AUTODESK CIVIL 3D 2005

True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Autodesk commissioned this white paper written by Karl Fuls. Fuls is a Professional Land Surveyor with more than 20 years experience in civil engineering and surveying software. Fuls is an Autodesk Certified Instructor at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, PA. In addition, Fuls conducts independent training for civil, surveying, and architectural firms across the Eastern United States. Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................2 Statement of Purpose ...................................................................................................................2 Overview of Model-Based Road Design .......................................................................................3 Advantages of the Model-Based Approach ..................................................................................4 Advantages of the Data Model..................................................................................................4 Advantages of the Output Model...............................................................................................5 Caveats of the Model-Based Approach ........................................................................................5 Autodesk Land Desktop Versus Autodesk Civil 3D ......................................................................5 Using Autodesk Land Desktop with Autodesk Civil Design ......................................................5 Using Autodesk Civil 3D ...........................................................................................................7 A Model-Based Case Study..........................................................................................................9 Project Planning ........................................................................................................................9 Gathering Project Data..............................................................................................................9 Designing the Horizontal Alignment ........................................................................................10 Designing the Vertical Alignment ............................................................................................11 Designing Typical Cross Sections...........................................................................................13 Designing Horizontal Transitions ............................................................................................14 Designing Vertical Transitions ................................................................................................15 Creating the Corridor ..............................................................................................................21 Creating the Output Model ......................................................................................................24 Use in the Field .......................................................................................................................25 Output Model Characteristics..................................................................................................29 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................31 Benefits of the Model to Contractors and Clients....................................................................31 Benefit of the Model to Designers ...........................................................................................31 Time Savings in Model Creation Using Autodesk Civil 3D......................................................32 Time Savings of Model-Based Design ....................................................................................32

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Executive Summary
This paper compares the methods used in Autodesk Land Desktop to those in Autodesk Civil 3D software in performing model-based design. Specifically, this paper demonstrates how the model-based approach of Civil 3D enables designers to create designs efficiently and accurately. Using Civil 3D, creating the design model becomes the core design process. Civil 3D eliminates time-consuming design sequences, such as data naming, data loading, and regenerating output. Civil 3D reflects changes in the design instantly in the design object and in the formatted output so designers need not perform tedious checking of output. Using Civil 3D eliminates publication errors and makes identifying design errors a part of the design and display process.

Statement of Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the benefits of model-based design over traditional methods, and to show the advantages of using Autodesk Civil 3D software in performing modelbased design. This paper first examines the model-based design process using two different tools, Autodesk Land Desktop (used with Autodesk Civil Design) and the more advanced Civil 3D. The paper then presents a case study of a model-based design that the author performed using Civil 3D.

Recent advances in construction technology enable contractors to robotically control grading operations from digital models of the project. These models define entities such as roadways, parking lots, graded areas, or building sites. The models consist of data files that the contractor loads into the control equipment to directly control the physical grading operations. Using this technology, a contractor can begin construction earlier, control the grading operations more efficiently, eliminate stakeout errors, and deliver a finished site to the client more economically. Using digital output models, a contractor no longer needs paper-based construction documents and line/grade stakeouts to create the final project. Designers must be able to create these models efficiently and provide the contractor an accurate model of the site. The definition of the project should go directly from the design model to the finished site without the need for plotted drawings, stakeout calculations, and other steps associated with manual grading. Eliminating these intervening steps saves time and reduces human error. Coming from a paper-based background, many designers believe that what is plotted is what gets built, regardless of how the plotted documents were produced. Whether the design process consists of all manual calculations or sophisticated automated design, the published construction documents never reflect how the data is compiled. Thus, from the contractors point of view, there is no compelling reason to avoid model-based design. To move to true model-based design, designers must change their way of thinking and the processes used to define a site. Plotted construction documents will always be necessary, but these should reflect the model, not define it. The model supplied to the contractor is what the contractor will build. Designers must be able to produce this model accurately and economically, and to respond quickly to design decisions that affect the final product.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Autodesk Land Desktop does not support true model-based design. Rather, Land Desktops approach reproduces the manual design process with automated tools. This approach segments the design process into separate steps. When you have completed all the steps, you have the data to produce a set of construction documents or a model. These steps consist of discrete operations that are like links in a chain: each operation depends on the operations that came before and feeds the operations that follow. Land Desktop provides no live links between operations to automatically propagate changes in one link to other links in the chain. In contrast, the Autodesk Civil 3D package is a model-based system that projects the design model onto paper through the use of display and labeling styles. Civil 3D plots what the design dictates, so it is impossible to get the plotted product out of sync with the design. If the design changes, replotting the drawings guarantees conformance with the design, and the updated model supplied to the contractor automatically agrees with the updated drawings.

