Join us for a new Tech Talk on August 30th 11:00 PDT/14:00 EDT as Success Factors Advocate Kevin Holman discusses vehicle routing best practices, tips and tricks. You will have an opportunity to hear from Kevin about real world industry leading methods for vehicle routing and ask questions of our expert panel.

Topics covered will include:

• Reviewing routing methods and determining which to use for various situations
• Working with saved trips and how these improve efficiency
• Displaying routing limitations and how to use for better overall analysis

In this Tech Talk you will learn about the features of SUPERLOAD Routing and how it can help your agency reduce costs and save time, ensure safe travel for permitted vehicles, enable management of movement within specific areas, and improve reliability and accuracy of routing information.

To learn more or to register

https://pages.info.bentley.com/event-details-ae/?webinar=CO_WBNRB_TT_RTIP_NA17&eventGUID=ca5a84b9-2c5a-492c-acfe-a22eaca43502

MicroStation CONNECT Edition Update 5 has added a new feature for attaching reference files. You can now set the visible edges display directly from the Reference Attachment Properties dialog. This will save a step that you would previously have to do in the References dialog after your visible edges file would have been attached. This option will only be available when attaching a 3D model to a 2D sheet model or 2d drawing model.

You can also set the Visible Edges display setting in the Create Drawing dialog.

The visible edges display options are:

• Dynamic - In this mode, the reference file and the visible edge process are always kept in a live state, that is, they are updated whenever you do operations such as file opening, viewing references, modifying references and so on.
• Cached - In this mode, a local cache is stored for the visible edge process. The reference is kept live but the visible hidden edge display is not regenerated. The default cache synchronization option is Automatic with Alert.

In order to provide better display performance when have a large number of reference files or even a large model with great hidden line detail, you can change the performance by defining the MS_REF_VISEDGE_ATTACH_STATE configuration variable. This will allow you to set the default value that you want for display of the visible edges. This will once again save time by not having to go into the reference file interface and change this manually for your reference(s).

The options for this variable are Dynamic, CachedManual, CachedAutomatic, CachedAlert, or CachedDisconnect.

Another thing that has been added to save time and improve display performance is the ability to set the cache synchronization option of all the references in the active model by suffixing ALL to the cache synchronization key-ins.

The following key-ins are added to change the Visible Edge option of all references in the active model:

• REFERENCE VISIBLEEDGES ALLATTACHMENTS CACHED
• REFERENCE VISIBLEEDGES ALLATTACHMENTS DYNAMIC

Watch this brief video that demonstrates how this key-in can be used:

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Using these key-ins will not only set the visible edge display but also reload all reference with the desired visible edges settings to either cached or dynamic. Also, the key-in REFERENCE VISIBLEEDGES ALLATTACHMENTS SYNCHRONIZECACHE is added to reload all references in the active model which have their Visible Edges option set to Cached.

Managing Sheet Index

In the previous blog, we customized the drawing seed and used it for automating dynamic views. In this blog, we will add sheets to the sheet index and customize the sheet numbering.

Creating Sheet Index Structure

You can organize the sheets in a sheet index by different categories. For example, by discipline such as Plumbing, Electrical etc. Each category is a different folder in the sheet index. For our project, let us create folders for each sheet type.

Note: Please get the updated WorkSet from here.

1. In design-composition.dgn, open the Explorer and expand the Sheet Index tab.
2. Enable sheet index editing by clicking the Open Sheet Index for Edit   icon.
3. Click the Create Folder icon  . A folder is created and displayed in the sheet index. Rename it to Elevations.
4. Select the sheet index root (MSBasicsBldg) and again click the Create Folder icon  . Another folder is created in the sheet index. Rename it to Sections.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

To create a sub-folder, select the folder in which you want the sub-folder and then click the Create Folder icon.

Adding Sheets to the Sheet Index

As we learnt in the Basics blog, there are multiple ways to add a sheet to the sheet index. Let’s use one of the methods and add sheets to the sheet index.

