9

14 Chapter 10: Precision and Drawing Aids
locking a tape measure to a set length. You can
position the tape object and snap to its ends.
Thepyramidiconisthetapehelperobject;thecubeisthe
helper object’s target.
• To display length and angle settings, select only
thetapehelperobject(thepyramidicon).
• To move the entire tape including its target (the
cube icon), select the connecting line.
Two sets of World Space Angles give you current
readoutstothethreeworldaxes(X,Y,Z)andthe
three world planes (XY, YZ, ZX).
Tip: Whenmeasuringwithprecision,itishelpful
tousesnapstoforcetheendsofthetapeobjectto
exact locations. If there are no specific points to
snap to, you can use dummy or point helpers to
set points.
To measure with a tape helper using snaps:
1.
Locate points in the scene to which you can
snap to accurately make a measurement. If no
points like this exist, create point objects (page
2–23) at measurement extremes.
2. Choose3DfromtheSnapToggleflyout.
3. Right-click the Snap Toggle button to display
the Grid and Snap Settings dialog. On the
Snaps tab, set the snap type to the type you will
use for measurement. For example, if you are
going to use point objects for measurement,
checkthePivotoptionsoyoucansnaptothe
point objects’ pivot points. Close the dialog.
4. On the Create panel, click the Helpers
button, then click Tape. Move the cursor over
the first measurement point until the snap
cursor appears, then click and drag to the other
measurement point.
5. Read the length of the tape on the Parameters
rollout.
Protractor
The Protractor helper (page 2–26) measures the
angle between pivot points of two objects and the
protractor object.
As with the tape helper, point objects and snap
tools can be used to aid in precise measurement
of angles.
To measure an angle with a protractor:
1.
On the Create panel, c
lick the Helpers
button, then click Protractor. Click in a
view port to place the protractor object.
2. On the Parameters rollout, click Pick Object 1
and select an objec
t in your scene. The name
of the selected o bject appears above the pick
button. A line connects the protractor to the
center of the obj
ect.
3. Click Pick Object
2 and pick a second object.
The angle between the protractor and the two
objects appears on the rollout.
4. To move either object while watching the Angle
readout, turn o
nthePinStackbuttoninthe
Modifier Stack rollout. This locks the stack to
the Protractor’s Parameters rollout.
Compass
The Compass helper (page 2–27) establishes an
orientation for your scene. You create this object
with a single c
lick and drag to define the radius,
usually in a Perspec tive or Top view. On its
parameters rollout, you can adjust the apparent