Overview of Model-Based Road Design

Model-based road design is a two-part process consisting of data model design and output model design. In the data-model design process the data becomes a cohesive mathematical definition of the design object. This data includes the existing terrain, the horizontal and vertical alignment, the geometry of the road structure, roadside ditching (if required), and the cut and fill slopes. The output model of a design is the delivered product. Historically, the output model has consisted of a set of drawings that graphically depicted the location of the road, the vertical profile, typical and atypical standard design sections, and numerous sheets of cross sections at specific intervals that showed how the road design interacted with existing conditions. These cross sections have comprised the heart of the design definition. To keep this paper-based output at realistic levels, designers have usually prepared these plotted cross sections at 50-foot (or 25 meter) intervals. Designers have annotated these sections with crucial information needed to construct the roadway, and contractors have converted this graphical information into hard location data to be staked in the field for construction. A true output model is a digital file that contains basic geometric entities (such as 3D faces) and that defines the finished product of the entire design process. Using the road example, a digital output model usually contains a set of 3D faces that define the surfaces of the lanes, shoulders, cut/fill slopes, and gore areas. Unlike the plotted cross sections, these faces typically reflect the design at much closer intervals of 5 feet (or 2 meters). A designer can create an output model from a data model with varying degrees of ease, depending on the architecture of the data model and the tools used to process the data. Typically, if you have a data model, you can also generate design drawings with little additional effort. In contrast, if you start with the paper-based output of a design, you cannot easily create an output model without first creating a data model. The example here started out as a paper-based design definition supplied to a local highway contractor for a section of four-lane bifurcated highway. I agreed to create an output model of 3D faces for use in robotic control of grading activities for subgrade installation. I received the usual construction documentsplan sheets, profile sheets, typical and atypical road and ramp sections, bifurcation tables, and plotted cross sections at 25 m intervals. I also received an AutoCAD drawing that defined alignments as polylines and coordinates based on NAD 27, Zone 18 meters, so all data would be georeferenced. Having georeferenced data was crucial for www.autodesk.com/civil3d

True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D GPS (global positioning system) control but was not a factor for robotic control. Without the tools in Autodesk Land Desktop, Autodesk Civil Design, or Autodesk Civil 3D software, without robotic or GPS control, and without a contractor who was willing to use new technology, I would have done this project the old school waywith grade stakes every 25 meters, string lines, and equipment operators smoothing grades between staked sections. The new tools and a forward-thinking contractor enabled us to move from manual to automated grading control. Robotic control of grading requires a surface model that accurately defines the surface to be constructed. Since all grading control works directly from the model, and the equipment operator does not interact with the grading controls, robotic graders do not perform the typical smoothing from one section to the next that occurs with manually controlled grading. In areas of superelevation transition and areas that traverse horizontal and vertical curves, we must create enough data to represent these transitions as smoothly as possible. At the same time, we must not create a data set that overwhelms the memory of the equipment. Typical mainline areas of this example use 4 m data and problematic areas (transitions, and so forth) use 2 m data. As technology evolves, contractors and design clients evolve as well, and what designers supply to them has to meet their new requirements. As more contractors move to robotic grading, the demand for an output model will become more common, and designers must be able to provide an accurate model. Model-based design helps make this possible.

