Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Impact Tips & Tricks
Rev. 1.0
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 – Impact Interface .................................................................................................................................... 3
Toolboxes ................................................................................................................................................ 3
Toolbars .................................................................................................................................................. 4
When Customize mode is active: ............................................................................................................ 5
Exercise: Interface # 1: Create a custom Toolbox ................................................................................. 6
Exercise: Interface # 2: Customize the context Menus ....................................................................... 11
Appearances .............................................................................................................................................. 13
Appearances Defined ............................................................................................................................ 13
User Settings vs. Appearances .............................................................................................................. 13
Saving Appearances .............................................................................................................................. 14
Other settings saved in an Appearance ................................................................................................ 14
Colors .................................................................................................................................................... 14
Keyboard Shortcuts ............................................................................................................................... 15
Exercise: Interface # 3: Saving the interface changes to an Appearance ........................................... 17
Appearances Review ............................................................................................................................. 18
Chapter 2 – Blocks .............................................................................................................................................. 19
Defined .................................................................................................................................................. 19
Block Scope ........................................................................................................................................... 19
Block Insertions ..................................................................................................................................... 19
Layer Insertions ..................................................................................................................................... 20
Symbol Insertions .................................................................................................................................. 20
Block Creation ....................................................................................................................................... 20
Block Editing .......................................................................................................................................... 21
Block Saving .......................................................................................................................................... 21
Replacing a block insert with another ................................................................................................... 22
Block Purging ......................................................................................................................................... 22
Block Visibility Options .......................................................................................................................... 22
Block Nesting ......................................................................................................................................... 23
Useful Block Commands ....................................................................................................................... 24
Exercise: Blocks– 6 Sided Cake Box ...................................................................................................... 25
Chapter 3 – Selecting & Editing Geometry ......................................................................................................... 30
Kink a line .................................................................................................................................................. 30
Exercise – Kink a Line ........................................................................................................................... 30
Split ............................................................................................................................................................ 31
Exercise – Split ...................................................................................................................................... 31
Add Ticks .................................................................................................................................................... 32
Exercise – Add Ticks .............................................................................................................................. 34
Sample Nicks .............................................................................................................................................. 36
Exercise – Sample Nicks ....................................................................................................................... 37
Select Expression ....................................................................................................................................... 39
Exercise – Select Expressions ............................................................................................................... 40
Saved Visibilities ........................................................................................................................................ 42
Exercise – Saved Visibilities .................................................................................................................. 42
Nudging ..................................................................................................................................................... 47
Impact Tips & Tricks © Copyright 2010 Arden Software North America P a g e 2 | 47
Chapter 1 – Impact Interface
Impact provides many options for customizing the interface & environment. What’s more, the customizations
are user specific and follow your login from one machine to another within a network environment. By these
settings being user specific, each user can work in a way that makes sense to them without affecting other
users.
Impact allows customization of toolboxes, toolbars, menus, hotkeys, colors, cursor as well as many other
settings.
Toolboxes
Impact contains a number of Standard Toolboxes can be accessed under Window > Standard Toolboxes. These
toolboxes can be arranged on the interface in either a floating mode, or a docked mode.
Floating Mode – toolboxes “float” and can be freely moved around the screen. While this conceals
what is behind the toolbox, this mode is often used to place toolboxes outside of the main Impact
window. This mode is especially useful when using Impact with multiple monitors.
Docked Mode – toolboxes can be docked, or attached to the left, right, top or bottom of the drawing
canvas. This ensures that the drawing area is not concealed by the toolboxes.
Docking tricks
o Click the title bar of any toolbox to drag it to another location
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Drag on top of another toolbox to create a new tab. This allows you to consolidate a number
o
of toolboxes to the same interface area, thus minimizing the screen real estate used.
o While dragging a toolbox, hold the CTRL key to suppresses docking
o Right click on title bar to dock toolbox on Left, Right, Top or Bottom
o If the “Floatable” option in the toolbox context menu is unchecked, dragging a toolbox will be
disabled
o If the “Locked” option in the toolbox context menu is checked, dragging a toolbox will be
disabled
Toolbox Icons – in the upper right corner of the title bar in standard toolboxes are three icons.
Maximize/Minimize Close Toolbox
Pin to Canvas (vertical)/Auto‐hide (horizontal)
Note: the Close button will disappear when toolboxes are locked. Locking toolboxes prevents
inadvertent movement or closing of the toolboxes
Tabs (position and visibility)– some toolboxes, like the Impact Explorer and the Entity Inspector have a
tabbed interface. Using the context menus, you can control the position of the tabs, and in the case of the
Impact Explorer, which tabs are visible. Note: depending on where you right‐click will determine which
context menu is activated
Toolbars
Toolbars are sets of icons, menus and other items that make up the Impact interface. Toolbars are generally
organized into common tool sets. For example, all of the selection tools are in a single toolbar, as are the Trim
tools, Transform tools, etc. All toolbars can be customized with regards to adding new tools, or hiding existing
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tools. This allows you to only show the tools that you consistently utilize, and remove those tools that are not
used. This can simplify the interface, and allow more real estate for other useful tools.
