing title and move it closer to the building.
c. Make the Element Selection tool (Home > Selection) active.

d. Position your cursor over the drawing title. You will notice that as you do this, a transparent mini tool bar will appear.
e. From here, select the first icon, Open Design Model.
The proposed restaurant file opens again.
f. Activate the Move Element tool again.
g. Move the Kitchen Equipment table and the Room Finish Schedule within the named boundary, just below the building.
h. In the lower-left of MicroStation, click the Previous Model button, returning to the Floor Plan sheet.
(Completed sheet)
Creating a Drawing Boundary
Traditionally, sheet creation and layout has been a very manual and time-consuming process. To overcome this, the
Drawing Boundary feature is provided to allow you to quickly and easily define the location of a drawing on a sheet
which may contain a drawing. A sheet may be subdivided into several drawing boundaries.
In this lesson you will learn:

 Predefining an area in an existing sheet model for placement of Named Boundary
 Placing a Named Boundary based on a predefined Drawing Boundary
1. Open DETAILS.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\09 - Composing Sheets).
As you can see, this detail sheet contains several details. Three additional curtain wall details need to be added to complete the sheet.
In AutoCAD use the Reference command to create multiple areas on a Layout.
2. Set the active level (Home > Attributes):

 Level: G-ANNO-DRAW-BNDY
3. From the ribbon, pick Drawing Boundary (Annotate > Detailing).
4. Set the following options in the tools settings window:

 Detailing Symbol Style: Default
 Name: Detail-4
 Drawing Type: Detail
 Detail Scale: Full Size 1 = 1
 Method (icon): By 2 Points
5. Issue a data point to define the first corner of the drawing boundary by snapping to the intersecting lines in the lower-left corner of the
upper-left detail section, directly below where the column enclosure detail is located).
6. Next, define the second corner of the drawing boundary by snapping to the intersecting lines in the lower-right of this same section.
7. Then, place the detail symbol by issuing a data point in the middle of this section, along the bottom.
You have designated a specific area on this sheet that can be populated by a named boundary (in the future). You will now place two
additional drawing boundaries into the remaining open sections.
8. With the Place Drawing Boundary - By 2 Points tool still active, take note in the tool settings window that the Name has automatically (and
conveniently) incremented to Detail-5. Following the previous steps, place drawing boundaries in each remaining open section by first
snapping to the upper-left corner, then to the lower-right corner, and then placing the symbol along the bottom-center in each of the
remaining detail sections.
NOTE: These drawing boundaries were placed into this DGN file. These areas will be populated in the next exercise. However, it is
important to note that it is more advantageous to create drawing boundaries in seed files and/or Design Libraries. That is, of
course, dependent on your company’s/organization’s setup. This would allow the drawing boundaries to be standardized and
available in any sheet.
Populating Drawing Boundaries
In a previous section, within the detail sheet, you designated areas using the Drawing Boundary tool. A drawing
boundary is a predefined area on a sheet model that may contain a drawing. As you saw, the sheet may be subdivided
into several drawing boundaries. In this section, you will use the Named Boundary tool to populate these drawing
boundaries with additional details.

 Place Named Boundaries to populate Drawing Boundaries
1. Open elevations_details.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\09 - Composing Sheets).
2. Create a curtain wall detail using a Drawing Boundary:
a. Open the Models dialog (Home > Primary).
b. Double-click the CW Details model to make it active.
c. Make the active level G-ANNO-NAME-BNDY (Home > Attributes).
d. From the ribbon, pick Place Named Boundary (View > Named Boundaries).
e. In the tool settings, set the following:
 Method: By 2 Points
 Name: CURTAIN WALL
 Mode: Place a single named boundary
 Create Drawing: Enabled
f. Place two opposite data points around the first detail, labeled Curtain Wall.
g. Provide a third data point to accept the point placements.
The Create Drawing dialog opens.
3. Setting Create Drawing properties:

a. Enable the check box for Create Sheet Model.
b. Next, enable the check box for Filename.
c. Select the Browse Sheet File icon (to the right of the Filename field).
d. Pick the file DETAILS.dgn.