Advantages of the Model-Based Approach

The model-based approach produces two models, the data model and the output model. The advantages that these models present over paper-based designs are as follows. Advantages of the Data Model The data model provides a single source of definition for the output model. Everything that defines the output model resides in the data set; the data model does not require manual additions or alterations of specific portions. Since the data model creates the output model, designers can avoid laborious, sheet-bysheet checking of plotted information. If the data model is correct, the output model will be correct as well, whether the output model consists of digital data or drawings plotted directly from the data model. Creating a comprehensive data model and viewing the output model clearly shows any errors in design. Creating 0.1 m or 0.2 m contours on the output model quickly shows any surface anomalies that need to be addressed. Viewing the output model in 3D with vertical exaggeration applied also shows areas that may need attention. Since each part of the output model is based on the data model, this approach provides no opportunity for human error, such as transposing numbers, slipping decimal points, or pressing the wrong buttons on the calculator. When designers revise the design concept, they can propagate this change quickly and accurately through the data and output models. The more such dynamic links the software provides between parts of the data set, the easier this process becomes. No matter how sophisticated clients become, plotted output will be with us for a long time to come. Plotting revised drawings based on a revised data/output model requires little

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D or no manual input if designers adhere to a strict data model approach. On the other hand, if designers do any manual tweaking, they will have to correct these tweaks whenever they make changes to the data set. Advantages of the Output Model Using the model-based approach, an output model conforming to the clients needs becomes immediately available for use. In several instances the contractor was able to feed requested changes I made in the model into the robotics just minutes after I emailed them to the job site. The digital format of the output model is more efficient to transport and use. Designers and contractors can email files, place them on memory sticks, and plug them directly into the control equipment. Since output models are based on mathematical data models, you can generate detailed data in the output model that would be impractical by any other method. As mentioned earlier, my example project typically consisted of sections as small as 2 meters. The additional time required to process this amount of data was negligible. An accurate output model is all the contractor needs. The output model should define every nuance of the design and should not require any subsequent calculations on the part of the contractor to implement the design on the ground.

Caveats of the Model-Based Approach

Using a model-based approach requires precise definitions at every step in the design process. This approach does not preclude preliminary type designs, but you must establish a threshold of required information before you can produce a complete model. What-if scenarios may require defining more information than you normally would in the conceptual stage of the design. The recipient must test your output model to ensure complete compatibility. Just because the contractors software accepts 3D faces does not mean that the 3D faces you supply will work every time. The beauty of the model-based approach is that you can alter the output data format without having to change modeling techniques. You may have to be creative in formatting your model-based output for presentation on paper. The Autodesk Civil 3D package provides most of the plotting tools that exist in Autodesk Land Desktop, but it requires that you do extra front-end formatting.

Autodesk Land Desktop Versus Autodesk Civil 3D

As stated previously, Autodesk Land Desktop does not directly support model-based design, but you can use Land Desktop to create a data model and an output model. This section compares the steps required in Land Desktop (in combination with Autodesk Civil Design) with the steps required in Autodesk Civil 3D software. Using Autodesk Land Desktop with Autodesk Civil Design When using Autodesk Civil Design, you manually create each component of the data model and