In addition to the default toolbars that are available in Impact, users are able to create custom toolbars. This
allows tools from many different categories to be combined into a “favorites” toolbar.
To prevent accidental changes to toolbars, Impact must be in Customize mode. To activate customize mode,
right‐click on the on any toolbar and choose Customize from the context menu
When Customize mode is active:
A Customize window is displayed that contains three tabs:
1. Toolbars – this allows toolbars to be created, renamed, deleted or reset.
2. Commands – a listing if all Impact commands, listed by category that can be added to toolbars
or context menus
3. Options – miscellaneous options controlling the display and behavior of toolbars
A Context menu window is displayed that allows commands/menus to be added or removed to the 2D
and/or 3D context menus
All existing toolbars and menus can be edited – toolbar icons can be hidden and re‐ordered. New
commands can be added to existing toolbars
All commands are disabled from execution
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List boxes can be resized – if the width of a drop down list box is concealing part of the contents, you
can resize it in Customize mode. Click on the list box until a black border appears. Place the mouse
cursor over the edge and stretch it to the desired size
Tip: Customize mode is available in many Windows applications including Word, Excel, Outlook and others.
Exercise: Interface # 1: Create a custom Toolbox
This exercise will walk through the steps of creating a custom toolbox
1. Right‐click anywhere along the Impact menu bar at the top of the screen, and choose Customize from
the context menu. This will display a Customize window. ( Tip – you can right‐click on any toolbar to
access the Customize command)
2. Choose the tab labelled “Toolbars”, and click the ‘New’ button. Impact will ask for a Toolbar name;
name this ‘Favorites’ and click OK
3. A new toolbar will be created called Favorites. The name of the toobar appears in blue in the list
denoting it is a custom toolbar
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Favorites Toolbar
4. Choose the tab labelled ‘Commands’ to see a listing of all Impact command
5. Highlight the Line Tools in the Categories list on the left, and locate the ‘2 Points’ tool in the
commands list on the right
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6. Drag and drop 2 Points tool to your new toolbar
The + means Drag and Drop The X means no Drag and Drop, or
remove
7. Next, choose “New Items” in the Categories list on the left. This is at the very bottom of the list. Locate
the ‘New Menu’ tool in the commands list on the right.
8. Drag and drop the “New Menu” command to your ‘Favorites’ toolbar. This will create a drop‐down
menu that allows grouping of common commands, which can save valuable screen real estate
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9. Right‐click on the item named “New Menu” in your toolbar, and change the name of this menu to
“Rotate Commands”. After you type in the name press Enter. This will ensure the name is saved.
10. Drag the Transform > Rotate to the ‘Rotate Commands’ menu in the ‘Favorites’ toolbar
Tip: if you need to delete a command that has been added to your toolbar, simply drag and drop it on to the
Impact drawing canvas.
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11. Drag the 3D > Rotate to the ‘Rotate Commands’ menu in the ‘Favorites’ toolbar. (You can optionally
right‐click on the 3D Rotate command once it is in the new toolbox and rename it to 3D Rotate Object.
This just helps the clarity)
12. Drag the 3D > Rotate View to the ‘Rotate Commands’ menu in the ‘Favorites’ toolbar
13. Add any additional commands or menus to your custom toolbox
14. Close the Customize window when you are done
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Exercise: Interface # 2: Customize the context Menus
1. Right‐click on the Impact menu bar at the top of the screen, and choose Customize from the context
menu. This will display a Customize window
2. Next, you will see a floating toolbox on your screen named “Context Menus”. This menu holds the 2D
and 3D context menus for the drawing canvas. To add/remove a command to/from one of these
menus, use the same drag and drop method used to add commands to your custom toolbar.
Note: Commands listed in the 2D Canvas menu are displayed when you right‐click on any 2D layer such as a ONE_UP, MULTI_UP,
CONSTRUCTION or custom layer type. Commands listed in the 3D canvas are displayed when you right‐click on any 3D layer
3. To remove a command from the context menu, click on the 2D Canvas menu, and click on the
command named “Delete Last”. Drag it onto the drawing canvas.