1. Select the Elevations folder that you created in the above procedure.
2. Click the Add Sheet icon   and navigate to the \Composing Sheets folder in this WorkSet.
3. Select the Building_Elevations.dgn file and click Open.
4. In the Add Sheet dialog, press <Ctrl> and select all the sheets.
5. Click OK. If you have the Auto-Save Design Changes preference turned off, you will get pop-ups that ask you to save the file, click Yes.
   The three sheet models are added to the Elevations folder in the sheet index with appropriate numbering.
6. Similarly add the two sheet models in the Building_Sections.dgn file.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Customizing the Sheet Numbering

Sheet numbering is the numbering that you apply to sheets in the sheet index. Following is how a typical sheet number looks in a sheet index:

You can customize this numbering to match your organization’s sheet numbering standards. Following properties are provided for customizing numbering a sheet index:

• Show Leading Zero - If on, adds leading zeros to the sheet number.
• Number of Digits - Sets the number of digits for the sheet number, default is 3.
• Inherit Naming Rule from Parent - (Applicable to folder properties only) If on, the naming rules are inherited from the sheet index.
• Automatic Naming of Sheet - If on, automatically names the sheets in the sheet index.
• Sheet Number Suffix - Sets the suffix that you want to be added to the sheet numbers. No suffix is added by default.
• Sheet Number Prefix - Sets the prefix that you want to be added to the sheet numbers. The default prefix letter is “A”.
• Increment - Sets the value by which the sheet numbering will be incremented. The default value is 1.
• Start Number - Sets the number from which the sheet numbering will start. The default value is 1.

The customization of sheet numbering is possible at sheet index level as well as folder level. To customize the numbering before creating a new folder, you can use the Manage Properties dialog (clicking Manage Sheet Index icon).

To customize the numbering before creating a folder:

1. Click the Manage Sheet Index icon  .
2. In the Manage Sheet Index dialog that opens, click the Folder tab. 
   
   
3. Do the following settings:
   • Change Number of Digits to 2.
   • Change Sheet Index Prefix to D.
   • Turn off Inherit Naming Rule from Parent.
4. Click OK.
5. Select the sheet index root (MSBasicsBldg) and click the Create Folder icon.
6. Name the folder as Details and press <Enter>.
7. With the Details folder selected, click the Add Sheet icon.
8. Navigate to the \Composing Sheets folder, select the DETAILS.dgn file, and click Open.
9. Select the Details sheet and click OK. If you have the Auto-Save Design Changes preference turned off, you will get pop-ups that ask you to save the file, click Yes.
   The sheet is added with the updated numbering.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

To change the properties of sheets in a folder after creating the folder, use the Properties dialog.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Excluding Sheets from Numbering

There could be a case where you want a specific sheet to be excluded from sheet numbering. To do so, you can use two special properties, namely, Exclude From Auto Numbering and Exclude From Sequence Number. These properties are accessible from the Properties dialog.

Using the combination of these two properties, you can achieve different types of sheet numbering exclusions. Following table describes the effect of different combinations of the two properties:

Following are the links to the previous blogs of this blog series:

• Composing Drawings Blog Series: Building Design – Blog 2 of 4
• Composing Drawings Blog Series: Building Design – Blog 1 of 4
• Composing Drawings Blog Series - Introduction

In the next blog, you will learn placing the sheet index as a table and generating reports.

Exor fixes released in August 2017 are:

Please see the Fix Release documents included in the fixes for installation instructions and details of the changes.

Exor Version 04.07.x, MapCapture version 8.x & Transportation Intelligence Gateway Version 2.x fix release document listing all available 4.7.0.0 fixes: http://communities.bentley.com/products/assetwise/exor/m/mediagallery/269771

Exor Version 04.05.x fix release document listing all available 4.5.0.0 fixes: http://communities.bentley.com/products/assetwise/exor/m/mediagallery/269522

The fixes can be downloaded from https://connect.bentley.com

Creating Drawing Boundaries in a Seed File

MicroStation CONNECT Edition offers the Drawing boundary and Named boundary features to simplify the cumbersome process of sheet creation and further enhance the dynamic views workflow. Using a Drawing boundary, you can quickly and easily define the location of a drawing. You can place multiple drawing boundaries on a sheet model. These drawing boundaries can then be populated with content. In this blog series, we will use Named boundaries to populate Drawing boundaries. Content within a Named boundary, updates automatically when any changes are made to the design. Thus, Drawing boundary and Named boundary together make drawing composition and sheet creation more intuitive and interactive. The below animation demonstrates the workflow:
(Please visit the site to view this video)

Drawing boundaries can be defined in any active sheet model or in a seed file. However, creating Drawing boundaries in a seed file is considered best practice. 