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D manually link it to the next step in the design process. When you have completed your data model, it is segmented; if you change any part of the data chain, you must propagate the change manually through the rest of the data to update its definition. The basic sequence of events to create a road design data model is as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Create a terrain model representing existing surface conditions. Draw a horizontal alignment and define it by name. Use the alignment to sample the surface to produce profile data. Create a profile of existing conditions for the alignment. Draw a vertical alignment and define it on the profile. Draw and define a road template. Sample the surface at specific intervals to produce cross sections. Use the Design Control command to apply the design templates and to specify the cut/fill slopes. 9. View the templates to confirm the design. 10. Create a 3D grid and display it for the purpose of design confirmation. 11. Calculate road volumes for cut/fill balance or estimating. 12. Create a road surface and display the contours in the drawing. Each of these steps is a separate task, none of which are dynamically linked to steps that precede or follow. If you modify the vertical alignment, you must manually reprocess the sections in design control. If you change the horizontal alignment, you must repeat steps 3 through 5 and 7 through 12 to reflect the change in the finished sections. Another important factor in the Autodesk Land Desktop/Civil Design approach is that the data created resides in an external project file. The entities shown in the drawing are, at best, loosely linked to this data. Every graphical change you make in the drawing (for example, changing the vertical alignment) you must propagate back into the project data before you can calculate the remaining steps. When designers have to adjust the width of lanes, apply ditching, or change cross slope characteristics of the road design, they must also produce transition alignments, profiles, or both. This task adds to the list of required data and becomes part of the sequence shown earlier. Each template can potentially include eight transition points to the left of centerline and eight to the right. The rules for correctly using these transitions are strict, and managing multiple transitions within an alignment can be challenging. As with most of the data items in Autodesk Land Desktop/Civil Design, these transitions reside in external files. You must add them to the design through design control. One of the least understood aspects of the Autodesk Land Desktop/Civil Design method is how to apply data through design control. You enter design control with a list of sampled sections, say, every 25 meters. When you apply a cut/fill slope, the software applies it to each of the sampled sections in the list, not to the alignment. The same holds true for ditching, transitions, and template selection. If you add another sampled section to the list, the software may or may not apply the running controls to it, depending on where it falls in the list. This is particularly significant with respect to transitions. When you apply a transition alignment/profile through design control, the software stores it as an offset distance (alignment) or an elevation (profile) for a specific section. If you add a sampled section, you must reapply all transition alignment and profile data in design control to have it take effect on added sections.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D This process is laborious and requires extreme diligence during the design process. You must maintain a strict naming convention for your transition alignments. To ensure the integrity of your processed sections, you must reapply them whenever the data set changes. Adding sampled sections to a design is a common occurrence. Making sure they are properly controlled by your design constraints is tedious. Once the design process is complete in Autodesk Land Desktop/Autodesk Civil Design, youre ready to create your output model. Again, you manually craft the output model from the processed sections. Once created, the output model contains just a set of 3D faces, a set of points, or a surfacenone of which are directly connected to the design model, and none of which are connected to each other. Any change in the design model requires you to manually re-create all parts of the output model. Using Autodesk Civil 3D The Autodesk Civil 3D system uses a radically different approach to model design. Each piece of the design chain resembles its counterpart in Autodesk Land Desktop/Autodesk Civil Design, but in Civil Design the links between pieces of the chain are live, meaning that if you make a change in one part of the chain, it propagates automatically to the other parts. Also, in Civil 3D you follow a slightly different sequence from that in Land Desktop/Civil Design. The following describes the process for a simple corridor design in Civil 3D: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Create a terrain model representing existing surface conditions. Create a named horizontal alignment. Create a profile of existing conditions for the alignment.1 Create a vertical alignment on the profile.2 Create a corridor assembly (typical section) from subassemblies. Link the assembly to the corridor and display the resulting processed design.3

Although the sequence of steps resembles that of Autodesk Land Desktop/Autodesk Civil Design, in Autodesk Civil 3D the links between the data used in the various steps are live. Thus, users need not update all dependencies when they make a change to the data. The software does this automatically. The process of changing a horizontal alignment illustrates the advantage of Autodesk Civil 3D software over Autodesk Land Desktop/Autodesk Civil Design in achieving true model-based data (and ultimately model-based output). Using Land Desktop/Civil Design requires the following steps to reprocess a horizontal alignment edit: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
1