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4. To add a command to the context menu, go to the Commands tab of the Customize window. Locate
the desired Category and Command. Drag and drop it into the 2D Canvas or 3D canvas menu. For this
exercise, click on the “Selection Tools” category and drag and drop the “Select by Palette” tool into the
2D canvas menu
5. Repeat the add/remove process for commands until you achieve the desired context menu for both 2D
and 3D. You can add menus to the context menus for grouping of similar commands. This is done in
the same manner as adding to a custom toolbox as discussed in the previous exercise.
6. Close the Customize window when complete
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Appearances
Appearances Defined
Appearances are a permanent method for capturing a desired interface, along with other environment settings.
Appearance Settings store the size and position of all the user‐interface components (toolbars, standard
toolboxes), and all customizations made to toolbars and the menus. In addition to the visual aspects,
Appearances also store language settings, unit of measurement, hotkeys, cursor settings, and a large number of
other settings.
Appearances are Master Tool Settings, so
there is no limit to the number that can be
created. Appearances can also be saved as
private settings so other users cannot view or
access it
Adding, changing and deleting Appearances
are controlled by user privileges within an
Impact database. Depending on your work
environment, an administrator may make
these changes for a user or user group.
Appearances can be activated by right‐clicking
on any menu bar, and choosing Appearance
from the context menu, and then choosing the
desired Appearance name.
Appearances can be managed using Windows > Appearance Manager
User Settings vs. Appearances
User settings are stored as settings files in the database or individual files in the OS. Each Impact user has their
own settings as to not interfere with other users. One of the benefits of this is that your settings follow you
when logging in from other machines. These files are overwritten each time Impact is closed. If these files
become corrupted, the only way to restore them is from a backup or copying from another user.
The settings file that holds the interface settings is named “EnvironSettings.ips”. As you make changes to
toolbars, toolboxes, hotkeys, etc., they are written automatically to this file when you exit Impact, or simply
reconnect to the database. They are restored next time you connect to the Impact database. However, if you
load an Appearance, it will write to “EnvironSettings.ips”, and your previous settings will be overwritten. If you
exit Impact, your previous settings are permanently lost. If you have not exited Impact or reconnected to the
database, you can reload your previous settings (as they were when you first connected to the database) by
choosing Appearance > Revert.
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Saving Appearances
Once you have customized the interface, this can be saved using Windows > Appearance Manager.
Appearances are permanently saved in Options > Master Tool Settings > Environment > Appearance Settings
Appearances are among the few Master Tool Settings that can be saved as a private setting. This means that no
other user can see/use this appearance. When saving an appearance, Impact will ask you if you would like to
make it a private setting.
Private Settings are denoted with an icon
Other settings saved in an Appearance
As previously mentioned, Appearances hold many other useful settings that make the Impact environment
more efficient and easier to use. This section will discuss Colors and Keyboard shortcuts
Colors
Impact has a default set of colors that is globally deployed to all users by the Impact administrator. However,
Impact allows privileged users to override colors for many of the attributes within Impact.
A common color option to change is the background color. Impact will generate contrasting colors to ensure
palettes of the same color as the background do not appear invisible.
To change a color, double‐click on the name of the color to change. For example, “Transform Tool Markers”.
Pick the new color and click OK. Impact will display the color that has been deployed to the database in the left
column, and display the user overridden color in the right column.
Palette colors and line patterns within Impact cannot be changed per user. These are global for all users to
prevent costly errors in manufacturing due to misinterpretation of colors.
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Keyboard Shortcuts
Another useful setting is Keyboard shortcuts. This allows you to define hotkeys that will quickly activate
commands. Keyboard shortcuts can be a single letter or number (although single numbers are not
recommended), Function keys (F1‐F12), or any of these prefixed with any combination of the SHIFT, CTRL or ALT
keys. The following keyboard shortcuts are all valid.
CTRL+D SHIFT+ALT+D CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+D
ALT+D D F4
SHIFT+D CTRL+ALT+D CTRL+F4
Tip: it is best to not reassign keyboard shortcuts that are standard between most Windows applications like
Cut (CTRL+X), Copy (CTRL+C), Paste (CTRL+V), New (CTRL+N), Save (CTRL+S), etc.
To assign a keyboard shortcut, go to Windows > Appearance Manager & simply follow the four steps detailed in
the figure below.
You will be warned if you try to re‐assign standard Windows hotkeys (such as Ctrl+C for Copy), or any other
keyboard shortcuts currently assigned to other Impact tools. If you choose to assign a shortcut when it is
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assigned to another tool, Impact will automatically remove the assignment on the other tool to prevent
conflicts.