e. Click Open.
f. In the Create Drawing dialog, from the Sheets drop-down menu, select DETAILS.
g. Click OK.
h. From the Drawing Boundary drop-down menu, select Detail-4.
i. Confirm the settings are correct and click OK.
The contents of the Curtain Wall detail named boundary are referenced into the drawing boundary, Detail-4.
4. Create a curtain wall footing detail:

a. Click the Previous Model button in the lower-left corner of MicroStation.
This action returns to the CW Details model of the elevations_details.dgn file.
b. Make the active tool Place Named Boundary (View > Named Boundaries).
c. In the tool settings window, set the Name to CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 1.
d. With the tool set, follow the previous steps for placing a named boundary by placing two opposite data points around the second
detail, labeled Curtain Wall at Footing 1), and accept with a final data point.
e. Ensure the following options are set in the Create Drawing dialog:
 Name: CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 1
 Drawing Seed: none
 Create Sheet Model: Enabled
 Filename: DETAILS.dgn
 Sheet Model: Enabled
 Sheets: DETAILS
 Drawing Boundary: Detail-5
 Open Model: Enabled
NOTE: When you selected Detail-5 from the Drawing Boundaries, you
may have noticed the absence of Detail-4. This was due to the fact
that it has an assignment now, and therefore is longer an option.
f. Click OK.
The Details sheet opens with the named boundary referenced into the drawing boundary.
5. Create curtail wall footing detail 2:
a. Click the Previous Model button in the lower-left corner of MicroStation.
This action returns to the CW Details model of the elevations_details.dgn file.
b. Make the active tool Place Named Boundary (View > Named Boundaries).
c. In the tool settings window, set the Name to CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 2.
d. With the tool set, follow the previous steps for placing a named boundary by placing two opposite data points around the second
detail, labeled Curtain Wall at Footing 2), and accept with a final data point.
e. Ensure the following options are set in the Create Drawing dialog:
 Name: CURTAIN WALL AT FOOTING 2
 Drawing Seed: none
 Create Sheet Model: Enabled
 Filename: DETAILS.dgn
 Sheet Model: Enabled
 Sheets: DETAILS
 Drawing Boundary: Detail-6
 Open Model: Enabled
NOTE: When you selected Detail-6 from the Drawing Boundaries, you
may have noticed the absence of Detail-5. This was due to the fact
that it has an assignment now, and therefore is longer an option.
f. Click OK.
The Details sheet opens with the named boundary referenced to the drawing boundary.
6. Set reference file Presentation:
a. Open the References dialog (Home > Primary).
b. From here, select the three CW Details references.
c. Right-click on the selected references and from the contextual menu choose, Presentation.
The Reference Presentation dialog opens.
NOTE: This is similar to View Attributes.
d. Disable the toggle for Constructions.
e. Click OK.
f. Repeat this procedure for the remaining two curtain wall details.
g. Close the References dialog.
NOTE: As can be seen, by disabling “Constructions” in the reference file Presentation settings, the perimeter of the Named Boundary
is no longer visible in the view window.
h. Save Settings (File > Save Settings).
(Completed detail sheet)
Attach a Raster Image
Using the Raster Manager you can attach raster images of various formats, from monochrome to full color. You can
modify the location, display order, and various other settings of previously attached raster image files. When a raster
attachment is modified with Raster Manager, no changes are made to the original file, just to its attachment information
in the DGN file.
In this section, you will perform a “finishing touch” on the Cover sheet by placing a raster image for the location map.