In this blog, we will create drawing boundaries to place portion of a plan of a roadway with drainage structures, on one sheet and two details on another sheet. Later we will add content within these Drawing boundaries using Named boundaries. 

I have shared the MS BasicsCivil WorkSet which can be downloaded from here. We will use the Civil_DrawingSeed.dgnlib file in the DrawComp folder of the WorkSet’s Dgnlib, for creating drawing boundaries. I have used the same to demonstrate the following procedure:

1. Open the Civil_DrawingSeed.dgnlib seed file (....\MSBasicsCivil\ Standards\Dgnlib\ DrawComp) folder.
2. Activate the sheet model, PLAN. We will place a drawing boundary here. We will use this sheet model seed to create plan sheets in future.
3. Open the Place Drawing Boundary tool. (Drawing>Annotate>Detailing>Place Drawing Boundary).
4. In the Place Drawing Boundary tool settings window, make the following settings:
   
   You are prompted to define the first corner of the drawing boundary.
5. Issue the first data point in the upper left corner of the border and the second data point at the lower right corner of the border.
6. Place the annotation at the bottom center of the sheet.

The Drawing boundary is created. The annotation consists place holder fields for drawing number, sheet number, drawing name and scale.

(Please visit the site to view this video)

Now we will create two drawing boundaries for the details in a separate sheet model.

1. In the Civil_Drawingseed.dgnlib seed file, activate the sheet model named DETAILS.
   The sheet is divided into two sections, one each for the location of a potential detail.
2. Open the Place Drawing Boundary tool setting. (Drawing>Annotate>Detailing>Place Drawing Boundary).
3. Make the following settings in the tool settings window:
   
   
4. Snap to the top left corner of the first section and enter a data point to define the first corner of the Drawing boundary.
5. Snap to the bottom left corner of the first section and enter another data point to define the second corner of the drawing boundary.
6. Next, enter a data point to place the annotation.
7. Likewise create drawing boundary for the second section of the sheet.
   Observe that the detail number is automatically incremented in the subsequent drawing boundary.(Please visit the site to view this video)
   In the next blog, we will populate these drawing boundaries with content using Named boundaries.

We are pleased to announce the release of ContextCapture CONNECT Edition – Update 6 and its module, ContextCapture Editor CONNECT Edition – Update 1.

ContextCapture CONNECT Edition - Update 6

Capture

With the update, ContextCapture enables the production of 3D Resolution Map that associate resolution to any 3D location on your model. This 3D quality control and reporting tool streamlines the analysis of project and acquisition quality. And for better acquisition, ContextCapture now offers a QR code framework. This provides you with automatic ground control points or constraints measurements, as well as automatic asset registration. For 3D spatial registration of assets, you only need to place the QR codes tags on the assets before performing the photo acquisition. 

Process

The new update has a more robust and parallelized aerotriangulation and multi-GPU support, so you can expect faster processing time when generating your 3D reality meshes. And the global color equalization capability drastically enriches the visual quality of your 3D models. 

Share

With ProjectWise ContextShare integration, you can now securely upload your reality meshes, and share across project teams and applications increasing team productivity and collaboration. 

Consume – Operations and Inspection Workflows

The thermal imagery support in the mesh texture mode allows you to quickly identify leaks or abnormalities of your critical assets during the inspection and maintenance process.

Check out the ContextCapture CONNECT Edition - Update 6 tutorial videos!

ContextCapture Editor CONNECT Edition - Update 1

To increase your project quality, ContextCapture Editor enables you to integrate and process reality modeling data.