Tip: a command can have multiple keyboard shortcuts if desired
Keyboard shortcuts can be assigned to most any Impact tool. An added benefit is that Impact allows you to
assign keyboard shortcuts to custom items you create. The following is a summary of custom items that can be
assigned to a shortcut:
Database Queries Help Files Reports (External) Value Mappings
Database Windows Standard Toolboxes Report Templates Macros/Toolbar Scripts
It can be a real time saver to assign a keyboard shortcut to a particular search (query) or a specific Report
Template (formerly known as Border Plots). The custom items that can be assigned keyboard shortcuts are
located at the bottom of the Categories list, and they are enclosed by “<>”
It is possible to assign a hotkey to cycle through different tool modes. Line Multiple is a good example where it
is possible to assign a key to cycle through “2 Pt. Arc”, “2 Pt. Line”, “3 Pt. Arc” and “Arc StartEndRadius”. This is
assigned under the Category “General Tools”, and the command is named “General Cycle Entry Mode”
It is also possible to set individual shortcuts for each individual mode of a tool. Edit > Transform > Mirror is a
good example where it is possible to assign a key for each of the mirror modes: “About Axis”, “About X”, “About
Y” and “About Entity”
You can delete keyboard shortcut assignments using the Remove button. First ensure you have highlighted the
tool name and if it has more than one hotkey assignment, highlight the one you want to delete.
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Exercise: Interface # 3: Saving the interface changes to an Appearance
1. Once all of the desired customizations are complete, save the Appearance by choosing Windows >
Appearance Manager. In this exercise we will create a brand new Appearance. With none of the
existing Appearances selected, click the Save button.
2. A new “Appearance Settings” window will appear. Make sure the name for this setting says “Untitled”.
If not, close this window and repeat step 1.
Tip: If you highlight an existing Appearance before clicking Save, you will overwrite this Appearance.
This may be desired result, but use caution that you do not overwrite the incorrect setting.
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3. Change the name of the Appearance from ‘Untitled’ to ‘Impact’ and click OK to save the Appearance.
You will be asked if you want to save this as a private setting. Answer No. This will make this
appearance available to all other users of the database within a network environment. If you answer
Yes, it will be visible only to your login.
4. To load your Appearance in the future, go to Window > Appearance Manager. Highlight the desired
appearance and click the Load button.
Tip: before customizing and saving an appearance that will overwrite an existing appearance, make sure the
correct appearance is loaded first. This will prevent any loss of data.
Appearances Review
Appearances are a permanent method for capturing a desired interface
Appearances are saved under Options > Master Tool Settings > Environment > Appearance Settings
Appearances can be made private, which makes them hidden from other users
The Revert command restores the appearance that was active when last connected to the database
The Reset command will reset toolboxes and toolbars back to an Impact default
Use Window > Appearance Manager to Load, Change, Save, Reset or Revert an Appearance
Hotkeys can be assigned while changing/saving an Appearance. They can also be assigned under
Options > Environment > Environment > Keyboard
Appearances also hold other interface settings like units, language, cursor settings, colors and other
user preferences
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Chapter 2 – Blocks
Defined
A block is a uniquely named group of entities which belong to a single feature in a drawing. Once grouped in a
block, the entities can be more easily manipulated together. When a block is modified, all changes propagate to
other insertions of that block
The use of blocks means that a design feature can be:
• given a meaningful name like “Dust Flap”, “Window Cut‐out” or “Registration Marks”
• added & removed very quickly to another part of the drawing
• modified once and the modifications propagated automatically throughout the drawing (if desired)
• copied easily into other drawings
Blocks – reusable components within the same drawing
Layers – designs and/or components within the same drawing
Symbols – reusable components across many drawings
Block Scope
Scope defines the visibility and use of an object
The scope of a block is the layer of the project where it was created. If a block is copied from one layer
to another, it will create a new block and append an “_1” to the name.
The scope of a layer is the project where it was created (with the exception of master layers)
The scope of a symbol is the entire database
It is important to distinguish between a block and a block insertion.
A block is a group of entities but it is not itself an entity
A block insertion is an entity which references a block. A block insertion also contains information
about its position and size.
Block Insertions
A block can be inserted into a drawing layer several times ‐ so several block insertions will refer back to
a single block
Block insertions may be manipulated ‐ selected, moved,
deleted ‐ in the same way as other entities
Even though a block insertion references a block, each
insertion can have a unique size, position, rotation and
mirroring attribute
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Layer Insertions
Layers also behave like blocks (because they are in fact blocks), with one layer inserted into another
(for example a one‐up layer inserted multiple times into a multi‐up layout). Use Block > Insert Drawing
Layers to create such insertions. Once created, you can move into these layer insertions much as you
would with blocks.
