Import Point Symbols into Feature Definition Manager – TBCANZ

Point features can be assigned specific symbols. Symbols can be created using the symbol editor accessed by clicking the symbol editor icon (). The symbol editor is very limited in functionality therefore it is recommended creating the symbols in other office software.

The Feature Definition Manager allows symbols from .sym files to be imported. Also, CAD blocks in .dwg or .dxf formats can also be imported as symbols. Therefore, symbols can be created in TBC as CAD blocks at correct scale and colour then be exported out of TBC as either a .dwg or .dxf file.

To assign a symbol to a point:

Select the point feature in the in the left pane to open the feature definition properties.
Right click in the lines and symbols pane and click New Symbol.
With the symbol tab open click on the Symbol drop down box and click ‘<<Import symbols>>’.
In the Symbol Manager window click the Browse button and browse to the folder containing the symbols. Select the symbol folder and click OK.
If the file type is .dwg or .dxf file and is not visibile in the folder explorer change the file type in the bottom right corner of the explorer to display .dwg or .dxf files.
Click the button to copy all symbols to the library or while holding ctrl select each individual symbol to import into the library and click the button.
Select the symbol to use for the current point feature then click OK.
Optionally, give the symbol a name, e.g. Tree, and if required give a description.
Ensure the correct symbol has been selected then choose a colour to change the colour of the symbol.

Note: when creating the symbols for export as blocks the colour of the linework and text that make up the symbol is important. If the colour of the symbol components is set to by layer, then the symbol colour can be changed in the FXL manager, however, if the symbol colour is set before export for example to red, the symbol will always be red and cannot be changed in the FXL Manager.
If required select the rotation of the symbol.
- Choose fixed value as input method and input the rotation angle in the value box (rotation is anti-clockwise)
- Alternatively select attribute as the input method, then under attribute name choose a specific attribute. Either a number or attribute can be chosen as the rotational value. The symbol will be rotated by that value in degrees.
If required, change the size and scale of the symbol.
- Choose the dimensioning type.
  - Select Ground dimensioning to scale the symbol based on the value entered to the ground size e.g. 1 meter the symbol ground size will be 1 meter.
  - Select Sheet dimensioning. The symbol will be scaled to the defined project plot scale e.g. entering a value of 1 millimetre and the plot scale has a value of 1000 the symbol ground size will equal 1 meter (1mm x 1000).
- Choose the Input method and input a Value.
  - Choose Fixed value and manually input the value
  - Choose Attribute and select either a number or integer attribute. Select attribute if you wish to scale symbols automatically based on their dimensions measured in the field e.g. a Tree spread attribute exists to describe the spread of a tree canopy, by selecting Tree spread as the scale attribute, in the office software larger trees will have a larger scale and therefore a more visually accurate representation of the feature.
A List Attribute can then be used to change the attribute symbol based on an attribute value, meaning a single feature can have multiple symbols. This allows list attributes to be visualised in post processing. If a single standard symbol is required for the feature skip this step.

Ensure a general symbol is added with the list attribute left as blank, this will be the default symbol if an attribute value is not chosen.
e.g. Tree species is selected as the list attribute, in the value ‘Eucalyptus’ is selected. Any tree feature that has a species attribute of Eucalyptus will be given the chosen ‘Tree 2’ symbol. The ‘Tree 1’ symbol is then created for the Gum attribute.

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