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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:AboutContextualRibbonTabColors

AboutContextualRibbonTabColors

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Thebackgroundcolorofacontextualtabdependsonthetypeoftaskbeingperformed.

ObjectSelectContextualTabs(Green)
Contextualtabsthataredisplayedwhenyouselectanobjecthaveagreenbackgroundcolor.Forexample,ifyouselectanassembly
object,theAssemblycontextualtabisdisplayed.Thattabisdisplayedwithagreenbackgroundcolor.
Thefollowingillustrationshowstheassemblyobjectselectcontextualtab.

NonobjectSelectContextualTabs(Purple)
Contextualtabsthataredisplayedwhennoobjectsareselectedhaveapurplebackgroundcolor.Forexample,ifyouclickthe
Assemblybutton ontheModifytab,theAssemblynonobjectselectcontextualtabdisplays,andthattabhasapurplebackground
color.Thisprovidesaccesstoallcommandsrelatedtoassemblieswithouthavingtoselectanassemblyinthedrawing.
Thefollowingillustrationshowsanexampleofacontextualtabthatisdisplayedwhennoobjectsareselected.

NonobjectselectioncontextualtabshaveaClosebuttonattheendtodismissthem.Ifyouselectanobjectwhilethistabisdisplayed,
thenonobjectselectiontabisautomaticallyclosedandreplacedwiththeobjectselectcontextualtab.
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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:AboutContextualRibbonTabColors

SectionEditorTab(Blue)
Becauseitsribbonbehaviorisslightlydifferentthantheprevioustwotypesjustdescribed,theSectionEditortabhasitsownunique
backgroundcolorblue.

Parenttopic:AutoCADCivil3DUserInterfaceComponents
RelatedConcepts
AbouttheAutoCADCivil3DRibbon
RelatedTasks
ToWorkWithWorkspaces

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3/7/2016

AutoCADCivil3DHelp:AbouttheAutoCADCivil3DRibbon

AbouttheAutoCADCivil3DRibbon

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TheAutoCADCivil3Dribbonistheprimaryuserinterfaceforaccessingcommandsandfeatures.
Commandsavailablefromtheribbonareorganizedintotabs.Eachtabisorganizedintoaseriesofpanels.
Theribbonistypicallyturnedon(displayed)bydefault,andcanbedisplayedorturnedoffbyusingtheRibbonandRibbonClose
commands.
Therearetwobasictypesofribbontabs:staticandcontextual.

StaticRibbonTabs
Staticribbontabsarealwaysdisplayedwhentheribbonisturnedon.

ContextualRibbonTabs
Contextualribbontabsaredisplayedautomaticallywhenyouselectanobjectorinvokeanobjectspecificcommand.Forexample,
whenyouselectapipenetworkobject,thePipeNetworkcontextualtabisdisplayed.
Contextualtabscontaincommandsthatarerelatedtothecurrentlyselectedobject.Mostcontextualtabscanbeclosedsimplyby
deselectingtheobject.

MultipleObjectSelectRibbonTabs
Whenmultipletypesofobjectsareselectedsimultaneously,theMultiplecontextualtabisdisplayedintheribbon.Forexample,ifyou
selectbothapipenetworkobjectandanalignmentobject,theMultiplecontextualtabisdisplayed.
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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:AbouttheAutoCADCivil3DRibbon

LaunchPadPanel
AutoCADCivil3DcontextualribbonsincludeaLaunchPadpanelthatprovidesaccesstocommandsthatyoumightusenextinyour
workflow.
Forexample,whenyouselectanalignmentobject,theAlignmentcontextualtabisdisplayed.TheLaunchPadpanelontheAlignment
contextualtabprovidesavarietyofcommandsthatyoumaywanttousenext.Forexample,youmaywanttocreateacorridor,
intersection,ordatashortcutfromthealignment.
Note: Tolearnmoreaboutbasicribbonfunctionality,seetheAutoCADHelp.
Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface
TutorialExercise:FindingTools
Parenttopic:AutoCADCivil3DUserInterfaceComponents
RelatedConcepts
AboutContextualRibbonTabColors
RelatedTasks
ToWorkWithWorkspaces

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise1:FindingTools

Exercise1:FindingTools

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Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowtolocatethetoolsthatareavailableforagiventask.
ThedrawingyouusecontainsAutoCADCivil3Dobjectstoexplore.Theobjectsinthisdrawingarethesiteelementsthatyouwill
createinthefollowingtutorials.
Explorethebasicuserinterfaceelements
1.OpendrawingIntro1.dwg,whichisavailableinthetutorialsdrawingsfolder.
Thisdrawingcontainsanexistinggroundsurface,twocorridorsthatintersect,astormsewerpipenetwork,andpropertyparcels.
2.ExaminetheelementsatthetopoftheAutoCADCivil3Dwindow.Clickthebuttonsasdescribedinthefollowingparagraphsto
examinethetoolsthatarecontainedineachelement.
ApplicationMenuProvidesaccesstofilerelatedcommands,suchasopen,print,export,andpublish.
QuickAccessToolbarContainsfrequentlyusedcommands.Click andthenMore
CommandstoaddanunlimitednumberoftoolstotheQuickAccesstoolbar.
Note:
YoualsocanrightclickatoolontheribbontosendittotheQuickAccesstoolbar.
InfoCenterEnablesyoutosearchforinformationthroughkeywords.
RibbonProvidesasingle,compactlocationforcommandsthatarerelevanttothecurrenttask.Theribboneliminatesthe
needtodisplaymultipletoolbars,whichreducesclutterintheapplicationandmaximizesthedrawingspace.Inthetoprow,
click tosuccessivelyminimizetheribbondisplay.
Exploretheribbon
1.OntheHometab,ontheCreateDesignpanel,clickthebaratthebottomofthepanel.
Thepanelexpandstodisplayadditionaltools.If isdisplayedinthebottombarofaribbonpanel,thenadditionaltoolsare
available.
2.ClicktheModifyandAnalyzetabs.
Eachofthesetabscontainstoolsthatarerelevanttoacategoryoftasks.
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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise1:FindingTools

3.ClicktheHometab.
TheHometabcontainscommandsthatarecommonlyusedtocreateAutoCADandAutoCADCivil3Dobjects.
4.Inthedrawing,clickoneofthecontourlinestoselectthesurface.

TheTINSurfacetabisdisplayedontheribbon.Thisisknownasacontextualtab,anditcontainsallthetoolsrelatedtosurfaces.
Dependingonthetypeofobjectthatisselected,differenttoolsaredisplayedonthecontextualtab.ThetoolsonallAutoCADCivil
3Dcontextualtabsarearrangedinasimilarseriesofpanels:
LabelsandTables
GeneralTools
Modify
Analyze
SurfaceTools
LaunchPad
5.PressEsc.
6.Selectthecorridor.

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise1:FindingTools

TheCorridorstabisdisplayedontheribbon.Whenanobjectisselected,theappropriateobjectcontextualtabisavailableonthe
ribbon.
7.PressEsc.
Thecorridorisdeselected,andtheHometabisactive,andthecontextualtabisremoved.
Tocontinuethistutorial,gotoExercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace.
Parenttopic:Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace

Exercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace

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Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowtousetheAutoCADCivil3DToolspace,whichprovidesanobjectorientedviewofyourengineering
data.
ThisexercisecontinuesfromExercise1:FindingTools.
ExploretheProspectortab
Note:
ThistutorialusesIntro1.dwgfromtheprevioustutorial.
1.InToolspace,clicktheProspectortab.
Toolspacecanbedocked,butitcanalsofloat.TheProspectortabprovidesyouwithacategorizedviewofallobjectsinthe
drawing.
Note:
IftheToolspaceisnotvisible,enterShowTSonthecommandline.Thecommandlineisnotcasesensitive,butinthisdocument,
commandsarewritteninmixedcase.
2.Click nexttothe Sitescollection.
Thedrawingcontainsonlyonesite,Site1.
3.ExpandtheSite1collection.
NoticethattheSite1collectionincludessubcollectionsforthefollowingobjects:
Alignments
FeatureLines
GradingGroups
Parcels
Asiteprovidesalogicalgroupingofobjectsthatformpartofthesamedesignproject,orareotherwiserelated.Anobjectcan
belongtoonlyonesite.
4.Expandthe ParcelscollectiontoseethenamesofindividualparcelsinSite1.
Noticethatthedrawingincludesdifferenttypesofparcels,suchasSingleFamilyandEasement.
5.Clickaparcelname.
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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace

TheparcelisdisplayedinapreviewregionoftheProspectortab.
Note:
Ifthepreviewdoesnotwork,youcanactivateit.First,ensurethattheitempreviewbutton
pressedin.Then,rightclicktheParcelscollectionandclickShowPreview.

atthetopoftheProspectortabis

6.RightclickoneoftheSingleFamilyparcels.ClickProperties.
Thepropertiesoftheparcelaredisplayedinadialogbox.NotethedetailedsurveydatashownontheAnalysistab.Reviewthese
propertiesasyouwish,butdonotchangeanything.
7.ClicktheInformationtab.ChangetheObjectStylefromSingleFamilytoOpenSpace.ClickOK.
Noticethattheappearanceoftheparcelchangesinthedrawing,andintheitemviewpreview.Thenameoftheparcelchangesin
theParcelscollectionontheProspectortab.Thishappenedbecausethestylenameispartofthenamingtemplatethatis
associatedwiththeparcel.
AdistinctsetofcustomstylesforeachAutoCADCivil3Dobjecttypecanbesavedinadrawingtemplate.Objectstylescanbe
changedasneededtochangethedisplayofanobject.
ExploretheSettingstab
1.ClicktheSettingstab.
TheSettingstabcontainsatreestructureofobjectstylesandsettingsforthedrawing.LiketheProspectortab,ithasobject
collectionsatseverallevels.
2.ExpandtheSettingstreebyclicking nexttothe Intro1.Expandthe Parcel
Thiscollectiondisplaysthestylesthatareavailableinthecurrentdrawing.

ParcelStylescollection.

3.RightclicktheStandardparcelstyle.ClickEdit.
Theobjectstyledialogboxdisplaysthecurrentstyleattributes.Explorethecontentsofthetabstoseethevariousattributesthat
canbechangedwhenyoucreateastyle.
4.ClickCancel.
Furtherexploration:ExpandtheSettingstreeandlookatseveralstyleobjectsandcommands.Rightclickvariousobjectstosee
theavailablemenuselections,butdonotchangeanything.
Tocontinuethistutorial,gotoExercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow.
Parenttopic:Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow

Exercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow

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Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowyoucanuseandcustomizethePanoramawindow.
ThistutorialcontinuesfromExercise1:UnderstandingtheToolspace.
DisplayobjectdatainthePanoramawindow
Note:
ThistutorialusesIntro1.dwgfromtheprevioustutorial.
1.Usethe

Panand

Zoomcontrolstolocatethebeginningofthealignmentandpipenetworkonthefarrightsideofthesite.