Symbol Insertions
Symbols are a special type of block with global attributes
They can be inserted into many different projects, and each project keeps track of the version of the
symbol
You can update a symbol in an open project to the latest version using Utilities > Maintenance >
Update Project Items
Block Creation
Blocks can be created from the Impact interface by using one of two methods:
Choose Block > New from the menu
Choose New from the context menu of the Block Inspector
The contents (data set) of a block can be defined using one of four methods.
1. Selected Data – the entities that are selected when the Block > New command is executed will make
up the block
2. Rectangular Area – once the OK button is pressed, you will be prompted to draw a rectangle around
the desired entities to include them in the new block
3. Circular Area ‐ once the OK button is pressed, you will be prompted to draw a circle around the
desired entities to include them in the new block
4. Empty Block – this will create a block that is empty, and in edit mode. Entities must be created before
you can save this block
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When creating a block, it is important to set the origin (basepoint) of the block to a point that may snap to
another point when being inserted. When a block is inserted, the handle point that is attached to the cursor is
the block origin.
Block Editing
Impact uses the concept of the current block. If you want to modify the entities within a block, you must first
make the block current. This places a block into Edit mode.
To make a block current, or to edit it, use one of the following methods:
1. Use Block > Quick Change and click on the desired block to edit
2. Right‐click on a specific block in the Block Inspector and choose Make Block Current
3. You can also use Block > Change Current, but it is quicker to use one of the two previous methods
Blue denotes a normal block (individual entities cannot be selected)
Red denotes the block is being edited, and individual entities within the block can be
manipulated
Gray denotes that a block is referenced by project, but currently not inserted into a layer.
This also means the block is ready for purging
Block Saving
After editing a block, the block needs to be saved. Use Block > Save Current to save changes to a block. The
Save Current command will display a dialog with three options. These same options are available from the
context menu of the Block Inspector.
1. Ignore any changes made to this block – does not save any changes
2. Save changes and update all blocks – will save the changes made, and this will also update all other
blocks of the same name
3. Create a new block for these changes – you can specify a new unique name (in the project) and a new
block will be created that contains the changes
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Replacing a block insert with another
It is possible to replace one or more insertions of a block with another. Since a block insert stores attributes like
its insertion position (X and Y), scale, angle and mirror state, another block insert can be inserted in its place.
When this is done, the new block inherits the attributes of the original block insert. This feature is intended to
be used when 2 or more blocks have the same size and structure attributes. An example of this would be a
friction dust flap and a slit lock dust flap.
To switch one block insert with another:
Make sure there are at least two different
blocks available to the layer
Next, make sure one or more insertions in
the layer are selected
Using the Block Insert tab of the Entity
Inspector, click the Name drop down list
and choose the new insert you wish to use
to replace the existing insert.
Block Purging
Block insertions are deleted like any other entity,
except they leave a reference to the block in the
project. A block can exist even if there are no longer
any block insertions which refer to it. Blocks can only
be deleted by purging them.
To purge a block, choose “Block > Purge…” or choose
“Purge Unreferenced” from the context menu of the
Block Inspector (in the Impact Explorer). Individual
blocks can be purged by checking them, or all blocks
can be purged using the “Purge All” option
Block Visibility Options
Impact allows customization of how blocks and inserts are displayed. The visibility of blocks and insertions can
be configured using View > Visibility > Block Appearance.
Blocks
Extents Rectangle ‐ this will place a
rectangle around all entities in the
current block
Non‐Current Special – causes all
items NOT in the current block to be
displayed as grayed out/disabled.
This is to help emphasize the entities
that are in the block being edited.
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Inserts
Block Insert Origins – causes the origin (insertion point) of blocks to be shown with an X‐axis/Y‐axis
marker
o Current Block Only – only display the origin for the current block only
o Block Name – displays the name of the block under origin/insertion point. The number of
pixels controls the size of the text.
Block Nesting
Blocks can be nested, meaning that a block itself can contain blocks (often referred to as sub‐blocks). You can
use the Block Inspector of the Impact Explorer to view the hierarchy of blocks.
Every block insertion has a parent block ‐ this is the block (or layer) in which the block was inserted. If you move
from a block to its parent, and then to the parent’s parent, and so on, you will eventually reach the drawing
layer.
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Useful Block Commands
Block > New – used to create new blocks within a layer
Block > Rename – renames a block
Block > Quick Change – pick an existing block to place into edit mode
Block > Blocks to Layers – send the block to its own layer for simpler editing.