 Attaching a raster image
1. Open COVER SHEET.dgn (09 - Composing Sheets).
2. From the ribbon, open Raster Manager (Home > Primary).
The Raster Manager dialog opens.
3. From here, click the Attach icon.
4. In the Attach Raster Reference dialog, browse to the data folder, picking Location Map.png (..\WorkSets\MSBasicsBldg\data).
5. Along the bottom of the Attach Raster Reference dialog, verify the following:
 Open Read-Only: Enabled
 Place Interactively: Disabled
 Open Settings Dialog: Enabled
6. Click Open.
The Raster Attachment Options dialog opens. The options in this dialog allow you to set various attributes of the raster attachment, such
as the level it is placed on, the symbology of the raster border, in which views it is visible, which plane it is displayed on, and much more.
7. In the General panel of the Raster Attachment Options, set the Level to A-ANNO-REFR.
8. In the Display Print panel, ensure that the image will be placed in the Background plane.
When attaching a raster image to a 2D model, the raster can be placed in different planes.
 Design - The raster shares the same space as design elements and you
can use the display priority to define the display order.
 Background - The raster will always be behind any design elements.
 Foreground - The raster will always be in front of any design elements.
9. Click Attach.
Since the option for Place Interactively was disabled, the raster image is placed automatically, based on the image’s own positioning
information.
10. Zoom out and you will see that the raster is located just below the Cover Sheet.
(Completed raster attachment)
The Reference utility will let you attach images in AutoCAD.
Manipulate a Raster Image
In the previous section, you attached a raster image of a location map. In this section, you will use standard
manipulation tools to adjust the size and location of the location map. Then, once this is positioned onto the sheet, you
will clip the image.

 Utilize standard manipulate tools on a raster image
 Clip a raster image
1. Continue in COVER SHEET.dgn (09 - Composing Sheets).
The raster “location map” needs to be moved inside the shape in the center of the Cover Sheet.
2. Select the Move tool (Home > Manipulate).

3. From the keyboard, press <C> to invoke the AccuDraw shortcut, Center Snap mode.
4. Pick the raster along its’ perimeter with a data point.
5. Again, press <C> to invoke the Center Snap mode.
6. Move the cursor to the rectangular element in the center of the Cover Sheet. Once snapped, issue a data point to move the raster.
The raster image is now positioned correctly on the sheet. However, as you can see, you will need to clip (or crop) the raster image based
on the rectangular shape element.
7. In the Raster Manager, verify that the Location Map.png is selected.
8. Next, in Raster Manager, pick Clip.
9. Set the following options in the tools settings window:

 Method: Element
 Mode: Clip Boundary
10. There are actually two square shapes in the center of the Cover Sheet. Pick the inside shape with a data point, clipping the raster image.
11. Fit View.
12. Save settings (File > Save Settings).
(Completed location map)
Practice Workbook

Printing and Publishing


Course Description
The final phase in completing a design project is producing the construction document set. It can be as simple as
fencing an area in a design model and printing what is seen within the view window using the default settings or may
include the use of sheet models, pen tables, and print styles. Drawing sheets may be printed individually or in a “batch”
mode using Print Organizer. This workbook contains exercises intended to familiarize a new MicroStation user with the
basic printing capabilities found in the MicroStation CONNECT Edition.
Skills Taught
 Printing
 Printer configuration files
 Adjusting Print settings

 Attaching a pen table
 Editing a printer configuration file
 Printing to a PDF
 Printing optional content to a PDF
 Using Explorer
 Printing for the Sheet Index
 Using Print Organizer

Milestones
Compatibility Notes
Printing the Floor Plan
Sheet models are a convenient way of defining a “print sheet” in MicroStation, helping to automate the printing of
designs. Printing from a sheet model offers many benefits not found when printing from Design or Drawing models such
as automatic identification of the “printable area” in the sheet. In this lesson, you will configure and print the Floor Plan
sheet for the project.

 View sheet model properties
 Edit a printer configuration file
 Attach a pen table
1. Open FLOOR PLAN.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\10 - Printing and Publishing).
Observe that the active model is a sheet model. Sheet models are typically used for printing a design.
NOTE: Printing may be done from any model type, Design, Drawing, or Sheet, at a scale or at 1:1. Although sheet models are not
required for printing workflows, there are many benefits of using them some of which you will see in a few moments.
A similar way to do this in AutoCAD is to create a new Layout and reference in the appropriate material.
2. Reviewing model properties:

a. Open Models (Home > Primary).
b. Select the model FLOOR PLAN.