2.Inthedrawing,clickthegreenalignment.

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3.ClickAlignmenttab

AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow

Modifypanel

GeometryEditor

4.IntheAlignmentLayoutToolstoolbar,click .
AtablecalledAlignmentEntitiesisdisplayedinaseparatewindowcalledthePanorama.Noticethatthetablenameappearsona
tab.ThemaincontrolbarislabeledPanorama.EachtableinPanoramaiscalledavista.Thesetablesareusefulforeditingobject
attributes.Youcaneditdataincellsthatappearsasblacktext.Youcannoteditdataincellsthatareshaded(unavailable).Inthe
nextfewsteps,youwilllearntousesomeofthePanoramacontrols.
5.IfthePanoramawindowcoversthealignment,moveitbyclickingthemiddlepartoftheverticalcontrolbarwhereyousee
thePanoramatitle,andthendraggingthewindowtoanewlocation.
Tip:
TomovethePanoramawindow,holddowntheCtrlkeytopreventthePanoramawindowfromdockingwhenyoumoveit.
6.PressEsctodeselectthealignment.
7.Inthedrawing,clickthebluestructuremarker.

8.ClickPipeNetworkstab

Modifypanel

EditPipeNetwork

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9.IntheNetworkLayoutToolstoolbar,click .
Twoadditionaltables,calledStructuresandPipesaredisplayedinthePanoramawindow.
10.Clickthethreevistatabsinturntoswitchfromonetabletotheother.BringtheAlignmentEntitiestabletothefront.
Rearrangethecolumnsofavista
1.ScrolltotherightuntilyouseetheChordLengthcolumn.
2.ClicktheChordLengthcolumnheading,dragthecolumntotheleft,anddropittotherightoftheLengthcolumn.
Noticethateachcolumnheadingishighlightedasthecursorpassesthroughit.Youcanrearrangethecolumnslikethistomake
thetableeasiertouse.
3.RightclicktheRadiuscolumnheading.ClickCustomizeColumns.
TheCustomizeColumnsdialogboxallowsyoutomodifytheappearanceofthecolumnsinthecurrentvista.Youcanhide
unnecessarycolumnsbyclearingtheappropriatecheckboxesintheVisibilitycolumn,orchangethewidthofcolumnsusing
theWidthcolumn.ClickingtheNewbuttonallowsyoutosaveacustomvistaconfigurationforlateruse.
4.ClickCanceltoclosetheCustomizeColumnsdialogbox.
ChangetheappearanceofthePanoramawindow
1.OnthePanoramacontrolbar,click

totemporarilyclosethewindow.

2.Withoutclicking,moveyourpointeroverthePanoramacontrolbar.
Thewindowopenswhilethepointerisonthebar.Itcloseswhenyoumovethepointeroffthevista.ThisisAutoHideMode,
indicatedby
3.Click

.Itisusefulwhenyouwanttoperiodicallyconsultatablewhileworkinginthedrawing.

toturnoffAutoHideMode.

4.OnthePanoramacontrolbar,click

.ClickTransparency.

5.IntheTransparencydialogbox,movetheGeneralslidertoapositioninthemiddleoftherange.ClickOK.
6.DragthePanoramawindow.
Whenyoumovethecursorawayfromthewindow,noticethatyoucanseesomedrawingdetailsthroughthetable.
7.InAlignmentLayoutToolstoolbar,click .
ThePipesandStructuresvistasremainopenuntilyouclick

intheNetworkLayoutToolstoolbar.

Tocontinuetothenexttutorial,gotoTutorial:UsingBasicFunctionality.
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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Exercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow

Parenttopic:Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:SurveyFieldtoFinish

SurveyFieldtoFinish

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Topicsinthissection
PreparetoImportSurveyData
ImportSurveyData
FieldBookFiles
SurveyLandXMLData
ManageSurveyExtendedProperties
ImportEvents
SurveyPointProperties
ProcessLinework
Parenttopic:Survey

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Survey

Survey

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Topicsinthissection
UnderstandingSurvey
YoucanusetheAutoCADCivil3Dsurveyfeaturestodownload,create,analyze,andadjustsurveydata.Thesurveyfeatures
extendthefunctionalityofAutoCADCivil3Dbystreamliningtheprocessoftransferringfieldcapturedsurveydatatoandfrom
theoffice.
SurveySettings
SurveyFieldtoFinish
SurveyData
SurveyFigures
YoucanusetheSurveyToolspaceandSurveyFigurecommandstocreateandeditsurveyfigures,aswellastoperformfigure
inquiries,identifyingfigures,andcheckingthemforexactcourseandclosure.
SurveyAnalysis
Youcanuseanalysistools,suchasLeastSquares,tomakeadjustmentsinSurveyNetworksaswellasindividualtraverses.
UsethemenusontheSurveyCommandWindowtoinputsurveydatausingthecommandline.
QueryingSurveyData
SurveyCommandReference
Youcanusecommandstoquicklyaccesssurveyfunctionality.

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface

Tutorial:UnderstandingtheAutoCADCivil3DUserInterface

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Inthistutorial,youwillexaminesomeofthemajorcomponentsoftheAutoCADCivil3Duserinterface.
TheAutoCADCivil3DuserinterfaceenhancesthestandardAutoCADenvironmentwithadditionaltoolsforcreatingandmanaging
civildesigninformation.
StandardAutoCADfeatures,suchasthecommandlineandribbon,workthesamewayinAutoCADCivil3DastheydoinAutoCAD.
Topicsinthissection
Exercise1:FindingTools
Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowtolocatethetoolsthatareavailableforagiventask.
Exercise2:UnderstandingtheToolspace
Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowtousetheAutoCADCivil3DToolspace,whichprovidesanobjectorientedviewofyour
engineeringdata.
Exercise3:UsingthePanoramaWindow
Inthisexercise,youwilllearnhowyoucanuseandcustomizethePanoramawindow.
Parenttopic:GettingStartedTutorials

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AutoCADCivil3DHelp:UnderstandingSurvey

UnderstandingSurvey

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YoucanusetheAutoCADCivil3Dsurveyfeaturestodownload,create,analyze,andadjustsurveydata.Thesurveyfeaturesextend
thefunctionalityofAutoCADCivil3Dbystreamliningtheprocessoftransferringfieldcapturedsurveydatatoandfromtheoffice.
SurveyWorkflow
SurveyTutorial
SurveyBestPractices
Topicsinthissection
SurveyProjectPhases
SurveyUserInterface
SurveyObjects
SurveyStylesandDisplay
SurveyDatabases
SurveyNetworks
Parenttopic:Survey

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Glossary|AutoCADCivil3D|AutodeskKnowledgeNetwork

Glossary
Feb102016|InProductView

AppliestoAutoCADCivil3D2016
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2Dpolyline
Apolylinewithallverticesatthesameelevation.

3Dface

English

A3DfaceisanAutoCADobjectthatrepresentsthesurfaceofa3or4sidedarea,witheachvertexpotentially
atadifferentelevation.YoucanviewTINs(TriangulatedIrregularNetworks)as3Dfaces.UsingtheSHADE
command,youcanshade3Dfaces.UsingtheRENDERcommand,youcanrenderthe3Dfaces.See
alsoTIN.

3Dpolyline
Apolylinewithverticesatvaryingelevations.

A
GradeChange.

AASHTO
AmericanAssociationofStateHighwayandTransportationOfficials.

acre
Ameasureofland:160squarerods4,840squareyards43,560squarefeet.

adjustment
Aprocessthatremovesinconsistenciesfromthemathematicalmodelofmeasuredobservationssuchas
anglesanddistances.

alignment
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Aseriesof2Dcoordinates(northingsandeastings),connectedbylines,curves,orspirals,usedtorepresent

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featuressuchastheroadcenterlines,edgesofpavement,sidewalks,orrightsofway.

angle
Thedifferenceindirectionbetweentwoconvergentlinesmeasuredintheunitsofdegrees,radians,orgrads.

appliedcant
Thetotalamount(inmmorin.)bywhichrailsareraisedorloweredinacurve.

appurtenance
Anappurtenanceisacomponent,suchasavalve,thatsupplementsawatertransmissionanddistribution
system.Inmanycases,appurtenancesthrottleorcontrolflow.

area
Thequantityofplanespaceinahorizontalplaneenclosedbytheboundaryofanypolygonalfigure.

AREMA
AmericanRailwayEngineeringandMaintenanceofwayAssociation.

assembly
AnAutoCADCivil3Ddrawingobject(AECCAssembly)thatmanagesacollectionofsubassembly
components,suchastravellanes,curbs,shoulders,andditches,toformthestructuralelementsofaroadway
orothercorridortypestructure.

assemblyset
Thesetofassembliesthatarespecified(referenced)byanassemblysetfile,usedduringintersectionobject
creation(intersectiondesign).

astronomicazimuth
Anazimuthderivedfromsunshotsorstarshots.

azimuth
Aclockwiseanglemeasuredfromareferencemeridian.Alsoknownasnorthazimuth.Itcanrangefrom0to
360degrees.Anegativeazimuthisconvertedtoaclockwisevalue.
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backsight
Apreviouslyestablishedpointusedasadirectionreferencetoanotherpoint.Asurveyinstrumentmovements
typicallyarelockedtoanangleof0degrees,andtheverticalcrosshairissetonthebacksight.Allsubsequent
shotsarethentakenbyturningtheinstrumentandtheuppermovementtogether,whilethelowermovement
stayssetonthebacksight.Allanglesmeasuredare,therefore,relativetothebacksight.

balanceline
Thelineinamasshauldiagramatwhichcutandfillbalance.Seealsobalancepoint,masshaulline.

balancepoint
Thepointatwhichthemasshaullinecrossesthebalanceline(thestationatwhichthecutvolumeandfill
volumeareequal).Seealsobalanceline,masshaulline.

baseline
Seefootprint.
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basesurface

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Anexistinggroundorundevelopedterrain.Specifiedwhencreatingvolumesurfaces.Seealsocomparison
surface.

BC:L
CurveBeginning.

bearing
AnanglemeasuredfromNorthorSouth,whicheverisnearest,withtheaddeddesignationofEastorWest.
Theangleisalwayslessthan90degrees(PI/2radiansor100grads)andisreferencedbyaquadrantnumber.

BFC
BeginFullCant.

BFS
BeginFullSuper.

BLR

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BeginLevelRail.

BNC
BeginNormalCrown.

BNS
BeginNormalShoulder.