Block > Move Block Origin – change the origin of the desired block
Block >Purge – deletes the reference to a block(s) that are a part of the project, but not currently
inserted
View > Block Extents will zoom to the extents of any block in edit mode
View > Visibility > Block Appearance – sets visibility parameters for both blocks and inserts
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Exercise: Blocks– 6 Sided Cake Box
1. Open ‘Block Example – 1 side Cakebox’ (figure 1)
• Choose File > Open > Project
• Change the Find drop‐down to ‘Project Name’
• Type cake and click the Find Now button
• Open ‘Block Example – 1 side Cakebox’
2. Create a new block
• Choose Edit > Select All
• Choose Block > New
• Name the block ‘1 Side’
• Set the basepoint (origin) to Lower Left
• Set the data set to Selected Data
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• Click OK to create the block
3. Create a six sided box (figure 2)
• Select the block using Select Drag
• Choose Edit > Transform > Drag
• Scale = 1
◦
• Rotate = 60
• About X = Unchecked
• About Y = Unchecked
• Leave Original = Checked
• Selection = Select New
• Repeat From = Checked
• Pick the lower right corner of the flap as the first ❶ click of the Drag (see diagram below)
• Pick the lower left corner of the flap as the second ❷click of the Drag (see diagram below)
1
2
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• Continue picking points on the copies until you have 6 connected sides as shown below. The
Block Inspector of the Impact Explorer should show that there are six inserts of the block
named “1 Side”
4. Make the block current
• Choose Block > Quick Change and click on the top most flap labeled ❶ (note: the other
blocks should show as disabled (grayed out) when in Block edit mode)
1
Tip: If when editing a block, other blocks do not appear grayed out, then make sure View > Visibility > Block
Appearance > Non‐Current Special is checked
Tip: Use View > Block Extents to zoom to the overall extents of just the block being edited.
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5. Add a flap to the block (figure 3)
• Choose Draw > Multiple Lines and Arcs
• Snap to the right end point of the bottom crease line of the rollover (labeled ❶)
• Choose Draw > Lock > Horizontal, and draw the line to the left and snap to the point labeled
❷, and then click the point labeled ❷ again to draw the ver cal line
1
2
Red icon denotes
block is in Edit mode
• change the left hand vertical Cut line to a Crease
Change this line
to a Crease
◦
• Optional: Set the fold angle of the Crease line to 60 using the Entity Inspector
• Choose Block > Save Current to save the block. Notice the newly added flap has propagated to
all other blocks inserts
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6. Finished design (figure 4)
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Chapter 3 – Selecting & Editing Geometry
Impact includes an abundant set of CAD tools in a variety of categories. Many of these tools have redundant
functionality which provides options for common tasks in design. This section focuses on the tools that are
often neglected in Impact, yet provide very useful functionality.
Kink a line
Edit > Transform > Kink a Line
The Kink a Line tool allows you to kink a line resulting in two joined entities between the original start and end
points of the original entity. The tool creates an additional point on the “kinked” line which can then be
snapped to another point on an entity.
Exercise – Kink a Line
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “1. Kink a
Line”
2. Zoom in to the dust flap. Use the Kink a line tool to change the style of this dust flap
3. Choose Edit > Transform > Kink a Line
4. Pick the first point on the angled line at the approximate midpoint, labelled ❶, and snap it down at
point ❷. This will create the shoulder of the dust flap
1
5. Next, pick the approximate midpoint of the angled line again, labelled ❶, and snap it down at point
❷.
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1
Split
Edit > Trim > Split
This tool is used to split up one or more entities into sections of equal length. If you wish to split one entity, this
does not need to be selected first, if you require more than one entity to be split simultaneously, you must
select them first, using any of the selection methods.
In the Edit bar, enter the number of sections you want to split the selected entities up into in the Number of
sections spin box. Then click on a single entity to split or press All Selected, to split all selected entities into
sections of equal length. The palettes and properties of the split entities will be the same as the original entity.
The split command has no affect on blocks
Exercise – Split
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “2. Split”
2. Choose Edit > Trim > Split
3. Set the ‘Number of sections’ in the edit bar to 4
4. Click on the circle. You will see markers appear indicating the entity has been split
5. Select the circle using any of the selection tools to verify the split
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Add Ticks
Add Ticks is a tool for adding cross‐hairs, register marks or center lines to a drawing layer.
By default, ticks are placed relative to the visible Cut type extents. This behavior can be altered by first selecting
the desired geometry using any of the Selection tools and then choosing the “Use Selection Extents” option in
the Add Ticks window.
There are four modes/types of ticks
1. Center Lines – this mode will place either center lines, a cross hair, a circle or a specified symbol at the
center of the cut or selected extents.
2. Corner Marks ‐ this mode will place a cross hair, a circle or a specified symbol at the center top, center
bottom, center left and center right of the cut or selected extents. There are other various options for
configuring the visual aspects and location of the corner marks
3. Center Ticks ‐ this mode will place a cross hair, a circle or a specified symbol at the corner of the cut or
selected extents. There are other various options for configuring the visual aspects and location of the
corner marks
4. Registration Marks – This is an interactive mode for manually placing a specified symbol, cross hair, or
circle.
