IvanCyr Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Good day, I received a plan set in metric while working with an interior decorator. I completed the plan in Metric. The decorator started her work using an imperial plan. I would like to import her information into my metric plan (or even the other way around if I have to). Can this be done? I looked up CA help file 00024 "Displaying Metric and Imperial Units on a Single Dimension Line" but this doesn't help when the file imports at what looks to be 2.54 times the size. Any workarounds avail from the gurus?? Thanks, Ivan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Transform and Replicate Resize Factor: .3937 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 28, 2016 Author Share Posted September 28, 2016 Ok...that is obvious for one object. I've got a couple thousand or more....transform replicate will only offer move those items. I'm thinking of an export import, or copy paste in place idea. The copy paste and place and move to a known point works but the scale is completely out....likely 2.54 for cm per inch. Any other ideas?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Sorry but I guess I have only used that method successfully with cad. Is there a certain classification of objects that you would like to import? Anything you can put into the Library will be automatically converted so there has to be a way to do this. It is just math and computers are good at that. I will keep thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 28, 2016 Author Share Posted September 28, 2016 I am going to try to see if I could at least import the entire information by layer and then floor and resize....a ton of work but faster than redoing everything.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Hmmm, you would think this could be done with one-click ?? display all metric or display all imperial ??? Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 28, 2016 Author Share Posted September 28, 2016 Yeah....high hopes for transform replicate by layer....but NOPE.....I was only offered to translate the entire selection. Back to the drawing board.... Lew, I like your idea....one click. Just tell me WHERE!! Lew, you were a great inspiration to me a few years ago when I got started in all this. Take a moment and check out where I'm at today. You'll need this code to access the page "769" .... but if you're interested click on the link below, the tours and the videos near the bottom are all modelled in chief. The material mapping is also defined in chief and then "improved" but it all starts there. http://www.inteck3d.com/dialogdesign Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Ivan: seriously ??? - you are light years beyond me .... I love that kitchen transformation animation wow if only I could even come close to doing stuff like that Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRAWZILLA Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 You know that the dimension tool has a second level so you can have imperial and metric on the same dimension line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dshall Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 You know that the dimension tool has a second level so you can have imperial and metric on the same dimension line. That is what I was thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 These things should be directly transferable but the thing that seems to be a problem is that they are not both drawn on a 1:1 scale. You can cheat in an Imperial or Metric plan file and adjust your Unit Conversions such that things are drawn the same size but this still does not make them transferable even if it is all planned out ahead of time which it never is. You could combine them in Layout but that does not give you a working plan file. This seems to have been done intentionally but I do not know why it would be necessary. I think there needs to be a solution to this problem since we have been living with both systems used interchangeably for almost 40 years now with no end in the foreseeable future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 they are not both drawn on a 1:1 scale Chopsaw: I don't understand this, please explain a wall should have the same length whether expressed in metric or imperial Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Perry/Scott: the 2nd display would be fine for a line or two but to do it for an entire plan would be a PITA Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard_Morrison Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 I would have the decorator send you a DWG file. When you import it, you are given the option to state the original units it was drawn in. You won't get 3D Chief objects, of course, but maybe 2D is enough? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRAWZILLA Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 Perry/Scott: the 2nd display would be fine for a line or two but to do it for an entire plan would be a PITA Lew I disagree, it would look fine as long as the dim size isn't too large. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 they are not both drawn on a 1:1 scale Chopsaw: I don't understand this, please explain a wall should have the same length whether expressed in metric or imperial Lew Lew, I do not understand this either but if you draw a 1 Meter long wall in a Metric plan and import it directly into and Imperial plan file it will not be 1 Meter long or even 3.281 Feet but for some reason it is 8.333 Feet which is ironically 2.54 times larger than it should be. However if you draw a 60 cm cabinet in a Metric Plan and stick it into your Library and take it back out and insert into an Imperial plan it maintains it's size as 60 cm or 24 inches. It seems to be a scaling issue but I just do not know the software well enough to beat it or if it is even possible to do the way it is set up. Keeping the goal of maintaining a live file as I believe this is the objective of the OP. There are several workarounds that could work if a live file is not required or if transfer between files is not required