BOA
BeginofAlignment.

border
Thevisiblelimitsofasurface.Thebordercanbedefinedfromaboundaryorcanbetheresultofadefined
boundaryandoperationsperformedonasurface,suchasaDeleteLineoperation(aholeiscreatedinthe
surface).Ifaboundaryisnotdefinedonasurface,theexteriorborderisalwaysdefinedastheextentsofthe
surfacetriangulation.

borrowpit
Apitthatiscreatedatastationalonganalignment,toprovidematerialtobeusedasfillinamasshaul
diagram.Seealsodumpsite.

boundaries
Threekindsofclosedpolylinesthatlimitthedisplayareaofthedigitalterrainmodel.Mostcommonareouter
surfaceboundariesconstructedjustoutsidetheextremitiesofthedataset,eliminatingunwantedinterpolations
acrossemptyspacewherethesurfacehasaconcaveshape.Thefollowingtwotypesofinternalsurface
boundariesarealsoused:hideboundaries,topunchholesinasurface(forexample,abuildingfootprint),or
showboundaries,tocreatesmallersurfacesbyeliminatingareasthatfalloutsidetheboundary.

boundedvolume
AmethodofcalculatingvolumesusinganexistingAutoCADobject(forexample,apolylineorpolygon)to
calculatethecut,fill,andnetvolumefortheareaboundedbytheobject.

BP
AlignmentBeginning.
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BP:STA
AlignmentBeginningPoint.

branchfitting
Abranchfitting(suchasateeorcross)splitspressurenetworkflowintotwoormoredirections.

BREAK
Gradebreak.

breakline
Alineusedtoconnectthedatarepresentingadistinctsurfacefeature,likearidgeline,edgeofpavement,toe
ofaslope,centerlineofaroad,orflowlineofaditchorstream.Whenabreaklineisdefined,thesurface
triangulationmustfirstfollowthebreakline,byplacingtriangleedgescoincidentwiththebreaklinesegments.
Thisensuresthefeatureinthemodelisaccuratelydepicted.Then,therestoftheinterpolationisperformed
basedonproximity.Breaklinesaretypicallycriticaltocreatinganaccuratesurfacemodel.Itistheinterpolation
ofthedata,notjustthedataitself,thatdeterminestheshapeofthemodel.Seealsonondestructivebreakline.

breaklinepoint
Apointthatisincludedinthedefinedbreaklineslistofvertices.

BVC
VerticalTangentCurveIntersect.

BVCE
VerticalTangentCurveIntersectElevation.

BVCS
VerticalTangentCurveIntersectStation.

BVP
ProfileStart.

ByBlock
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Asettingspecifyingthatacomponentofanobjectinheritsthecolororlinetypeassociatedwiththeobject,or

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block,thatcontainsit.

ByLayer
Asettingspecifyingthatanobjectorcomponentofanobjectinheritsthecolororlinetypeassociatedwiththe
assignedlayer.

bypasstarget
Apartinapipenetworkthathasbeenidentifiedbytheusertoactasthetargetforanybypassflowstobe
directedto.

cant
Thechangeinelevationofrailsinahorizontalcurvetohelpcounterbalancethecentrifugalforceofatrainwhile
traversingacurve.Seealsosuperelevation.

cantdeficiency
Thedifference(inmmorin.)betweenappliedcantandequilibriumcant.

cantgradient
Thegrade(inrise:run)betweentwocantcriticalstations.

catchmentarea
Theareatributarytoalake,stream,ordrainagesystem.

centermarker
Adiamondshapedgraphicthatmarksthelocationofthecentroidofagradingobject.Rightclickthecenter
markertoaccesstheGradingcontextmenu.

chord
Astraightlineconnectingtwopointsonacurve:thePointofCurvature(PC)andPointofTangency(PT).The
curvejoinswithalineoranothercurveatthesepoints.

closure
Therelativepositionofatraversestationasitcomparestothesamestationpositiondeterminedbyadifferent
setofobservationsorrouteofsurvey.
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clothoidspiral
Aspiralinwhichthecurvatureisalinearfunctionofthelengthofthespiral,sothatthedegreeofcurvatureis
zerowhenitmeetsthetangentandthenincreasestomatchthecurvatureoftheadjacentcurve.See
alsocompoundspiral,simplespiral.

COGO
CoordinateGeometry.

COGOpoints
Thepointobjectsthatyoucreateusingthepointcreationorpointimport.COGOpointsarereferredtosimply
aspointsinthisdocumentation.Thepiecesofdataassociatedwithapoint,suchaspointnumber,northing,
andeasting,arereferredtoasproperties.Seealsoproperties.

collimation
Theprocessofadjustingthelineofsightorlensofanopticalinstrumentsothatitisproperlylocatedbasedon
theotherpartsoftheinstrument.

comparisonsurface
Aproposedorexistingterrainsurfaceusedinthecreationofvolumesurfaces.Seealsobasesurface,volume
surface.

Compassrule
Correctionscorrespondingtotheclosingerrorsthatassumestheclosingerrorsareasmuchduetooferrorsin
observedanglesaserrorsinmeasureddistances.Usethecompassruleoptionwhenthisisthecase.

compositevolumes
Amethodofcalculatingvolumesusingtopandbottomsurfaces(asurfacepair)toestablishcut,fill,andnet
volumevalues.

compoundcurve
Acurveconsistingoftwoormorearcsofdifferentradiicurvinginthesamedirection,andhavingacommon
tangentortransitioncurveattheirpointofjunction.

compoundspiral

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Aspiralthatprovidesasmoothtransitionbetweentwoadjoiningcurvesofdifferentradiibutinthesame
direction.Ithasafiniteradiusateachend.Seealsoclothoidspiral.

confidenceinterval
Instatistics,aregionorareathathasaknownprobabilityofcontainingarandomsample.Insurveying,a95%
confidenceintervalindicatesthatthesurveyorcanbe95%surethatapointorobservationlieswithinthe
regionorestablishedparameters.

controlpoint
Pointswithauniqueidentifierthatarecreatedataknownlocation(northing,easting,orlatitude,longitude,with
anoptionalelevationordescription)andarenotaffectedbyadjustmentsorcorrections.Controlpointsare
addedtoasurveydatabaseandaremanagedwithinanamedsurveynetwork.

constructiongeometry
Unconnectedportionsofparcelandalignmentgeometry.Forexample,ifyouusethetantanmethodand
createanumberofconnectedlines,thewholefeatureissolvedandthedisplaycharacteristicsarecontrolled
bytheobjectstyle.Ifyoucreatesomeconnectedlinesandthenaddalinethatisnotconnected,theresultisa
pieceofconstructiongeometry.

controlregion
Aregionthatisdefinedbyapplyinggradingcriteriatoafootprint.Afootprintcanhaveasingleregionalongits
entirelength,oritcanbesubdividedintoanumberofcontrol,transition,andvoidregions.Seealsofootprint.

contour
Alinethatconnectspointsofthesameelevationorvaluerelativetoaspecifiedreferencedatum.

coordinates
Valuesthatspecifyexactlywhereapointisinspaceintermsofthreeplanes:X,Y,andZ(easting,northing,
andelevation).

corridor
Anypath,thelengthandlocationofwhicharetypicallygovernedbyoneormorehorizontalandvertical
alignments.Examplesareroadways,railways,traveledways,channels,ditches,utilityruns,andairport
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runways.

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corridorfeatureline
Acomponentofacorridorobject.Createdbyjoiningsubassemblypointcodesfromonestationtoanother.

corridorsurface
Acomponentofacorridorobject.Surfacetriangulationiscreatedfromacorridorsubassemblypointandlink
codes.

Crandallrule
Amethodofbalancingatraverseinwhichalltheangularerrorisdistributedthroughoutthetraverseandall
adjustmentstothetraverseresultfrommodifyingthetraversedistances.Themodificationdistancemadeto
eachlegissuchthatthesumofthesquaresisaminimum.
Correctionscorrespondtotheclosingerrors,whichassumestheclosingerrorsarerandomandnormally
distributed.Itassumesalltheangularerrorhasbeenadjustedbeforetheadjustmentroutine.

crestcurve
Inaprofile,averticalcurveonthecrestofahillorsimilarlocationwherethegradeleadingintothecurveis
greaterthanthegradeleadingoutofthecurve.Inacrestcurve,thepointofverticalintersection(PVI)forthe
tangentsisabovethecurve.Seealsosagcurve.

criteriabaseddesign
Theprocessofassociatingagencyspecificstandardstoanalignmentorprofile.Agencystandards,whichare
typicallybasedonsuperelevationanddesignspeedrequirements,arecontainedinacustomizabledesign
criteriafile.
Thefilecanalsospecifydesignstandardsforautomaticallyaddingwideningtodynamicoffsetalignments.
Whenanalignmentorprofileobjectiscreated,standardsfromthedesigncriteriafilecanbeassociatedwith
thealignmentorprofiletoensurethatthehorizontalandverticalcurvescomplywiththeminimumstandards.
Userdefineddesigncheckscanbeusedtoidentifyandreportstandardsviolations.Seealsodesigncriteria
file.

crosssection
Seesection.
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CS

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CurveSpiralIntersect.Seecurvetospiral.

CS_LRB:L
CompoundSpiralLargeRadiusatBeginning.

CS_LRE:STA
CompoundSpiralLargeRadiusatEnd.

CS_SRB:L
CompoundSpiralSmallRadiusatBeginning.

CS_SRE:STA
CompoundSpiralSmallRadiusatEnd.

curbreturnalignment
Analignmentthatconnectstheedgesoftwointersectingroadways.Themostcommoncurbreturngeometryis
asimplecircularfillet.Inatypicalintersection,curbreturnalignmentsareplacedineachofthefourquadrants,
betweenedgesofpavement.

curvetospiral
Apointonahorizontalalignmentwhereacurvemeetsaspiral.

cutlength(laylength)
Pipesaremanufacturedindiscretesegmentscalllaylengthsorcutlengths.Itisanominaldimension,which
meansitdescribesthegeneralsizebutmaynotcorrespondtoanactualdimension.

cutslope
Theslopecreatedwhenthefootprintfallsbelowtheexistinggroundline.Theresultingslopematchingupinto
theexistinggroundiscalledacutslopebecausetheexistinggroundmustbecut(removed)during
construction.

datacollector
Adevicesurveyorsusetoautomaticallyrecordtheobservationdatatheycollectinthefield.Theythen
downloadandconverttherawsurveydatatoafieldbookfile,whichiswrittenintheSurveyCommand
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Languageformat,oraLandXMLfile,whichusestheLandXMLschematodescribetheSurveydata.Surveyors
canthenimportthisfiletocreatepointsinthedatabaseandfiguresinthedrawing.

databand
Agraphicframethatisassociatedwithaprofileviewobjectorsectionviewobject.Thedatabandcontains
annotationsfortheprofileorsectionview,aswellasfortheparenthorizontalalignment.Somecommon
annotationsincludeelevationdata,stations,andcut/filldepths.

datareference
Areadonlycopyofanobjectfromanotherdrawing.Thereferencedobjectcanbeusedinmultipledrawings
andstylizedlocally.Aftertheofficialcopyoftheobjectisupdated,drawingswithreferencestoitarenotifiedof
theopportunitytoupdatetheirlocalcopy.TherearetwodatareferencetypesusedinAutoCADCivil3D:data
shortcutsandVaultreferences.Bothtypescanreferencesurfaces,alignments,profiles,pipenetworks,and
viewframegroups.

datashortcut
Anobjectthatcancreateadatareferencebetweendrawingsinaproject.Datashortcutsarenotusedwith
Vaultprojects.

datum
Areferencevalue.Allelevationsorcoordinatesaresetrelativetothisvalue.Insurveying,youcanusetwo
datums(horizontalandvertical).
Forglobalcoordinatesystems,adatumreferstotheellipsoidinformationandthetechniquesusedtodetermine
positionsontheEarthssurface.Anellipsoidispartofadatumdefinition.

daylightline
Alineshowingthelineofzerocutorfillwithinthejobarea.Forgradingobjects,itrepresentsthetargetline
producedbygradingtoaspecifiedsurface,distance,orelevation.

decimaldegree
Themeasureofanangleindecimalunits.Forexample,330'36"equals3.51decimaldegrees.