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For each of these modes, you can specify the palette used for drawing the tick geometry. Ticks can optionally be
placed into block. You can check this in the Block Inspector of the Impact Explorer. This allows all of the ticks to
be quickly selected and deleted.
When running the Add Ticks tool, you can interactively specify
which options are executed on the drawing. If the selected ‘Tick’
setting has multiple modes selected, these options will be
checked. You can check/uncheck any available options as an
override to the tool. This will only affect a single execution of
the tool. If an option is grayed out, it means that option has not
been enabled in the ‘Tick’ setting.
All Tick settings can be overridden by double‐clicking the settings
name. This will allow complete flexibility for modifying all
individual aspects of the ticks.
Ticks are permanently saved in Options > Master Tool Settings > General Tools > Ticks
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Exercise – Add Ticks
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “3. Add
Ticks”
2. Go to Draw > Add Ticks. The ‘Add Ticks’ dialog will be displayed
3. Choose the setting named “Center Lines ‐ Extents” and click the Create button
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4. Next, choose the setting named “Corner Marks”. Uncheck the option labeled “Place center line
geometry” since this was done in step three. Click the Create button
5. Next, choose the setting named “Registration Symbol ‐ Interactive”. Click on the drawing to
interactively place the registration marks. Freeform place about six of this marks around the drawing
Try the Add Ticks tool on other drawings and experiment with the different settings. Remember that
you can double‐click on the settings name while running the tool to override any of the parameters.
Tip: because all four modes of Add Ticks can be configured to use a symbol, you can setup different
settings to include custom symbols to extend the functionality of the tool.
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Sample Nicks
This tool allows you to add nick symbols at specified points, and Impact will leave gaps when the sample is cut
on your sample maker. The benefit of the tool is that nicks can be simulated on the sample makers while there
is no destruction of the actual CAD geometry.
Configuration of the Sample Nicks tool
The symbols utilized by the tool are defined in Options > Environment > Database Operation,
Symbols: Nick symbol group. This portion may be configured by your Impact administrator
Only symbols in the root of the folder will be recognized. Sub‐folders are not supported
The insertion point for each nick is the origin point of the symbol, and is usually at the mid point
The size of the nick is defined by the name of the symbol. For example, a symbol named Nick .014” will
leave a gap of .014 inches where a symbol named Nick .6mm will leave a .6mm gap. Always specify a
unit of measurement in the name to avoid ambiguity when working with different units. A good
starting point for the nick size is the material thickness
The post‐processor must be configured to “Output Sample Nicks”
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The output sample nicks option can be set as a default within specific post‐processors or the option can
be overridden at the time the plot command is executed.
Exercise – Sample Nicks
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “4. Sample
Nicks”. We will add sample nicks to the internal window
2. Go to Draw > Sample Nicks. In the edit bar, set the options as follows:
Snapped Point
Symbol = Nick .014”
Number = 2
Spacing = 1”
Double Placement = checked
Offset = 0”
Auto‐infer = checked
3. Click on the mid‐point (using Smart snap) of the top horizontal line. This should place two nick symbols
once inch apart
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4. Click on the bottom horizontal line using the same settings. The window should look like the following:
5. While still in the sample nicks tool, change the number to 4. Leave the other settings as they are.
6. Click the left vertical line at the mid‐point, followed by the right vertical line at the mid‐point. The
window should now look like the following:
7. Now we are ready to cut a sample to see the results of the sample nicks. Choose File > Plot. Choose
the “Gerber M3000 Sample Maker machine” and click the Plot button.
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8. A preview of the plot will be generated on the screen. Zoom into an area where a sample nick was
placed to view the gaps.
Select Expression
Select Expressions are used to define an expression to select or deselect entities based on different attributes
like palette, entity type, size, etc.
The criteria specified to build a select expression can be simple, single expression, or can contain multiple
criteria using combinations of the AND, NOT and OR operator.
The command is executed from Edit > Select > Select Expression. On activating the tool, the Select Expression
dialog box is displayed. The selection expression may be built up using the Qualifier and Operator pull‐down
menus of the dialog box. As items are chosen from these menus, the criterion is added to the main area of the
dialog box. Once the expression has been created:
Add ‐ will select all entities to which the selection
expression is applicable (in other words, add them
to the selection set); this leaves any previously
selected entities unchanged.
Subtract ‐ will deselect all entities to which the
selection expression is applicable (in other words,
subtract them from the selection set); this leaves
any previously unselected entities unchanged.
Retain ‐ will deselect any entities to which the
selection expression is not applicable; this leaves any previously unselected entities unchanged.