c. From the Models dialog, pick Edit Properties.
d. Expand Models, picking Floor Plan.
The properties of the Floor Plan sheet model are displayed.
e. In Properties, locate Sheet.
Observe that Sheet Size is set to an ISO A0 sheet boundary.
f. Review remaining sheet properties.

g. Close the Properties and Models dialogs.
3. Printing the sheet.
a. From the Quick Access ToolBar, click Print
b. Observe the Area setting.
Area was automatically set to Sheet. This is due to the active model being a sheet model. When working with sheet models, it is not
necessary to place a fence. MicroStation automatically recognizes the sheet model and as such, sets the Area to sheet.
c. In Printer and Paper Size (from the drop-down menu), verify that active printer is set to Bldg PDF.
Observe the paper size.
The paper size also recognizes that the model being printed is a sheet model, and the paper size is set to match it (ISO A0).
d. Observe the print scale.

The scale is currently set as 25.4. The sheet model also assists in setting the scale automatically.
e. In the Print dialog, next to Scale, click the “…” symbol to open the Scale Assistant.
The scale can be verified by using the Scale Assistant.
As can be seen, Scale is currently set so that 1” on the paper is equal to 25.4 Master Units in the design. With the working units in the
file set as millimeters (Master Unit), this means that 1” on the paper is equal to 25.4 mm in the design, or a print scale of 1:25.4. This
reflects the conversion factor for millimeters to inches.
The benefits of using sheet models can clearly be seen. Sheet models offer additional benefits such as “Sheet Indexing” as well.
f. Click Cancel.
4. Editing a printer driver configuration file:

a. From the Print dialog, click File > Edit Printer Driver Configuration.
b. In the Base Properties tab, set the following:
General
 Automatic Open Plot File After Creation: True
Driver Properties
 Enable Optional Content: On
These changes to the printer configuration file will allow MicroStation to automatically open the printed PDF file after a print is
generated and will display “optional content” within the PDF. Optional content is in the form of file and level information. When the
PDF is viewed in a PDF viewer, files and levels may be manipulated (i.e. levels may be turned on/off).
c. Save the changes and close the Printer Driver Configuration dialog:
NOTE: The original printer configuration file is held in memory while the Print dialog is open and must be reloaded for the changes to
take effect.
d. In the Print dialog, click File > Reload Printer Driver Configuration.
The driver has now been reloaded and the changes applied.
5. Text Substitutions:
a. In the view window, Zoom In, locating the text near the lower-left corner of the sheet border:
These pieces of text have been formatted specifically for use with the text substitution features associated with pen tables.
A pen table is used to resymbolize a design file when a print is performed, without altering the design graphics. When a print is
performed with a pen table attached, resymbolization in the pen table is processed and applied to the print that is being generated.
A pen table can be used to alter the appearance of geometry by changing color, line style or line weight, reprioritize the display of
elements (Bring to Front or Send to Back), perform text substitutions, and much more.
Use the Plot Stamp tool to get a similar result in AutoCAD.
b. In the Print dialog, click Browse to open the Select Pen Table File browser.
c. Open Bldg Sheet.tbl (\MSBasicsBldg\Standards\Printing\Pen Tables).
The print has now been configured and is ready for processing.
6. Printing to a PDF file:

a. From the Print dialog, click Print
b. Browse to the “Out” folder within the course dataset (..\WorkSets\MSBasicsBldg\out).
c. Name the PDF file: FLOOR PLAN.pdf
d. Click Save.
e. The resulting PDF file is opened, displaying the printed output.
(Completed PDF print)
Viewing Optional Content
In the previous lesson, the floor plan for your project was printed to a PDF file. The driver used to print the PDF had
optional content-enabled, providing access to file and level information from within the printed PDF. In this lesson, you
will view the PDF and the enhanced capabilities that were made available by enabling “optional content”.