Decreasing
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StationEquationDecreasing.

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definitionlist
Alistthatcontainsalltheoperationsperformedonasurface.Byturningtheitemsinthelistonandoff,youcan
modifythesurface,returnittoapreviousstate,andsoon.

deflection(pressurenetwork)
Apipelinecanfollowastraightline,orcanachieveagradualchangeindirectionoverasuccessionofpipe
joints.Deflection(orjointdeflection)isoftenexpressedinangulardegreesandquantifieshowmuchchangein
directionispossible.Thelargertheangle,thelooserthejoint.Smalleranglesindicaterelativelytightjoints.

deflectionangle
Ahorizontalanglemeasuredfromanextensionoftheprecedingline,rightorleft.

degrees,minutes,seconds
(DMS)Arepresentationofanangleindegrees,minutes,andsecondsinwhichafullcirclecontains360
degrees,eachdegree60minutes,andeachminute60seconds.AtypicalbearinginDMSmeasurementlooks
like:N4545'58"E.Usingthisformat,330'36"isenteredas3.3036.

Delaunaytriangulation
AcalculationmethodusedinthecreationofTINnetworks.Givenasetofdatapoints,Delaunaytriangulation
producesasetoflinesconnectingeachpointtoitsnaturalneighbors.

DEM
(DigitalElevationModel)Anarrayofelevationstakenonaregularlyspacedhorizontalgrid.

descriptionkeys
Amethodoftranslatingdescriptionstohelpstandardizepointdatawhenavarietyofdatasourcesareused.
Forexample,descriptionsofEROAD,EPAVE,ERD,andEDGEROADcanallbetranslatedtoadescriptionof
EOP.Thelayer,pointstyle,andpointlabelstyleoptionscangreatlyenhanceautomaticbaseplangeneration
andtheoverallorganizationofthedrawing.

designcheck
Auserdefinedexpressionusedtoverifythatanentitymeetstheminimumdesignstandardsthatwere
establishedforthealignmentorprofileobject.Designchecksmaybedefinedfordifferententitytypes,suchas
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lines,curves,andspirals.Adesigncheckmustbesavedinadesignchecksettobeappliedtoanalignmentor

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profile.Seealsodesigncheckset.

designcheckset
Auserdefinedcollectionofcommonlyuseddesignchecks.Youspecifyadesigncheckseteitherduring
alignmentorprofilecreation,oraftercreationusingtheobjectpropertiesdialogbox.Seealsodesigncheck.

designcriteriafile
Afilethatcontainsminimumdesignstandardsforalignmentandprofileobjects.Thedesigncriteriafilemaybe
customizedtosupportlocaldesignstandardsfordesignspeed,superelevation,andminimumspeed,radius,
andlengthofindividualentities.Seealsocriteriabaseddesign.

designrule
Asetofautomaticconstraintsforsomeobjectsinthedrawingthatareenforcedbyapplyingaspecificstyle.
Forexample,ifyouarelayingoutalignments,youcanspecifyaruleforacurveradius.

directionalfitting
Adirectionalfittingchangesthedirectionofflowinapressurenetwork.Elbows,alsocalledbends,comein
standardangles:90bend(sometimescalleda&frac14orfullbend),45bend(1/8),22.5bend(1/16),and
11.25bend(1/32).

drawingobjects
Objectsthatexistinasingledrawing.Seealsoprojectobject.

dumpsite
Asitethatiscreatedatastationalonganalignment,atwhichcutmaterialremovedfromamasshauldiagram
isdumped.Seealsoborrowpit.

Ea
Seeappliedcant.

easting
AlineardistanceeastwardsfromtheNorthSouthlinewhichpassesthroughtheoriginofagrid.Equivalentto
theXcoordinateinanXYZcoordinatesystem.
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EC:STA

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CurveEnd.

EDM
Electronicdistancemeasuringdevicesthatmeasuretheroundtriptransittimeofapulsedsignalfromwhich
distanceiscomputed.

EDMOffset
TheverticaldistancefromthescopecentertotheEDMcenter.AutoCADCivil3Dusesthisvaluetocalculate
distance.

Ee
Seeequilibriumcant.

EFC
EndFullCant.

EFS
EndFullSuper.

EGL
EnergyGradeLine.

elevation
TheverticaldistancefromadatumtoapointorobjectontheEarth'ssurface.Thedatumisconsideredtobeat
sealevel.EquivalenttotheZcoordinateinanXYZcoordinatesystem.

elevationpoint
Apointthatmarksanelevationchangebutdoesnotbreakthehorizontalgeometry.

ELC
EndLevelRail.

ENC
EndNormalCrown.
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energygradeline
Alineinapipenetworkorstormsewerdrainagesystemthatrepresentsthetotalavailableenergyinthe
system(potentialenergy,orstatichead,pluskineticenergy,orvelocityhead).

enumeration
Atypeofuserdefinedpropertywhichhaspredefinedvaluesthatyoucanselectfromalist.

ENS
EndNormalShoulder.

EP
AlignmentEnd.

EP:STA
AlignmentEndPoint.

EOA
EndofAlignment.

equilibriumcant
Inarailwaytrack,thedifferentialelevation(inmmorin.)atwhichtheverticalwheelforceisequalonbothrails.

errorellipse
Anellipticalregionthatshowstheconfidenceintervalofanadjustedpoint.Forexample,iftheconfidenceisset
to99%,youcanbe99%surethecalculatedellipsecontainsthetruelocationofthepoint.

Eu
Seecantdeficiency.

EVC
VerticalCurveTangentIntersect.

EVCE
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VerticalCurveTangentIntersectElevation.

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EVCS
VerticalCurveTangentIntersectStation.

EVP
ProfileEnd.

explicitPI
Thepointatwhichtwofixedtangentsmeetonahorizontalalignment.Seealsopointofintersectionandimplied
PI.

face
Athreedimensionalsurfacetriangle.Afaceisrepresentedbyeithera3Dfaceobjector3Dlineobjects.

face1
Ananglemeasurementinwhichthescopeisnotflopped.Alsocalleddirect.

face2
Ananglemeasurementinwhichthescopeisflopped.Alsocalledinvertedorindirect.

featureline
Anobjectinthatthegradingcommandscanrecognizeanduseasafootprint.Usually,alinethatmarkssome
importantfeatureinthedrawing,suchasaridgeline,orthebottomofaswale.Seealsofootprint.

fieldbook
Thepermanentdetailedrecordasurveyormakesofallobservationsmadeinthefield.InAutoCADCivil3D,a
fieldbookfile,(*.fbk),itcanbeusedasasourceofsurveydata.

fieldcode
Syntaxthatcorrespondstoapredefinedconventioninasurveyingapplication.Fieldcodesareassignedto
eachsurveypointtoautomatetheassignmentofpointandlinepropertiesandtodeterminethelinework
connectivity.

FieldtoFinish
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Aprocessofdeterminingthelineandcurveconnectivitybetweenpointssurveyedinthefieldthathavethe

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samefeaturenamewithinapointcode.Thisprocessalsoassignssymbolstopointfeaturesbasedona
featurenamewithinapointcode.

fillslope
Theslopecreatedwhenthefootprintfallsabovetheexistinggroundline.Theresultingslopematchingdown
intotheexistinggroundiscalledafillslopebecausematerialmustbebroughtintofilltheareaduring
construction.

figure
Speciallineworkautomaticallycreatedinadrawingwhenyouimportafieldbookcontainingfiguredata.Also
createdwhenusingAutoCADCivil3Dsurveyfigurecommands.Youcancontrolthelayersforfiguresbyusing
figureprefixes.

figureprefix
Usedtoautomaticallyplacefiguresonuserdefinedlayersbasedonthebeginningpartofthefigurename.For
example,thefigureprefixEPcanbeusedtoplacethefiguresEP,EP1,EP2,andEPLallonthesamelayer.
Usingfigureprefixesinconjunctionwithdescriptionkeyscanlargelyautomatetheprocessofconstructinga
wellorganizedbaseplan.

fitting
Seebranchfittinganddirectionalfitting.

fixedentity
Analignmententitywithafixedposition,notnecessarilytangenttoanotherentityforthedefinitionofits
geometry.Seealsofloatingentity,freeentity.

floatingentity
Analignmententitythatistangenttooneotherentity(beforeorafter)forthedefinitionofitsgeometry.See
alsofixedentity,freeentity.

flowrate
Ahydraulicproperty,oftenusedindesigningstormsewerandothersystems,thatrepresentsthevolumeof
fluidovertimethatflowsthroughasystem.
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footprint

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Theobjecttowhichgradingcriteriaareapplied.Afootprintcanbeanopenorclosed2Dor3Dgeometricfigure
thatisafeatureline,parcelline,orsurveyfigure.Seealsofeatureline.

footprintvertices
TheendpointsthatdefinethesegmentsofafootprintwithanXYZlocationandstationingstartingatthefirst
vertex.

foresight
Apointtowhichaninstrumentsightingismadetomeasureorestablishitselevationorhorizontalposition.

freeentity
Anentitythatistangenttotwootherentities(beforeandafter)forthedefinitionofitsgeometry.Seealsofixed
entity,floatingentity.

freehaul
Thematerialmovedwithinacertaindefineddistanceofitspointofexcavation(thefreehauldistance),freeof
chargebythecontractor.Seealsomasshaul,overhaul.

frontyard
Theoffsetdistancefromtheparcelfrontagesegmentstothesetbackline.

frontage
Theparcelsegmentsthatareadjacenttoarightofway.Thefrontageisalsoconsideredtobetheparcel
segmentslocatedatthefrontoftheparcel.

frontageoffset
Auserdefinedlengthusedtooffsetthecurrentfrontagedefinitiontotheinsideoftheparcelbeingsubdivided.
Whenthefrontageoffsetisused,theminimumfrontagelengthisappliedatandalongthefrontageoffset
insteadofthefrontage.

fulldescription
Theexpandeddescriptionofapointafterdescriptionkeymatchinghastakenplace.

gauge

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Inarailwaytrack,thedistancebetweentheinsideedgesoftherails,minusthewidthoftherailhead.See
alsotrackwidth.

geodesic
Onasurface,theshortestlinebetweentwopoints,eitheralineorcurvefromonepointalonganellipsoidto
another.