Scalable Mesh Format

Scalable mesh technology enables multi-resolution inputs through the new (.3sm) format. With the ContextCapture Editor update, you can convert a reality mesh (.3mx) to the new scalable mesh format, attach, and display it in MicroStation to bring reality context to your design. Additionally, you can generate a scalable mesh file containing terrain data from many sources such as DTM, Point Clouds, raster elevation, and more for better design.

Quick Ground Extraction

ContextCapture Editor allows you to extract terrain from an area of a reality mesh to a new reality mesh attachment and seamlessly display the result using clips helping to streamline your design workflow.

Volume Calculation

With ContextCapture Editor, you can analyze volume differences in a defined area between two reality meshes or a reality mesh and design element. A significant use for this capability is during the construction workflow to calculate the amount of material in a stockpile to determine how much load there is compared to actual design.  This same capability can be used for progress management where you can calculate the volume using two different reality meshes taken at different phases of the construction to find out the progression of the work. 

Tile Terrain

ContextCapture Editor has the Tile Terrain capability where you can extract and tile terrain from a reality mesh to multiple Terrain Model elements or LandXML files for use in your road designs.

ProjectWise ContextShare

ProjectWise ContextShare is Bentley’s reality modeling solution that allows you to securely manage and store large amounts of reality modeling data in a connected data environment without the need for high-end hardware or complex IT infrastructure. ContextCapture Editor allows you to convert local reality mesh to the reality mesh 3DTiles format for easy upload to ProjectWise ContextShare.  You can attach and stream reality mesh 3DTiles for better project team collaboration.

Check out the ContextCapture Editor tutorial videos for these new capabilities!

SACS 11.1 CONNECT Edition Update

SACS 11.1 update includes the CONNECT Advisor integration in addition to NORSOK 2013 joint strength check in Collapse and pile capacity visualization in Collapse view. The torsional mass moment of inertia calculations have been added to the DYNPAC module, also the ability to handle all load cases generated for a time history has been added to the SACS Wind Turbine Process. Other updates include support for ISM 6.0 and the ability to export stiffness and mass matrices in addition to the load vector to a CSV file from the SACS superelement module.

CONNECT Advisor integration

CONNECT Advisor is a CONNECT services entitlement for our users and a core offering of Adaptive Learning Services. It is designed to provide content aggregated from multiple sources in a single location and provides in-application contextual assistance, including recommendations, short feature and workflow videos and personalized learning paths and knowledge maps. CONNECT Advisor will increasingly leverage Azure-based machine learning, to further personalize its assistance for each Connected User.

LEAP Bridge Steel CONNECT Edition V17 Maintenance 2 contains enhancements and bug fixes.

The following enhancements and bug fixes are available in this release.

Enhancements

• Load Rating for Tub-Girders
• Shear Connector Design Check for Tub-Girders

 Bug Fixes

This release fixes the following issues:

• Error in calculating the load rating factors at the POI’s where live load creates both negative and positive flexure
• Error in analysis results, when FEM analysis is used, in case the direction of alignment is not N90 00 00E
• Incorrect calculation of slab self-weight and cover plate self-weight
• Minor graphical issues related to tub-girder models
• Incorrect report and graphics for lane load details

For the detailed release notes see the attached PDF file.

(Please visit the site to view this file)

LEAP Bridge Steel CONNECT Edition V17 Maintenance 2 contains enhancements and bug fixes.

The following enhancements and bug fixes are available in this release.

Enhancements

• Load Rating for Tub-Girders
• Shear Connector Design Check for Tub-Girders

 Bug Fixes

This release fixes the following issues:

• Error in calculating the load rating factors at the POI’s where live load creates both negative and positive flexure
• Error in analysis results, when FEM analysis is used, in case the direction of alignment is not N90 00 00E
• Incorrect calculation of slab self-weight and cover plate self-weight
• Minor graphical issues related to tub-girder models
• Incorrect report and graphics for lane load details

For the detailed release notes see the attached PDF file.

(Please visit the site to view this file)