Edit the horizontal alignment. Resample the horizontal alignment for profile data. Re-create the profile. Edit the finish grade vertical alignment to agree with the new centerline geometry. Resample the alignment for sections (due to stationing change).4

Sampling occurs automatically as part of the profile creation process. The profile is now dynamically linked to the alignment and the surface. 2 A separate definition step is not required. The vertical alignment is also dynamically linked to the alignment. 3 Autodesk Civil 3D software immediately displays the road grid, daylight boundary, and finish contours in the drawing.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D 6. Edit the design control for the revised data.5 7. View the templates to confirm the design. 8. Re-create the 3D grid and display it for design confirmation. 9. Recalculate road volumes for cut/fill balance or estimating. 10. Re-create the road surface and display the contours in the drawing. In contrast, Autodesk Civil 3D software requires the following steps to reprocess a horizontal alignment edit: 1. Edit the horizontal alignment. 2. Edit the finish grade vertical alignment to agree with new centerline geometry.6 Unlike with Autodesk Land Desktop/Autodesk Civil Design, if you dont like the edit in the Autodesk Civil 3D system you can simply undo until the old horizontal alignment displays (or reopen the original drawing that you saved before you made the edits) and the software revises all pertinent dependent corridor data to reflect the current state of the data set. In Land Desktop/Civil Design, you must edit the horizontal alignment back to its original state and reprocess all the dependent data accordingly. Civil 3D contains the entire model (data and output) in the drawing; you do not have to update or reapply external definition files when you make a change. For alternative design analysis, save each version as a separate drawing, and when you make the final decision on the corridor, simply use the corridor from the correct drawing.

You need to reenter noninterval sampling stations. If you use transition alignments or profiles, you must individually reattach them since the software calculates the offsets and elevations from the horizontal alignment geometry and profile data. 6 Autodesk Civil 3D software updates the profile data, profile labeling, corridor processing, corridor surface, drawing display, and volumes automatically.
5

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

A Model-Based Case Study

Nearly every design tool assumes that the project involves perfect design tasks, for which every aspect of the design follows common engineering rules. In such tasks, for example, all changes in centerline grade occur with a vertical curve, all superelevations have classic proportions, and multilane roadways are symmetrical about the design centerline. Its when you wander off the typical design path that software makes your task easier or more difficult. The subject of this case study posed some atypical challenges that illustrate the benefits of modelbased design. In this case study I used the Autodesk Civil 3D package to create a detailed surface model for robotic-controlled grading of the subgrade of a four-lane bifurcated highway. A total robotic station controlled placement and final grading of the subbase. The robotic station communicated with the grading equipment (dozer with stone box for placement and grader for final grading) and tracked the exact location of the equipment, including the elevation of the stone box and blade. A display showed the operators the location of the equipment and the edges of the proposed lanes. Using this display, the operators controlled only the location, direction, and speed of the equipment. The system constantly communicated the exact location and elevation of the device to the robotic station occupying a known control point. The total station had a surface model of the project loaded in its memory and continuously compared the device elevation (box/blade) to that of the design surface at the equipments location. The station sent control signals to the hydraulics to adjust the box/blade to the correct design elevation. This eliminated the need for grade staking and grade lines for equipment control. Project Planning During the planning portion of this modeling project, it became clear that 25 m spacing of the sections yielded insufficient data to properly define the surface for robotic control. After some experimentation, I decided to model the tangent portions of the main roadway with 4 m sections and spiral/curve portions at 2 meters. I decided to model all access ramps at 2 m intervals. The project encompassed about 10.5 km of roadway, but for brevity in this case study I show how I modeled the portion extending from station (Sta.) 109+000 to 110+380. This segment also covers the most complicated portion of the project. Gathering Project Data The original project designers used CADD software only for producing (drafting) the construction documents. I received one CAD file (containing the centerlines and edges of pavement), one set of 11x17 plan/profile drawings, one set of 11x17 typical sections, and one set of 11x17 design sections done every 25 m. When I requested the design data used, I received the superelevation data in spreadsheet form and learned that this data, coupled with the sections, comprised the entire definition of the project. The designers had calculated all the design sections manually and had drafted them accordingly. Elevation data between the plotted sections existed only at specific design stations (points of curvature, points of tangency, and so on) based on the superelevation data. The design parameters for this section of roadway are far from typical. While the design centerline profile does use tangents and vertical curves, the opposing southbound (SB) lanes are bifurcated (separated horizontally and vertically). I modeled the range where the bifurcation was waning based on a design table of vertical/horizontal offsets from the design centerline. The vertical grade/alignment in this transition region is purely graphical for the SB lanes. www.autodesk.com/civil3d