geodetic
AbasicrelationshiptotheEarththattakesintoaccountthecurvatureoftheEarthssealevelsurface.For
example,ageodeticdistanceisadistanceorangleinwhichtheEarth'scurvatureistakenintoaccount,
versusadistanceoranglemeasuredonaflatpapermap.

grade
Amethodofreportinggroundinclinationinwhichthechangeinelevationisexpressedasapercentageofthe
horizontaldistancetravelled.Forexample,ifthegroundrisesonelinearunit(meterorfoot)overahorizontal
distanceoffiveunits,thegradeis20%.Seealsoslope.

gradeline
Seelayoutprofile.

gradepoint
Apointinamasshauldiagramatwhichmasshaultransitionsfromcuttofill.Whenfreehaulismeasuredfrom
gradepoints,thehighestpoint(orlowest,ifbelowthebalanceline)isthegradepoint.Seealsobalanceline,
masshaulline.

grading
Theprocessusedtomodelthefinishedgroundsurface.

gradingcriteria
Parameterssuchastargetandprojectionmethodforthegrading.

gradingface
Theareaboundedbythefootprint,thedaylightline,andthetwoprojectionlines.
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gradinggroup

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Acollectionthattiesgradingobjectstogetherforthepurposesofsurfacecreationandvolumecalculation.

gradingtarget
Thegradingtargetdefineswhattheprojectionlinesfromthefootprintwillintercept.Thethreechoicesfor
targetsare:surface,relativeorabsoluteelevation,anddistance.Seealsodaylightline.

grads
Asystemofanglemeasurementinwhichonegradequals1/100ofa90angle,or360=400grads.

grid
Asystemoflinesparalleltoagivensetofaxesataspecificspacing.Gridsareusedtovisualizesurfacesand
calculatevolumes.Agridisalsousedforgeodeticpurposes.

griddistance
Thedistancebetweentwopointsbasedonacoordinatezone,notonlocalnorthingandeastingcoordinates.

grideasting
Theeastingcoordinatethatisbasedonaselectedcoordinatezone,asopposedtothelocaleasting,whichis
basedonthesurveyorsbasepoint.Seealsolocaleasting.

gridnorthing
Thenorthingcoordinatethatisbasedonaselectedcoordinatezone,asopposedtothelocalnorthing,whichis
basedonthesurveyor'sbasepoint.Seealsolocalnorthing.

gridsurface
AtypeofsurfacecreatedfromaDEMorSDTSfile,orimportedfromaLandXMLfile.Agridsurfaceconsistsof
asampledarrayofelevationsforanumberofgroundpositionsatregularlyspacedintervals.

gridvolumesurface
Adifferentialgridsurfacebasedonuserspecifiedbaseandcomparisonsurfaces.Thegridmethodofvolume
calculationmeasuresthedifferenceinelevationbetweentwosurfacesateachintersectioninauserdefined
grid.

grip

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Amoveablepointonanobjectthatyoucandragtoedittheobjectdynamically.

handle
Theuniqueidentifierofadrawingobject,usedasareferencewithinthesoftware.Usersnormallydonotneed
toknowabouthandlesunlesstheyareusingtheDataShortcutsEditor.

hectare
Ameasureofarea,generallyrelatingtoland,of10,000squaremetersorapproximately2.47acres.

HGL
HydraulicGradeLine.

Highdefinitionsurveying(HDS)
3Dlaserscanningtypicallyassociatedwithterrestrialbasedlaserscanners.ThetermsHighDefinitionand
HDSaretrademarksofLeicaGeosystems.

horizon
Anaxisthatthescopeofatheodoliteortransitrotatesaboutwhenmovedvertically.Theaxisofrotation
perpendiculartotheverticalaxis.

HP
HighPoint.

hydraulicgradeline
Alineinapipenetworkorstormsewerdrainagesystemthatrepresentstheelevationheadandpressurehead
offluidatanypointalongasystem.

impliedPI
Acomputedpointofintersection(PI)atanalignmentcurveorcurvegroup.AnimpliedPIindicateswhere
tangentswouldmeetiftheywereextendedoutward.SeealsopointofintersectionandexplicitPI.

importevent
Anamedcollectioninasurveydatabasethatprovidesacontexttothespecificdatathatwasimportedusing
anyoftheSurveyImportcommands,suchastheImportSurveyLandXMLcommand,ortheImportSurvey
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Datawizard.

Increasing
StationEquationIncreasing.

incurve
Aspiralwithacurveradiusthatdecreasesalongtherouteofthedefineddirection.

interferencechecking
AnAutoCADCivil3Dfeatureavailablewithpipenetworksthatletsyouidentifypipenetworkparts(pipesand
orstructures)thatphysicallyoverlapeachother,oraretooclosetooneanotherbasedonpredefinedproximity
criteria.

intersection
Thepointwheretwoormorelines,arcs,figures,orobjectsjoinorcrossintwoorthreedimensionalspace.

inverse
Aninversecalculationonaclosedfigurecalculatesthebearingsanddistancesbetweencoordinatesand
reportsthearea.Becauseyouuseexactnumbers(coordinates)todeterminecorners,noclosureerroris
reported.

junctionloss
Orjunctionlosscoefficient.Ahydraulicpropertyvalueusedinstormsewerdrainagesystemsthatcanbe
computedanddefinedinapipenetwork.Itisassociatedwiththelossofenergythroughajunction.This
numericvaluehasnounitsassociatedwithit,andcanbeautomaticallycalculatedormanuallyenteredusing
theHydraflowStormSewersextensionapplication.Itisusedtocomputeminorlossforhydraulicanalysis.

K
CurveCoefficient.

knowncapacity
Anumericvaluethatrepresentstheflowinapipenetworkorstormsewerdrainagesystemasdesignatedby
theuser.
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Amethodofsurfacesmoothingthatusesknownvaluesandasemivariogramtodetermineunknownvalues.
Basedonthesemivariogramused,optimalweightsareassignedtoknownvaluestocalculateunknownones.
Sincethevariogramchangeswithdistance,theweightsdependontheknownsampledistribution.

L
Left.

labelcomponent
Text,ablock,directionarrow,line,ortickthatisusedtoconstructalabelstyle.Labelstylescanbemadeupof
multiplelabelcomponents.

labelset
Acollectionoflabeldefinitionsformultiplelabeltypes,suchasstationlabelsandgeometrypointlabels.For
example,alignmentstationlabelingcanbecomposedofmajorstationlabels,minorstationlabels,and
geometrypointlabels.

latitude
Theangulardistancemeasuredonameridiannorthorsouthfromtheequator.

layoutprofile
Aprofileobjectthatrepresentsthefinishedgroundelevationsalongahorizontalalignmentorotherlinear
featurethatsupportsprofileviews.Typically,thisdataisdesigned,notderivedfromapreexistingsource,and
consistsofaseriesofverticaltangentsconnectedbyverticalcurveslocatedateachpointofvertical
intersection(PVI).Thisprofileisalsoknownasverticalalignment,profilegradeline,gradeline,andfinished
gradeprofile.

layouttoolbar
Afloating,dockabletoolbarthatgroupsobjectspecificdesignandeditingtools.

LB:L
LineBeginning.

LC
LevelCrown.
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LE:STA
LineEnd.

leastsquares
Amethodofbalancingatraverseinwhichthesquaresofthedifferencesbetweentheunadjustedandadjusted
measurements(anglesanddistances)aresummedandreducedtoaminimum.Thismethodusestheerror
specificationsinthecurrentequipmentsettingstodeterminetheexpectedsourceoferrors,andweightsthe
individualmeasurementsaccordingly.

lengthweighteddistribution
Averticaladjustmentthatdistributestheverticalclosingerrortoeachline,atthesameratioasthelengthof
thatlineistothetotallengthofthetraverse(similartotheCompassrule).

LIDAR
LightDetectionandRanging.Typicallyassociatedwithairbornelaserscanning.

lineworkcodeset
Afilethatdictatesthesyntaxoflineworkconnectivitycommandsthatarespecifiedwithinafieldcode.Afeature
thatisanedgeofpavementmaybeabbreviatedasEPorEOPinthefieldcodebutthesetofabbreviationsare
partofthefieldcodingstandardestablishedbyacompany.Thelineworkcodeaccompaniesthefeaturename
withinthefieldcode,forexample"EPB",where"EP"isthefeaturename,and"B"isthelineworkcodetobegin
asurveyfigure.

linkcodes
Asetofstandardcodesthatdefinethedisplayandbehavioroflinksusedinsubassemblies.

localcopy
Acopyofaprojectdrawingthatresidesinyourlocalfolder,asopposedtothemastercopyofthefileinthe
projectVaultdatabase.Alsoreferstoacopyofaprojectpointthatexistsinalocaldrawing.

localeasting
Theeastingcoordinatethatisbasedonthesurveyor'sassumedhorizontalbasepoint,asopposedtothegrid
easting,whichisbasedontheglobalcoordinatezone.Seealsogrideasting.
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localelevation
Theelevationcoordinatebasedonthesurveyor'sassumedverticalbasepoint,orbenchmark,versusareal
worldelevationvalue.

localnorthing
Thenorthingcoordinatethatisbasedonthesurveyor'sassumedhorizontalbasepoint,asopposedtothegrid
northing,whichisbasedontheglobalcoordinatezone.Seealsogridnorthing.

lockedpoint
Adrawingpointwhosecoordinatedatacannotbemodified.Pointlockingappliesonlytothedrawinginwhich
thepointresides.Seealsoprotectedpoint.

logicalnamemapping
TheprocessofmappinglogicalnamesinsubassembliestoactualAutoCADCivil3Dobjectnames.

longitude
TheanglebetweentheplaneofagivenmeridianandtheplaneoftheGreenwichmeridian.

LP
LowPoint.

LSM
LowShoulderMatch.