then an Imperial Plan can be made to display as Metric or a Metric Plan can be made to display as Imperial. Chopsaw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 29, 2016 Author Share Posted September 29, 2016 Well there it is....2.54. There are 2.54cm in one inch. The issue isn't the dimensioning...I already have both displayed. This issue is that I created a timber frame home using a metric template because the interior decorator provided me that. She wasn't comfortable creating it. She created, in an imperial plan, a close facsimile of the interior. Now we have two plans....one accurate one in metric, and one pretty close one in imperial (but fine to import TVs, tables, and knives and forks and million other things....) I just want to import her imperial plan decor into my metric plan house.... As Chopsaw mentioned, you can place the item into the library and it maintains its proper size regardless of initial conditions and you can import it back in to either plan....however, it now becomes "set in stone" and will no longer be editable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 29, 2016 Author Share Posted September 29, 2016 Hey Lew, Well, I'm glad you liked it. With the quality of my work people kept asking me if I could create one of those animated changes like they do on TV....I said sure but it would take a bit of work. These TV guys have million dollar budgets and have huge render farms to produce the product....so I just settled in to create a 15 second virtual kitchen swap for a FB ad campaign. Sheesh,....after two weeks, I had to turn it off....I had WAY too many calls come in. Had I taken all the work, I could farm out the work and put every one on the forum here into overtime!! LOL Those actual tiles were just beautiful....over a ton each, and to capture the essence of the material in high definition and render it in animation was very successful....even the manager of the warehouse was speechless....he had no idea one could do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 Ivan, Could you post a couple of "set in stone" library items for us to examine or if they are from Chief maybe tell us some specifics. This could be a separate issue. Not doubting you just curious and want to help and learn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 29, 2016 Author Share Posted September 29, 2016 Hi Chopsaw....you're from the "Great White North"....are you further north than Edmonton? I now reside near Montreal....great weather....bad taxes... "Set in stone" library items would simply be, for example, a 3ds or dae export into a file and then an import back into the library. You scale them once when importing them into the library. They then can be used in either metric or imperial plans. You can scale them to what you want to "fit" but the individual items will no longer be editable. So, in review, the item( s) originate as CA, but when you import it back into the library, it really becomes like any other object you might import. I hope this clarifies the work flow and sheds some light into your request above. I would love to get some help and solve this issue and learn at the same time!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lbuttery Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 Chopsaw; thanks for the clarification just don't understand why Chief can't easily convert from metric to imperial etc ??? it should be "easy-peasy" Lew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chopsaw Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 Ivan, Having some success group selecting multiple decorating items, furniture, plants, rugs etc.. and then creating an architectural block and immediately adding to library and while the library block is still selected switch to your other open plan and insert. No need to name block or even reselect from library, scale is converted and everything seems to stay mostly intact and oriented. Potentially this could work for an entire room or more if you are bold. Explode the block and adjust and edit in new plan as necessary. If this does not make sense I can talk to you tomorrow. I would like to understand your library issues. Chopsaw P.S. If you combine this method with your layers idea you previously mentioned it could be reasonably effective. As Scott says have you talked to tech? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dshall Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 This sounds like a bug. Did anybody report this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 29, 2016 Author Share Posted September 29, 2016 Hey Chopsaw, I talked to tech a couple days ago and I don't actually think they understood the issue....they pointed me to item I mentioned in my first post; item 00024 regarding metric and imperial dimensions in plans. Perhaps I'll have to discuss the issue again and ensure we understand each other....I get back to the forum with an answer. Might be a while....gotta hot date booked for a week! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IvanCyr Posted September 30, 2016 Author Share Posted September 30, 2016 Well, I haven't left yet..... I received a response from CA technical support. Their reply is pasted below. Chopsaw, it looks like you're on the right track.... "Two things come to mind. You can get walls, doors and windows by exporting to a DWG file, then changing plans and importing that DWG file into the other plan. You can use the CAD to walls tool to convert the CAD lines into walls, doors and windows. The other thing that came to mind regarding the use of the User Catalog, when you place in the new plan, you should be able to use the Explode Block tool to return the items to separate symbols. Normally when items are blocked and added to the library, they can be un-blocked when placed in a plan. That sounds like it should work.The general answer I get when I ask about converting a metric plan to imperial or visa versa is that it is usually easier to re-draw the plan." Back to dreaming of dates.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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