Cabinet Plan View with Construction Details

[Csecr0123]

The ability of Chief Architect is phenomenal and the flexibility makes rework so seamless and easy to modify. With this idea, I am asking the question to whether or not the cabinet boxes can be shown for the construction portion of this in one form or fashion without being a huge manual labor intensive process? See the photo I grabbed from a quick google search. I am after the box with the side, back and front panels showing their thickness rather than only having the default outside box that Chief Architect has? 

 

One solution I would have is to create a symbol or possibly a generic cad block that's resizeable I can overlay on top of the cabinets when I am in the plan view? My client is taking these drawings to a cabinet shop and they like seeing the boxes as shown. Not sure why, but can only do so much.

 

[DBCooper]

I don't think there is an easy way to create a plan view like this automatically. 

 

You can turn on "show closed doors/drawers" in the "general cabinet defaults" but even this won't show you the box sides.  For now, you could create a plan view that shows the outlines of the boxes and then convert it into a cad detail where you could then manually add the box insides as cad.

 

BTW, a cross section view will show you most of the cabinet details.  It would be great if you could create a top down floor overview as a vector view and then use the cross section slider to show a horizontal cross section.

 

The other option is to just not show these details.  Unless you are spec'ing out some really custom cabinets, I'm pretty sure the cabinet shop will know how to build the boxes with just the floor plans and elevations.  Might just be a case of trying to provide information that is not really needed.

 

[scottharris]

You can get close – using layers to what you want.  The out line of the cabinet box & it’s thickness you would probably need to draw with the CAD tools.

 

[GeneDavis]

Why do you need to display this in plan view?  It's an unconventional way to show a plan of cabinetry.  Very unconventional.

 

 

[SusanC]

You could use the Orthographic Floor Overview camera to take an overhead view of the room.  Move the camera so you are directly overhead.  Go into cabinet dbx and turn off the countertops.  Select the Vector View, the Technical Illustration, or the Glass House option to see what is inside the cabinets.  

Unfortunately, there is no way to add dimensions or text to this view, but you could send to layout and add text on the layout.  Not ideal.  

Also, there is no way to control the thickness of the cabinet sides, but there is an active thread right now in the Suggestions Forum asking for the ability to control the thickness of the wood used to build the cabinets.  

Maybe your original idea of creating a generic CAD block and overlaying it onto the floorplan is easier?  

Susan

[SHCanada2]

2 hours ago, SusanC said:

Select the Vector View

 and then do CAD detail from view. and then paste that over the cabinet outline and turn off the cabinet layer. had to "make parralel" the CAD detail lines though b/c the ortho camera was not perfect

 

ortho w/color off

 

pasted CAD detail into plan view with cabinets off, but dims still on

 

 

tried a second time and got the ortho perfect. and this time did a p2p move of the CAD detail(after copying and pasting the selected block to the plan) over the cabinets:

[SHCanada2]

or the classic cluge, two layout boxes on top of one another

 

[MarckusW]

I started using Chief in the late 90s as the primitive renders still blew programs like Cabinetware away. I am not sure if Cabinetware even exists any longer.  At the time most of what I was doing were kitchen and bath remodels and Chief was the best thing out there to show a client what a layout will look like.

 

Twenty Five +- years down the road I still use it this way but... I still hand draw all my cabinet drawings for the cabinet shop. I can come really close in Chief but what I (we) do is so precise it is faster to do the drawings by hand. 

 

This having been said I think just the typical plan view, elevations and then clean renders or ray traces should give the shop what they need in order for them to draw the cabinets.

 

I have taken the time to draw a full set of kitchen cabinets in Chief to satisfy myself that it could be done. 

 

I then asked the cabinetmakers which they prefer, the cad or hand draws. They all preferred my hand draws. 

 

So much for technology. Maybe old dogs are too lazy to learn new tricks.

 

Bottom line, don't over think it, don't assume you know what the cabinet shop wants. Ask them what exactly works for them.

 

(The first time I personally built a cabinet that I got paid for is 49 years ago. Cabinet technology has radically changed during this time so maybe I should rollover and go back to sleep.) 

[Csecr0123]

These have all been helpful and I am coming to the conclusion, chief hasn't had enough inquires about this issue to make it an option or better yet, make the cabinet box structure different thicknesses.

 

Regardless, I have been on other client's platforms where this is standard view. For what reason? I have no idea. If I were the cabinet maker (Which I have been for approximately 3 years)I don't need to see the individual cabinet box construction. I would much rather have the outside dimensions of the box and let me worry about how I put it together.

 

The "show closed doors/drawers" is helpful allowing less manual efforts into showing this feature. 

 

My solution will be to change to module lines from dashed lines to solid lines and overlay a simple cad rectangle where it's suppose to go. It's 4 panels per box essentially and I created a block for it. I will simply place the block with the 4 rectangles, explode it, move the box into position and modify the width of the front and rear panel keeping the thickness of the rectangles the same. A little time consuming and stagnate, but it works for the most part.  

[MarkMc]

 

Can get the lines using side panel inset with 0 separation for left and right, Side panel inset with 3/4 separations back, false drawer so drawer box doesn't show.

[Renerabbitt]

20 minutes ago, Csecr0123 said:

My solution will be to change to module lines from dashed lines to solid lines and overlay a simple cad rectangle

@MarckusW @SHCanada2 @SusanC @DBCooper @scottharris
There is a very easy way to accomplish this and quickly.
Select all of your cabinets, convert to custom countertop. Then select all cabinets again, together, and convert to a symbol. 

[Csecr0123]

Yes the video helped as that was my first instinct, but as you mentioned, it's for the final design rather than being dynamic. I want to keep it to where it's easy to change if the client wants it to be rather than doing this every time.

 

Also, once you make it a symbol, there is no reversal way of getting back to the cabinet features, unfortunately. Yes, easy solution, but not adaptive like the rest of Chief Architect is.

 

I love Chief Architect in every sense, but I do believe, since they already have the ability to extract the box construction, why not make that a dynamic aspect in the cabinet features. 

[Csecr0123]

42 minutes ago, MarkMc said:

 

Can get the lines using side panel inset with 0 separation for left and right, Side panel inset with 3/4 separations back, false drawer so drawer box doesn't show.

Can you attach a file? I'm having troubles with the back. This may be the best option, honestly. Thank you greatly for this!

 

[MarkMc]

1 hour ago, Csecr0123 said:

Can you attach a file?

Done

cab construc.zip

[Csecr0123]

Worked perfectly! I was confused, but I had my settings as a frameless cabinet instead of a framed cabinet and that's where you can adjust the stiles for the overlapping features.

 

Well done and this fixes the issue without jeopardizing anything. It also populates in the material list which can be modified for more parts list. 

[Csecr0123]

By the way, this is the results. Worked like a charm and will now be making this a default for my millwork. The photo shows an island with front and back base cabinets.