MAN
Manual.

mapcheck
Amapcheckreportshowaccurateyourangleobservationsare,andtheareaofclosedfigures.Youcan
performamapcheckonanopenorclosedfigurethatwasdrawnbyusingangles.Becausetheaccuracyof
thefigureisbasedontheprecisionofyouranglemeasurements,anamountofclosureerrorisassociatedwith
suchafigure.Thegreatertheprecisionyouuse,thelesserrortherewillbe.Incontrast,ifyoudrawafigure
betweenknowncoordinates,thenthereisnoneedtoperformamapcheck,becausetherewillbenoerror.
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Amapcheckreportsprecisionandmathematicalclosurebasedeitheronbearinganddistanceentriesofa

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closedfigure,orforanopenfigurebetweentwoknownpoints.Theaccuracyofamapcheckisbasedonthe
precisionusedtocalculateit.Forexample,ifyouusedatathatisroundedtothenearestfoot,thentheresults
arelessaccuratethanifyouusedataroundedtothenearestonehundredthofafoot.

masks
Polygonsusedtomaskthevisibleportionsofasurface.

masking
Aprocessofobscuringobjectssothattextcanbeplacedovertheminacleararea.Maskingmaintainslegible
textwithoutdestroyingtheobjectsunderneath.

masshaul
Thevolumeofexcavatedmaterialtimesthedistanceitisrequiredtobemoved.Amasshauldiagrampresents
avisualrepresentationofthecumulativecutandfillmaterialvolumesonaproject.Masshauldiagrams(along
withgradingsummaries)arethecontractorsprimarytoolsforbiddingearthwork.Seealsofreehaul,overhaul.

masshaulline
Alinemarkingthebalancebetweencutandfillinamasshauldiagram.Whenthemasshaullineisabovea
balanceline,itindicatesmaterialtobecut.Whenthemasshaullineisbelowthebalanceline,itindicatesa
volumetobefilled.Seealsobalanceline,masshaul.

matchline
Seedaylightline.

midordinate
Onacirculararc,thedistancefromthemidpointofachordtothemidpointofthesubtendedarc.

modifier
Aformulaforformattingpropertyfieldvalues,suchasdecimalprecisionforanarea.Youcanusepredefined
modifiers,suchasacres,feet,andmeters,oryoucandefineacustommodifier.Seealsopropertyfields.

nadirangle
Thenadirangleisoppositethezenith.
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nametemplate
Adefaultnameformatthatcanbeincrementedforeachnewobjectofthattype.

NaturalNeighborInterpolation(NNI)
AmethodofsurfacesmoothingsupportedonTINsurfaces.NNIusesDelaunaytriangulationtodeterminethe
elevationofanarbitrarypointbasedontheelevationsofknownneighborpoints.

network
Aseriesofinterconnectedlinesthatrepresenttheobservedinstrumentsetups.

nextcounter
Thenextavailablenumberinaseries.Usedinanametemplate.

nominaldiameter
Describesthesizeofapipe.Theactualdimensionsofsomepipescoincidewiththeirnominaldiameters,but
formanypipes,theirnominaldimensionsdonotcoincidewithanyoftheiractualdimensions.

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noncontrolpoint
Pointsthatarecreatedwithauniqueidentifier,northing,easting(orLatitude,Longitude),andoptionalelevation
anddescription.Anoncontrolpointrepresentsapointwhoselocationisdeterminedfromareducedcoordinate
(N,E,Z)observation,suchaspointcreatedbytheNESSsurveycommand.Anoncontrolpointisnot
connectedtoothersurveyobservationsandremainsunaffectedbyanetworkanalysis,butstillresideswithin
thecontextofasurveynetwork.Noncontrolpointsareaddedtothesurveydatabaseandaremanagedwitha
namedsurveynetwork.Noncontrolpointscanbepromotedtocontrolpointsifyoureferencethepointasa
controlpointforcreatingatraverse,orreferencethepointasasetuptomakeobservationstootherpointsthat
canaffectlocationsduringananalysis.

nondestructivebreakline
AbreaklinethatisnotcrossedbytriangulationlinesinaTIN.Instead,newverticesareaddedtothebreakline
attheintersectionofeachTINlineandthebreakline.Thenewpointscreateadditionalsurfacetriangles.Thisis
usefulwhenyoudonotwanttheelevationofasurfacetobeinterpolatedinsideanareathatyouknowtobea
constantelevation.

northing
AlineardistancenorthwardsfromtheEastWestlinewhichpassesthroughtheoriginofagrid.Equivalentto
theYcoordinateinanXYZcoordinatesystem.

notereduction
Theprocessoftakingfieldmeasurementsandconvertingthemfrom3dimensionalto2dimensionalinorderto
usethemeasurementsinaplanviewofthedrawing.Forexample,notereductionincludestheprocessof
convertingverticaldistancestohorizontaldistances.

nullassembly
Aplaceholderassemblythatisusedduringintersectionobjectcreation,whenareferencedassemblycannot
befound.Anullassemblygenerallycontainsnosubassembliesotherthanamarkedpoint.Seealsoassembly
set.

object
InAutoCADCivil3D,anelementinadrawing,forexample,asurface,thatcanmaintainarelationshipwith
otherobjects.

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objectmodel
Theunderlyingsystemoflinksanddependenciesbetweenobjects.Intheobjectmodel,changesinoneobject
canbepassedonautomaticallytoalltheobjectsassociatedwithit.

occupiedpoint
Apointinatraverseloopwherethesurveyinstrumentissetupandobservationsarerecorded.

offsetalignment
Adynamicalignmentcreatedatanoffsetdistancefromanotheralignment,suchasaroadedgeoffsetfroma
centerlinealignment.Theoffsetalignmentgeometrycannotbeediteddirectly,butitrespondsdynamicallyto
editsoftheparentalignment.

outcurve
Aspiralwithacurveradiusthatincreasesalongtherouteofthedefineddirection.

overhaul
Theexcavatedmaterialthatmustbehauledbeyondthefreehauldistance.Seealsofreehaul,masshaul.

overlap
Inroadwayorrailwaydesign,theconditioninwhichonecurve'ssuperelevationorcanttransitioninregion
startswithinthepreviouscurve.

override
Avalueforasettingthatreplacesthevaluealreadysetatthenexthigherlevel.

Panorama
AwindowthatdisplaysdataintableformfortheobjectsinacollectionthatisselectedinToolspace.For
example,ifyouselectapointgroup,thePanoramatabledisplaysarowforeachpoint.

parcel
Adiscretepieceof2Darea.Forexample,asubdivisioniscomposedofnumerousparcels.Synonymouswith
lot.

parcelnode

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Apointwheretwoormoreparcelsegmentendsjoin.

parcelsegment
Aparcelboundaryelement,aline,oracurve.

PartBuilder
Aparametricmodelingtoolusedtocreateandmodifythesetofpipenetworkparts(pipeandstructureshapes)
thatareavailableinpipenetworkpartcatalogs.

partcatalog
Anxmlfilethatcontainsdefinitionsforthethreedimensional,parametricshapesofpipeandstructureobjects
usedinpipenetworks.

partslist
Asetofreferencestopipenetworkparts(pipesandstructures)whoseshapesaredefinedinacatalogcalled
thepartcatalog.

passthroughpoint
Apointonthepathofalineorcurve,oftenusedtodefineanalignment.Apassthroughpointonacurvecanbe
usedasagriptocontrolthepositionofthecurve.Howeverthealignmentisedited,itsgeometryhastogo
throughthepassthroughpoint.

passingsightdistance
Thedistancemeasuredtoapointwhereanapproachingvehiclecomesintoviewaheadofadriveronan
undividedroad.Thisisusedtocalculateverticalcrestcurves.

payitem
Aspecificunitofworkforwhichapriceisprovidedandpaidtoacontractorwhileaprojectisunder
construction.

payitemlist
Amasterlistprovidedbythecontractingauthority,listingpayitemnumbers,itemspecifications,anditemunits
ofmeasure.
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PC

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TangentCurveIntersect.Seepointofcurvature.

PCC
CompoundCurveCurveIntersect.

PI
TangentTangentIntersect.Seepointofintersection.

pipenetwork
Apipenetworkobjectmanagesacollectionofpipeobjectsandstructureobjectsthatareusedtorepresenta
pipenetworkinadrawing.

pipeobject
Atypeofobjectusedtovisuallyrepresentapipeinapipenetwork,suchasacircular,rectangular,oregg
shapedpipe.

planreadable
Textthatyoucanreadeasilyinanormalplanview,thatis,placedatananglelessthan270degreesandmore
than90degrees.Alsocalledrightreading.

planview
Theviewofasiteifyoulookstraightdownfromanelevatedposition.

pointcodes
Asetofstandardcodesthatdefinethedisplayandbehaviorofpointsusedinsubassemblies.

pointgroup
Collectionusedtogroupthepointsinadrawingintosmaller,moremanageableunits.Forexample,youcan
createapointgroupthatcontainsallofthepointsinadrawingthatmeetcertainelevationcriteria.

pointlist
Thelistofthepointsthatbelongtoapointgroup.

pointmarker

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Seepointsymbol.

pointofcurvature
(PC)Thepointwhereanarcisdrawnfromatangent.

pointofintersection
(PI)Thepointwheretwotangentsmeetonahorizontalalignment.Curvesandspiralsalsohavepointsof
intersection,whichindicatewherethetangentswouldmeetiftheywereextendedoutward.

pointoftangency
(PT)Thepointwhereacurvemeetsatangent.

pointofverticalintersection
(PVI)Inaprofile,thepointwheretwotangentlinesmeet.

pointsymbol
Apointlocationmarker.Whenyouaddpointstoadrawing,pointsymbolsarecreatedtorepresentthepoints.
Thepointstylereferencedbyapointdescribeshowthepointsymbolisdrawn.

polyface
A3dimensional(polygon)meshobject.Eachfaceiscapableofhavingnumerousvertices.

prism
AfacetedglassreflectorusedtoreturnthesignalfromanEDM,wherebytheEDMcandeterminethedistance
toitsreflectionpoint.

prismconstant
Thedistancebetweenthepointofplumbandthereflectionpointwithintheprism.

prismoffset
Theverticaldistancebetweenthetheodolitetargetpointandtheopticalcenterofthereflector.

profile
Anobjectthatcontainselevationdataalongahorizontalalignmentorotherline.Therearetwomaintypesof
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profiles:surfaceandlayout.Profiledataobjectscanbeviewedwithinaprofileviewobject.

profilegradeline
Seelayoutprofile.

profileview
Anobjectthatmanagesthegraphicdisplayofprofiledataobjectswithinadrawing.Aprofileviewisessentially
agraphwithtwoprimaryaxes:thexaxisrepresentshorizontaldistancealongthereferencedhorizontal
alignment(orotherlinearfeature).Theyaxisrepresentselevations.Profileviewobjectscanalsoincludegrid
displaycomponentsanddatabands.

projectdrawing
Adrawingthathasbeenaddedtoaproject.

projectobjects
Objectsthatexistinaprojectdrawingandhavebeendesignatedasshared,whichmeansthattheycanbe
accessedbyothers.Seealsodrawingobjects.

projectedobject
Anobjectinplanviewofadrawingthatisprojectedintoaprofilevieworsectionview.AutoCADobjectsthat
canbeprojectedincludepoints,blocks,3Dsolids,andpolylines.AutoCADCivil3Dobjectsthatcanbe
projectedincludepoints,featurelines,andsurveyfigures.

projectionlines
Inagrading,thelinesthatdesignatefaceedgeswithinaregionforbreakpointsonthefootprintorthedaylight
line,andforthefacetsofcurves(cornercleanup,verticalcurves).

properties
Thesettingsthatapplytoaparticularinstanceofanobject.

propertyfields
Theplaceholdersinlabelsthatcontaincontent,suchastextorgraphics,alongwithformatmodifiersuniqueto
specificfeatures.Propertyfieldscanbenamedandtheirvaluesdefinedaccordingtothefeaturewithwhich
theyareassociated.Seealsomodifier.
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Prospectortab
ThepartofToolspacewhereyouaccessdrawingandprojectobjects.Objectsarearrangedinatreeor
hierarchywithfoldersandsubfoldersthatyounavigate.SeealsoSettingstab.

protectedpoint
Aprojectpointthatyoucannotcheckoutandthereforeedit.

proximitybreakline
Abreaklinethatisdrawnasapolylinewithoutsnappingtopointsinthedrawing.Thenorthing,easting,and
elevationofthebreaklineverticesaredeterminedfromthenearestpointcontainedinthesurfacepointdata,
aftergeneratingthesurface.