Close ‐ will close the select expression and cancel the tool.
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Details such as the entity count of the selected result set can be viewed using the Common tab of the Entity
Inspector
Select Expressions are permanently saved in Options > Master Tool Settings > Environment > Select
Expressions. Saved select expressions appear in the Edit bar when the Select Drag (or similar) selection tools are
active
Tip: While not a part of Select Expressions, the Select by Example scripts in the Impact Tips & Tricks
appearance can be used to select items with similar attributes simply by clicking an entity in the drawing
Exercise – Select Expressions
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “5. Select
Expressions”.
2. Choose Edit > Select > Select Expression
3. Choose Qualifier > Type from the Select Expression window
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4. From the list of entity types, choose Line and CTRL click Arc. Move these from the left column o the
right column by choosing to the right and press OK
5. From the Qualifier pull‐down list, select Size. Enter .25” in for the maximum length and click OK
6. The select expression should show: ((Type == Line) Or (Type == Arc)) and (Locus Length <=
1/4")
7. Click the Save button to permanently save this expression for future use. Name the setting “Small
lines and arcs” and click OK
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8. Click the Add button to apply the select expression to the current layer. You should see a number of
entities selected.
9. Choose the Common tab of the Entity Inspector for an overview of selected items
Saved Visibilities
Saved Visibilities are a method for collectively enabling or disabling a group of visibility settings. You can define
the rules of a saved visibility by including items based on a number of attributes like palette, palette type,
layers, & block insertions. Saved visibilities can include property based settings like bridging, view,
manufacturing information, etc. Once a saved visibility has been defined, it can be given a logical name for
quick and easy recall in the future.
Exercise – Saved Visibilities
1. Open the project named “Selecting and Editing Geometry” and change to the layer named “6. Saved
Visibility”
2. Go to the Visibility tab of the Impact Explorer. Click the palettes icon in the lower left corner.
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3. Suppose you want to view just the box geometry only. To do this we need to turn off all palettes except
Cut and Crease. The drawing should look like the following diagram.
4. We still need to turn off the graphics. To do this, go to View > Visibility toggles and click on Graphics to
remove the check mark. The drawing will now only show the box geometry.
This took a number of steps to turn off everything in the simple example. It could become more
tedious if there are many attributes which need to be switched on or off. To make this process more
efficient and consistent, we can use saved visibilities to automate the process.
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5. Choose the Saved Visibilities button in the lower right of the Visibility tab. Click the option labelled
Everything. This drawing should change to display all entities and attributes as set by default.
6. Next click the option labelled Print Card. This will turn the OFF the panel dimensions and die text
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7. Next click the option labelled CAD Drawing. This will turn OFF the graphics, overall dimensions and
registration marks. It will also turn ON the panel dimensions.
8. Finally, click the option labelled Die. This will apply the most drastic transformation as will change from
Outside/Print view to Inside/Die view. It will also turn OFF the panel dimensions and turn ON the Die
text and bridges.
9. Switch back to the Everything saved visibility once you are done
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There are two ways to save a Saved Visibility setting:
1. Go to Options > Master Tool Settings > Environment > Saved Visibilities and click ADD
2. As you work in a drawing, you can manually set all of the desired visibility settings. Once the drawing is
in a state to keep, click the Save button in the lower right corner of the Visibility tab.
On the Actions tab of the Saved Visibility window, you can specify one of three options for each of the
visibility actions for Palettes, Palette Types, Layers, Block Inserts and Settings:
1. Leave unchanged – do not make any changes
2. Restore saved – restore the visibility as it is saved
3. All visible – make everything visible
Tip: when creating or modifying saved visibilities, it is important to test the settings thoroughly to ensure
nothing is being left out for a given setting.
Saved visibilities work especially well within an organization where different departments access the same
drawings, yet the views they need are different. Let’s say there are three departments:
1. Design – they would use the CAD Drawing saved visibility
2. Diemaking– they would use the Die saved visibility
3. Graphics – they would use the Print Card saved visibility
When a drawing is saved, Impact saves all visibility settings in their current state. This may not be the desirable
view for another user. Rather than users from each group having to manually invoke the saved visibility that is
applicable, Impact can do this automatically based on the user group a user belongs to. Options > Environment
> Database Operation > Opening Projects has an option called “Activate the following saved visibility setting”
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Nudging
Nudging allows selected entities to be moved using any of the four arrow keys using three different increments.
Nudging is configured in Draw > Snap > User Settings and three different increments can be configured to be
used with just the arrow keys, or in combination with the CTRL or SHIFT keys.
By configuring these tools accordingly, this can be a huge timesaver when moving entities as you do not need to
activate one of the transform tools.
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