 Open a PDF generated by MicroStation
 View text substitutions
 View “optional content”
1. Using your PDF viewer, continue in FLOOR PLAN.pdf (..\WorkSets\MSBasicsBldg\Out).
When the sheet model was printed, a pen table was applied containing text substitutions.
Text substitutions are performed only at print time. When text substitutions are performed, the text must be formatted to exactly match the
text substitutions contained in the pen table or the substitutions will not be performed.
By placing these pieces of text in the sheet border that is referenced to the sheet models for the project, each sheet will have an accurate
date and time stamp applied when prints are generated.
We will now review the date and time stamp in the printed PDF.
2. In the PDF viewer, zoom to the lower-left corner of the sheet as shown:
3. Review the text substitutions in the PDF.
The text substitutions are clearly visible. Each time a print is generated, the current Date and Time are applied through the text
substitutions located in the design file.
NOTE: The print has been rotated for clarity
4. In the PDF viewer, enable the display of Layers.
In a PDF, layers are the equivalent of levels.
5. In Layers, expand the layer tree structure.
You can see all of the levels used in the design, the levels in the active model being printed, and the levels in any attached reference files.
The Eye icon represents a displayed layer. No icon indicates the layer is hidden (level is turned off).
6. Take a few moments to examine the layer structure in the PDF, turning on/off the display of layers.
7. Returning to MicroStation, close the Print dialog.
Print Styles
A print style can be used to help automate the printing process. If a standard set of print definition property values are
assigned when print definitions are created, a print style can be applied to set these property values automatically. In
this lesson, you will automate the printing process by applying a print style.

 Apply a print style
1. Continue in FLOOR PLAN.dgn (..\dgn\10 - Printing and Publishing).
2. From the Quick Access ToolBar, click Print.
The Print dialog opens, showing the current print settings. This sheet needs to be printed using the “standard print settings” for the
project.
Observe the settings for Printer and Color. Also, the pen table is not attached.
This can be corrected with a print style.
Some functions of the MicroStation Print Styles are available through the AutoCAD Plot Style Tables.
3. Applying a Print Style:
a. In the Print dialog, click Apply Print Style.
b. Select Bldg PDF - BW.
c. Click OK.
The Print dialog updates, displaying the settings applied from the print style.
With a single change (selecting the print style) the printer was updated, the paper size was selected, color was set as grayscale and
the pen table was attached.
This print style was configured by the members of your organization’s CAD Support Team. It is contained in a design library file and
as such, is available to all members of the design team. It was intended to automate most settings, making it easy to standardize the
way a print is generated.
4. Printing the PDF:

a. From the Print dialog, click Print.
b. Select the Out folder within the course dataset (..\WorkSets\MSBasicsBldg\Out).
c. Name the PDF file: FLOOR PLAN - BW.pdf
d. Click Save.
5. The resulting PDF file is opened, displaying the printed output.
A print style can be used to:
 Apply default print definition property values when creating print definitions
 Assigned to a printer driver to apply printer-specific property values when creating print definitions or when changing printers
 Store a group of commonly used print definition property values that are applied to a specific project, type of print, or are used on
an occasional basis (on-demand)
HINT: Print styles are useful in both single and multi-sheet printing.
(Completed PDF print)
Printing the Construction Document Set
Design projects may contain hundreds of individual sheets that range from cover sheets and contract plans to
specifications and standard details. In this lesson, you will print a construction document set for the proposed seafood
restaurant project. This will be done as a multi-page PDF file from the Sheet Index using Print Organizer.

 Open and view File Explorer
 The Sheet Index
 Print Organizer
 Apply a print style to a print set
1. Open Cover Sheet.dgn (..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\10 - Printing and Publishing).
2. The Sheet Index:
a. From the ribbon, Open Explorer (Home > Primary).
b. The Explorer dialog opens.
The Explorer dialog is used to manage and control the project content. It contains five tabs that provide browsing functions for files,
items, resources, sheet indexes, and links.
c. Dock Explorer on the left-side of the MicroStation interface.
d. In Explorer, expand the Sheet Index MSBasicsBldg.
e. Review the Sheet Index.