PRC
ReverseCurveCurveIntersect.

PT
CurveTangentIntersect.Seepointoftangency.

PVI
PointOfVerticalIntersection.Seepointofverticalintersection.

quadrant
Oneofthesectionsresultingfromdividingacircleintofourequalparts.Quadrant1istheNEcorner,and
quadrants2,3,and4proceedclockwisearoundthecompass.Bearingsareusuallyreferencedbyquadrant
number.

quantitytakeoff
Theanalysisofdetailedcutandfillrequirementsalonganalignment.Aquantitytakeoffreportprovides
informationonthetotalvolumeofmaterialrequiredtocreateafinishedgradesurface,includingtheprocessof
cuttingexistinggroundandrefillingitwithadifferentmaterial,suchascoarsegravel.

R
Right.
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radians
Asystemofmeasureinwhich2piradiansequals360.

rawdescription
Theoriginaldescriptionofapoint,beforedescriptionkeymatchingtakesplace.Oftencorrespondstothepoint
descriptionenteredinthefieldbyasurveyor.

rawstation
Astationvalueonanalignment,eitherformattedorunformatted,thatdoesnottakeintoaccountanystation
equationsappliedtothealignment.

RC
ReverseCrown.

rearyard
Theoffsetdistancefromtheparcelrearsegmentstothesetbackline.

referenceobject
Withinaprojectdrawing,thereadonlygeometryofanobjectthatexistsinanotherprojectdrawing.Objects
thatcanbereferencedincludesurfaces,alignments,profiles,andpipenetworks.Thehostdrawingcanapply
localobjectstylesandannotations,andperformsomeanalysisonreferenceobjects.

ReferencedText
AlabelcomponentthatcontainsreferencestootherAutoCADCivil3Dobjects.

region(grading)
Theareawheregradingcriteriaareappliedtoalotlineorafeatureline.

regionlines
Theprojectionlinesthatdesignatethestartandendofthegradingregions(criteriaortransition)byconnecting
thefootprinttothedaylightline.

returnperiod
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Atimeperiodthatrepresentsanintervalatwhichanevent,suchasalargestorm,occurs.Itisusedto

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calculatevariousflowcontrolmethodsinapipenetworkorstormsewerdrainagesystem.

rightofway
(ROW)Theallowableworkareaforanalignment.Propertylinesofthepropertyownerswhoresideadjacentto
theconstructionsitegenerallyspecifytheselimits,whicharecalledrightofwaylines.

rightofwayparcel
Aparcelthatiscreatedfromanalignmentthatcrossestheoriginalparentparcel.

rod
Aslenderbarofwoodormetalmarkedwithsometypeofmeasurementusedtomeasureelevationand/or
distance.

ROW
Seerightofway.

sagcurve
Inaprofile,averticalcurveatthebottomofavalleyorsimilarlocationwherethegradeleadingintothecurveis
lessthanthegradeleadingoutofthecurve.Inasagcurve,thepointofverticalintersection(PVI)forthe
tangentsisbelowthecurve.

sample
Theprocessofobtainingelevationinformationfromanexistingterrainmodelorsurface.

sampleline
Alinethattypicallycutsacrossanalignment,andthatcanbeusedforcreatingcrosssections.

SBO
ShoulderBreakover.

SC
SpiralCurveIntersect.Seespiraltocurve.

SDTS

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SeeSpatialDataTransferStandard.

section
Anobjectthatcontainselevationdataalongasampleline.

setbackline
Aclosedpolygonthatistheresultofoffsettingandintersectingeachparcelsegmentbyitsrespective
front/side/rearyarddistance.Theexteriorofthesetbacklinetypicallyrepresentstheareawherepermanent
structuresarenotpermitted.

settings
Acollectionofpropertiesandstylesthatapplytoanobject.

setup
InstrumentsetupsthataredefinedintheSurveydatabase.

Settingstab
ThepartofToolspacewhereyouaccessthestylesforthedifferenttypesofobjects,includingobjectlabelsand
tables.SeealsoProspectortab.

shapecodes
Asetofstandardcodesthatdefinethedisplayandbehaviorofshapesusedinsubassemblies.

shortcut
Seedatashortcut.

contextmenu
Amenuthatisdisplayedwhenyouselectanobjectandrightclick.Contextmenusarecontextsensitiveso
thatonlycommandsthatarerelativetotheobjectthatyouselectedaredisplayed.

sideyard
Theoffsetdistancefromtheparcelsidesegmentstothesetbackline.

sideshot

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Apointthatiscreatedwithauniqueidentifier,resultingfromrelativeobservations(suchasangles,distances,
verticalangles,andtargetheights)takenfromasurveystationorsetuptolocateapointthatisnotintendedto
beusedasabasefortheextensionofthesurvey.Forexample,atonestation(setup)inatraverseloop,you
cansurveypointsforstonewalls,trees,buildings,andwetlands.

simplespiral
Aspiralthatprovidesasmoothtransitionbetweenatangentofinfiniteradiustoacurveoffiniteradius.See
alsoclothoidspiral,compoundspiral.

site
Acollectionofobjectsthataremanagedbymeansofcommontopology.Theobjectsthatparticipateinthe
topologyareparcels,alignments,andgrading.Seealsotopology.

slope
Amethodofreportingsurfaceinclinationasaratiothatexpressesthehorizontaldistanceinwhichtheelevation
changesbyonelinearunit.Forexample,ifthegroundrises3unitsoverahorizontaldistanceof15linearunits
(metersorfeet),theslopeis5:1(5to1).Seealsograde.

slopeprojection
ThemethodofgradingtoatargetthatiseitherSlope(H:Vvalue)orGrade(percentagevalue).

southazimuth
AzimuthssouthoftheequatorarereferencedtodueSouthclockwise.

SpatialDataTransferStandard
Afileformatdesignedasamechanismforthetransferofspatialdatabetweenvariouscomputersystems.The
SDTSFormatisdesignedtotransferdatawithcompletecontenttransfer(nolossofinformation).

SPI
ReverseSpiralTangent.

spiral
Seeclothoidspiral,compoundspiral,simplespiral.
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spiraltocurve

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(SC)Apointwhereaspiralmeetsacurve.

spiraltotangent
(ST)Apointwhereaspiralmeetsatangent.

splitpoint
Thelocationwheretwofeaturelinescrossalthoughneitherhasageometrypointatthatlocation.Youcannot
directlyedittheelevationofthesepoints.

splitprofile
Aprofileviewthathasareadjusteddatumatastationwhereoneormoreprofilesgoesoutofbounds.This
conditionhappensifaprofileviewthathasauserdefinedheightisnotabletoadequatelyportraythefull
extentsofaprofile.

spotelevation
Theelevationofasinglepointinthedrawing.Usedtodefineareasthataresparseincontourdatawhen
generatingaTINusingcontourinformation.Areasthatmayalsoneedspotelevationsarethetopofhills,
valleys,andbottomofswales.

SS
SpiralSpiralIntersect.

SS_LRB:L
SimpleSpiralLargeRadiusatBeginning.

SS_LRE:STA
SimpleSpiralLargeRadiusatEnd.

SS_SRB:L
SimpleSpiralSmallRadiusatBeginning.

SS_SRE:STA
SimpleSpiralSmallRadiusatEnd.
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ST

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SpiraltoTangentIntersect.Seespiraltotangent.

stackedprofileviews
Acollectionofrelatedprofilesdrawninseparate,verticallyarrangedprofileviews.Typically,acenterlineprofile
iscontainedinoneprofileview,anditsleftandrightoffsetsaredrawninprofileviewsthatareplacedabove
andbelowthecenterlineprofileview.

stackedtext
Whenyoudragalabelfromitspointoforigin,labeltextcanberearrangedbyspecifyingsettingsfortext
justification,textheight,andrelationshiptoborders.

stadia
Atechniqueofdistancemeasurementusingarodandastadiatransit.

stakeout
Theprocessofplacingstakesinthegroundatcontrolpointsonasitethatisbeingdeveloped.Forexample,
afteryouplacepointsinyourdrawing,orafteryoudesignanalignment,youcancreatestakeoutreportsthat
listthecoordinatesofeachstake.Someoneelsecanthenusethesestakeoutreportstoplace(oradjust)the
stakesatthesite.

standardbreakline
Abreaklinedefinedfromselectingconsecutivepointsorpointnumbers,orselected3Dpolylineor3Dline
objects.

starshot
Determiningazimuthbyusingastarratherthanacompass.

station
Adistancealongahorizontalalignment.

stationing
Thelabelingthatprovidesareferencewhentalkingaboutaspecificpointalongthereferencebaseline.

stationequation

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Apointonanalignmentthatdefinesachangeinthestationvaluesafterthatpoint.

stoppingsightdistance
Thedistancerequiredtosafelystopavehicle,travelingatdesignspeed,toavoidacollisionwithanyother
nonmovingobjectsobstructingthetravelpath.

stratum
Thedifferencebetweentwosurfacesthatexistinadrawing,usuallytheexistinggroundsurfaceandafinished
groundsurface,whichisusedforcalculatingvolumes.

structureobject
Atypeofobjectusedtovisuallyrepresentstructuralcomponentsusedinapipenetwork,suchasaheadwall
oracatchbasin.

style
Alogicalcollectionofsettingsthatappliestoaclassofobjects.Stylessimplifytheprocessofapplysettingsby
simplyreferencingastyle.Modifyingastyleaffectsalltheobjectsreferencingthatstyle.

subassembly
AnAutoCADdrawingobject(AECCSubassembly)thatdefinesthegeometryofacomponentusedinacorridor
section.TheAutoCADCivil3Dtoolpaletteandtoolcatalogsprovideavarietyofpreconfiguredsubassemblies,
suchastravellanes,curbs,shoulders,andditches.

subdivision
Anunimprovedtractoflandsurveyedanddividedintoparcelsforpurposesofsales.

sunshot
Determiningazimuthbymakingobservationsonthesunratherthanbyacompass.thechangeincrossslope
or'banking'onahorizontalcurvetohelpcounterbalancethecentrifugalforceofavehicletraversingthecurve

superelevation
Thechangeincrossslopeor'banking'onahorizontalcurvetohelpcounterbalancethecentrifugalforceofa
vehicletraversingthecurve.Seealsocant.
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surface

