To Create a Wall Tool

Use this procedure to create a wall tool and add it to a tool palette. You may want to create your own tools if you are placing multiple walls of specific styles that have the same properties.

For example, you are creating an office floor plan with partition walls for cubicles. Although all partition walls use the same wall style in your floor plan, the walls in administrative areas are lower than the walls in office areas. To work efficiently, you can create a wall tool for each wall height, and select the appropriate tool to place the walls with the correct height in each area of the floor plan.

You can use any of the following methods to create a wall tool:

• Drag a wall that has the properties you want to a tool palette.
• Drag a wall style from the Style Manager to a tool palette, and then customize the properties of the new tool.
• Copy an existing wall tool, and then customize the properties of the new tool.
• Drag a wall tool from a tool catalog in the Content Browser, and then customize the properties of the tool.

1. Open the tool palette on which you want to create a tool.
2. Create the tool:

   If you want to …	Then …
   create a tool from a wall in the drawing	select the wall, and drag it to the tool palette. Tip: Drag the wall by a point on its perimeter, not by one of its grips.
   create a tool from a wall style in the Style Manager	click Manage tabStyle & Display panelStyle Manager. Locate the style you want to copy, and drag it to the tool palette. Click OK to close the Style Manager.
   copy a tool in the current tool palette	right-click the tool, click Copy, and click Paste.
   copy a tool from another palette	open the other tool palette, right-click the tool, and click Copy. Reopen the palette where you want to add the tool, right-click, and click Paste.
   copy a tool from a tool catalog in the Content Browser	open the tool catalog in the Content Browser, and locate the tool you want to copy. Position the cursor over the i-drop handle, and drag the tool to the tool palette.

3. Right-click the new tool, and click Properties.
4. Enter a name for the tool.
5. Click the setting for Description, enter a description of the tool, and click OK.

   This description is used as the tool’s tooltip on the tool palette, and to describe the tool if it is stored in a tool catalog.

6. Expand Basic, and expand General.
7. Enter a description of the tool.
8. If you do not want to use the default layer key, select a layer key.
9. If you want to override the default layer names, select a layer override.
10. Select a wall style.
11. For Style location, select the drawing file containing the style to be used for this tool, or select Browse and use a standard file selection dialog box to select the file.
12. Under Bound spaces, define if this wall tool can be used as a bounding object for associative spaces.

    You can select 3 options here:

    • Yes: this wall tool can be used as bounding object for associative spaces.
    • No: this wall tool cannot be used as bounding object for associative spaces.
    • By style: this wall tool will use the bounding settings from the wall style.
13. Select Yes for Cleanup automatically if you want the wall to clean up with other walls, and select a cleanup group.
14. For Definition location, select Browse, and use a standard file selection dialog box to select the Cleanup group definition to be used for this tool.
15. Expand Dimensions.
16. Specify wall dimensions:

    If you want to …	Then …
    specify the thickness of the wall	enter a value for Width. If Width is not available, the wall style you selected determines the width of the wall.
    specify the height of the wall from the floor to the ceiling	enter a value for Base height.

17. Specify the wall justification, which places the wall in relation to the points you specify and the direction in which you draw the wall:

    If you want to …	Then …
    specify points that define the left side of the wall	select Left for Justify.
    specify points that define the right side of the wall	select Right for Justify.
    specify points that define the center line of the wall	select Center for Justify.
    specify points that define the baseline of the wall	select Baseline for Justify.

18. Specify offsets:

    If you want to …	Then …
    offset the location of the wall from the points you specify	enter a value for Baseline offset, or pick the offset point.
    offset the roof line from the specified base height	enter a value for Roof line offset from base height.
    offset the floor line from the baseline	enter a value for Floor line offset from baseline.

19. On the Properties palette, expand Advanced.
20. Expand Cleanups, and specify cleanup options:

    If you want to …	Then …
    specify the line that the Diagnostic display representation uses for the wall justification line	select Wall Justification Line, or select Wall Center Line.
    specify a radial distance from the endpoint of a wall in which other walls will be connected	enter a value for Cleanup radius override.

21. Click OK.