Take a few moments to review the content of the Sheet Index. The Sheet Index is a very useful feature, allowing sheet models to be
opened, control sheet numbering, etc.
3. Accessing Print Organizer:

a. From the tools in Sheet Index, click Open Print Organizer.
You will be prompted to select a print style.
NOTE: It is not required to open the Sheet Index for editing to be able to access Print Organizer from the Sheet Index.,
b. Pick Bldg PDF - Color.
c. Click OK.
d. The Print Organizer dialog opens with the contents of the sheet index added to a new print set MSBasicsBldg.pset.
Observe that the hierarchy from the sheet index was maintained as the sheets were added to Print Organizer.
NOTE: The print set has not been saved. If Print Organizer is closed, you will be prompted to save the print set. The name of the print
set was determined based on the name of the active WorkSet. If you wish to save the print set, when saved it may be named as
desired. Saving the print set file (.pset) is optional.
4. Printing the sheet set:
a. In Print Organizer, select the folder MSBasicsBldg.
This will ensure that the entire sheet set is able to be printed.
b. From Print Organizer, click Print.

Observe the Printer Driver Configuration shown in the dialog is Bldg PDF.pltcfg. This was determined by the print style that was
applied to the print set.
c. In Print dialog set the following:
 Print Range: All
 Submit as: Single print job
 Open print file after creation: Enabled
d. Set the destination folder and file name:

 Destination: ..\MSBasicsBldg\out
 File name: Proposed Seafood Restaurant.pdf
e. When all settings have been verified, click OK.

The print job is started and a status window appears showing
the progress:
f. When the print is complete, the PDF file will open:
(Completed document set)

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Practice Workbook

The MicroStation CONNECT Edition

Introduction to the MicroStation

Revision: 01.00 Course Level: Fundamental

DO NOT DISTRIBUTE - Printing for student use is permitted

 Navigation of the MicroStation CONNECT Edition user interface

Training Dataset Installation Instructions

Compatibility notes are formatted as illustrated:

This is an example of a “compatibility note” found in a Bentley training document.

In this lesson you will:

The Work page is similar to the Create page in AutoCAD.

3. From the Work page, set the following:

A WorkSet is used to represent a specific “project” within the WorkSpace.

5. Open a design file:

d. Click Use active WorkSpace/WorkSet and click Open.

In this lesson you will:

(Typical components of a ribbon-style interface)

The MicroStation CONNECT Edition delivers 5 standard Workflows. These include:

Only visible when the active file is a configured DGN Library:

Only visible when a 3D model is active:

The Search window works like the Search window in AutoCAD.

Search results are categorized by:

 The Backstage view

 The Quick Access Toolbar

 Social Media links

3. The Backstage view:

a. From the Backstage view, pick Properties.

(The Properties dialog “pinned” to the left side of the interface)

NOTE: Multiple dialogs may be docked in the same docking region.

5. Pick File, again opening the Backstage view.

a. Pick Settings > User > Preferences.

b. Select the Input Category and enable ESC exits command.

7. Close (File > Close) the active design file topord.dgn.

In this lesson you will:

The New dialog opens.

b. In Save in: navigate to the ..\MSBasicsBldg\dgn\01 - Introduction to MicroStation folder.

c. Next to Seed, click Browse.

The new DGN file is created and opened.

This was determined by the seed file.

The tool settings are set to Files: All.

The AutoCAD command Zoom Extents is similar to MicroStation's Fit View.

This 3-step rule typically is:

 1) Pick the tool

 2) Adjust the settings (of the active tool)

 3) Follow the command prompt

 1) “Pick the tool” was choosing the Fit View icon.

In this lesson you will:

 Save Design File Settings

The title bar states that the file is 2D.

The similar command in AutoCAD is the PolyLine

6. Issue the AccuDraw Mode shortcut by pressing “M” on the keyboard.

NOTE: AccuDraw will be discussed in greater detail in future exercises.

8. Setting design file settings:

The Design File Settings dialog is opened.

b. Pick the Working Units category.

c. In Linear Units, change the Accuracy to 0.1

The UNITS command in AutoCAD provides access to similar functions.

In this lesson you will:

Design files are composed of one or more models.

Our design file contains a single design model.

There are three types of models:

5. In General properties, change the following:

 Ref Logical: Floor Plan