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Anetworkofelevationdata(eitherTINorGrid).Thepointsofasurfaceareconnectedintoeithertrianglesora
grid,whicharethenusedtointerpolatecontours,andtogenerateprofilesandcrosssections.Asurface
representsthegroundconditionataparticulartimeorevent.

surfaceborder
Seeborder.

surfaceboundary
Seeboundaries.

surfacedistance
Thedistancebetweentwopoints,measuredalongthegroundsurface.Onaslopedsurface,thedistance
betweentwopointscanalsobemeasuredasahorizontaldistanceandaverticaldistance.

surfaceprofile
Aprofileobjectthatrepresentsexistinggroundelevationsalongahorizontalalignmentorotherlinearfeature
thatsupportsprofileviews.Typicallythisdataisderivedfromanexistingsurfaceordatafile,andconsistsofa
seriesofconnectedverticaltangentlineswithoutverticalcurvesdefined.Ifnecessary,youcanaddvertical
curves.

surfacesmoothing
Aprocessthatinterpolatesandextrapolatessurfacedatatoderiveadditionalelevationvalues.Krigingand
NaturalNeighborInterpolation(NNI)arethetwomethodsofsurfacesmoothing.

surveycommandlanguage
Alanguagethatyoucanuseeitherwithadatacollectororwhenyouentersurveydatamanually.This
languagedescribessurveyobservations.Forexample,youcanusetheAD[VA]commandtoenteranangle,
distance,andverticalangle.

surveydatabase
Containsallthecontrolpoints,knowndirections,observationmeasurements,traversedefinitions,figures,and
standarddeviationsbasedonequipmentdatafortheSurveyproject.Thisincludesobservationsimportedfrom
datacollectorfiles,enteredfromtheSurveyToolspacetab(TraverseandObservationEditors,Survey
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CommandWindowandBatchFileprocessing).

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SurveyPoint
ApointthatiscreatedbytheSurveyfeaturesofAutoCADCivil3D,suchasimportingafieldbookorLandXML
filecontainingsurveydata.AsurveypointcanrepresentaControlPoint,NoncontrolPoint,Setup,orSideshot.
WhenasurveypointisplacedintheAutoCADCivil3Ddrawing,itcreatesaspecialAutoCADCivil3DCOGO
pointthatpreventsitslocationanddescriptionfrombeingmodifiedfromoutsidetheAutoCADCivil3DSurvey
features.Forexample,asurveypointlocationmaybeatraversestationwhoselocationisdependentonmany
observationsfromprevioustraversestations,alloriginatingfromaknowncontrolpointanddirection.In
theAutoCADCivil3DdrawingtheSurveyPointdisplaysadifferenticonthantheAutoCADCivil3DCOGO
pointtoindicateitsorigin.

Surveytab
ThetabinToolspacewhereyouaccessandmanagesurveysettings,surveyrelateddatabases,andsurvey
projectdata.

tangent
Astraightlinesegmentthatformspartofahorizontalalignmentorprofile.TangentDistancesaremeasuredas
thehorizontaldistancebetweenthetwoendpoints.

target
Theelementofgradingdesigncriteriathatdetermineswhatthegradingisgoingtointercept.Atargetcanbea
surface,absoluteelevation,relativeelevation,ordistance.

targetline
Seedaylightline.

template
Acollectionofdefaultsettingsandstylesusedtocreateadrawing.

terminators
Graphics,suchasarrowheads,ticks,orcrowsfeet,thatdisplayattheendoflines,arcs,orspirals.

tessellation
Therepresentationofcurvesbyusingshortstraightlinesegments.
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tessellationangle
Controlstheangularspacingofbreaklinesthataresupplementedalongcurvesegments,suchasaround
corners.Usedforsurfacecreationfromgradingobjects.

tessellationspacing
Controlsthespacingofsupplementalbreaklinesthatareaddedtoagradingalongstraightsegments.Usedfor
surfacecreationfromgradingobjects.

tick
Acomponentofalabelthatisusuallyamark(orshortline)insertedinaseriesatperpendicularanglesto
anotherobject,suchasalineorcurve.

TIN

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TriangularIrregularNetwork.ATINsurfaceisthemostcommonmethodofinterpolatingelevationdata.The
pointsareconnectedintotrianglesthatareusedtointerpolateforcontours,andtogenerateprofilesandcross
sections.ThelinesthatmakeupthesurfacetriangulationarecalledTINlines.Seealso3Dface.

TINvolumesurface
Adifferentialsurfacecreatedfromacompositeofpointsbasedonbaseandcomparisonsurface.Alsoknown
asadifferentialsurface.

Toolspacewindow
Awindowthatprovidesanobjectorientedviewofyourengineeringdata.TheToolspacewindowisdividedinto
fourpartsortabs:Prospectortab,Settingstab,Surveytab,andToolboxtab.

topography
ThefeaturesoftheactualsurfaceoftheEarth.

topology
Asetofgeometricconnectionsbetweenobjects.Objectslinkedbytopologymaintaintheirrelationshipswith
oneanother.InAutoCADCivil3D,objectsthatsharethesametopologyaregroupedinasite.Seealsosite.

trackwidth
Inarailwaytrack,thedistancebetweentheinsideedgesoftherailheads.Seealsogauge.

transitrule
Amethodofbalancingatraverse,inwhichoneassumesthattheclosingerrorsarecausedlessbytheerrors
intheobservedanglesthanbytheerrorsinmeasureddistance.Correctionsaredistributedaccordingtothe
ratioofthelatitudeanddepartureofeachlegofthetraverse,tothesumsofthelatitudeanddeparturesofthe
entiretraverse.UsetheTransitRuleoptionwhenitisassumedthatclosingerrorsareduelesstotheerrorsin
theobservedanglesthantoerrorsinthemeasureddistances.

transitionregion
Anareaofagradingthatblendsthecontrolregionsoneithersideofit.Atransitionregionhasnodesigncriteria
assignedtoit.

transparentcommand

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Acommandthatyoucanrunwhileanothercommandisinprogress.Transparentcommandsbeginwithan
apostrophe().

traverse
AmethodofsurveyinginwhichlengthanddirectionsoflinesbetweenpointsontheEarthareobtainedbyor
fromfieldmeasurements,andusedindeterminingpositionsofthepoints.
Traverseclosureforclosedoropenloopsisrecognizedbytheobservationtoacontrol(fixedorknown)point.
Aclosedtraversebeginsandendsatthesamecontrolpoint.Anopentraverseclosesatadifferentcontrol
pointthanthebeginningpoint.

trianglearea
The2dimensional(2D)areaofatrianglefacecomputedfromthenorthingandeastingofeachtrianglepoint.
Thetotaltriangleareaisthesumofall2Dtriangleareaswiththesurfaceboundaries.

trim(surface)
TheprocessofremovingunwantedTINlinesfromasurface,therebyremovingtriangles.

TS
TangentSpiralIntersect.

userdefinedproperty
Apropertydefinedbyyoutoassignvaluestopointsorparcels.Pointsandparcelshavemanydefault
properties,butuserdefinedpropertiesallowyoutospecifyothersasneeded.

userdefinedpropertyclassification
Awaytogroupuserdefinedpropertiesintologicalcategories.

vault
AdatabasethatismanagedbyAutodeskVault.

Vaultreference
AtypeofdatareferencebetweendrawingswithinaVaultproject.

VCC

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VerticalCompoundCurveIntersect.

VCCE
VerticalCompoundCurveIntersectElevation.

VCCS
VerticalCompoundCurveIntersectStation.

verticalalignment
Seeprofile.

verticalangle
Anangleaboveorbelowthehorizontalplane.TheangleisexpressedinDDMMSSfromthishorizon.Vertical
anglesexpressingadownhillslopefromtheinstrumentstationaredescribedwithanegativevalue.Zenith
anglesaresimilartoverticalangles,exceptthatazenithanglehasaverticalreferenceplane.

verticalcurve
Acurveusedonaprofile(mostcommonlyonlayoutprofiles)toprovideagradualchangeinslopefromone
tangenttotheother.Therearethreetypesofverticalcurve:parabolic,circular,andasymmetrical.

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verticaldistance
Adistancemeasuredalongaslopedsurface.Forexample,ifyoumeasureadistancefrompointAtopointB
thatisona3:1grade,thenthatdistanceislongerthanthedistancemeasuredhorizontally.

verticalexaggeration
Anincreaseofverticalscalerelativetohorizontalscale,usedtomakegradechangeseasierto
differentiate.Seeverticalscale.

verticalscale
Thescalethatiscomparedtothehorizontalscaletocalculatetheverticalexaggerationinprofilesandcross
sections.Itdoesnotactuallychangethescalethatisusedwhenthedrawingisplotted.

verticaltohorizontal
Verticalanglesanddistancesareconvertedautomaticallytohorizontalanglesanddistanceswhenyouadjust
atraverseloop,orperformLeastSquaresadjustmentonobserveddata.

voidregion
Anareaalongafootprintwheregradinghasnotbeenapplied,creatingagapinthegrading.

volumesurface
Asurfacethatiscreatedbycalculatingvolumesusingthegrid(differential)orTIN(composite)methods.The
surfaceiscreatedfromthetwosurfacesthatmakeupthestratum.Theelevationvaluesofavolumesurface
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areactuallythedifferencebetweenthetwosurfaces.Forexample,atpoint1000,1000,thebottomsurfacehas

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anelevationof100,andthetopsurfacehasanelevationof150.Theelevationofpoint1000,1000onthe
volumesurfaceisthedifferencebetweenthetwosurfaces,whichis50.

VRC
VerticalReverseCurveIntersect.

VRCE
VerticalReverseCurveIntersectElevation.

VRCS
VerticalReverseCurveIntersectStation.

wallbreakline
Abreaklinethatrepresentssurfacefeaturessuchasretainingwalls,curbs,bridgeabutments,andsoon.

waterdrop
Apathdrawnwitha2Dor3Dpolyline,whichrepresentswaterasitflowsdownhill.

watersheds
Catchmentareasforrainfallthataredelineatedasthedrainageareasproducingrunoff.Baseflowinastream
alsousuallycomesfromthesamearea.

weeding
Theremovalofpointsalongaselectedpolylinerepresentingacontour.Theweedingfactorsdeterminethe
amountofpointsremoved.Youcanuseweedingtoreducetheamountofpointinformationtakenfromthe
contoursthatmaynotbenecessarytogenerateanaccuratesurface.Seealsoweedingfactors.

weedingfactors
Thesettingsusedtoreduceredundantpointsalongthecontoursbyignoringcontourverticesthatareclose
togetheroralongastraightline.Alargerdistanceanddeflectionanglewillweedagreaternumberofpoints.

widening
Atypeofdynamicoffsetalignmentthatexpandsthewidthofaroadwayforaspecifiedlengthtoaccommodate
afeaturesuchasaturnlaneorbusbay.Thewideningusuallyincludesatransitionregionatoneorbothends.
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zenithangle
Thepointdirectlyoverheadorthepointwhereanobserver'sverticallinepiercesthecelestialsphere.Opposite
zenithisthenadir.

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