True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D While working on the actual project (which had originally been designed in Autodesk Land Desktop 2004), I discovered several areas where the plotted design data in the sections conflicted with the vertical alignments and other supplemental information. I also discovered that many changes occurred in the pavement structure between the supplied 25 m stations. Transitions for shoulder rollover occurred over an 8 m distance, and none of these were accurately reflected in the provided 25 m sections. Crucial horizontal and vertical changes in the alignment/profilethe inclusion of which was mandatory for accurate modelingoften occurred at non-25 m stations. Effective robotic control required roadway surface data at an interval far smaller than 25 m to construct a smooth road surface that adhered to the overall design scheme. To fill in the gaps between the 25 m stations, I had to secure the superelevation spreadsheets from the design firm to accurately model what was happening in the curves. The firm did not supply this data as part of the construction documents. I dont know how the contractor could have manually set grades for data he did not have. I suppose this is where the equipment operator would have smoothed the areas between staked sectionsdefinitely not an accurate method when it comes to high-speed highways. Designing the Horizontal Alignment I received the design horizontal alignment in the form of graphics and a definition. Using the graphics, I created an alignment named CL Rte 15 Partial starting at Sta. 109+000 and ending at 110+380 (1.38 km).7 The following diagram shows the graphical representation of the design centerline with travel lanes:

As mentioned earlier, the actual modeling project ran over 10.5 km, but I am using only a portion of the overall model for this presentation.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Designing the Vertical Alignment To control the roadway vertically, I needed to create profiles, starting with the design centerline for the CL Route 15 Partial alignment. The supplied design data for this portion of the project is as follows:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Applying this definition to the alignment, I got the following profile view:

Because this roadway is bifurcated, the inside edge of the northbound (NB) lane follows the design centerline profile and the SB lanes are offset vertically from the design centerline based on the bifurcation chart supplied by the designers:
Sta 109+000 109+020 109+040 109+060 109+080 109+100 109+120 109+140 109+160 109+180 109+200 109+220 109+240 109+260 109+280 109+300 109+320 109+340 NB 370.508 370.068 369.628 369.188 368.748 368.308 367.868 367.428 366.988 366.548 366.108 365.668 365.228 364.788 364.348 363.908 363.468 363.028 SB 366.820 366.380 365.940 365.500 365.060 364.621 364.216 363.867 363.562 363.261 362.961 362.662 362.363 362.064 361.766 361.467 361.168 360.869 Bifurcation Table Diff Sta 3.688 109+360 3.688 109+380 3.688 109+400 3.688 109+420 3.688 109+440 3.687 109+460 3.652 109+480 3.561 109+500 3.426 109+520 3.287 109+540 3.147 109+560 3.006 109+580 2.865 109+600 2.724 109+620 2.582 109+640 2.441 109+660 2.300 109+680 2.159 109+700 NB 362.588 362.148 361.708 361.273 360.875 360.521 360.209 359.940 359.715 359.532 359.393 359.297 359.244 359.233 359.266 359.342 359.457 359.577 SB 360.570 360.271 359.972 359.672 359.386 359.150 358.968 358.839 358.764 358.742 358.774 358.860 358.979 359.098 359.218 359.337 359.457 359.577 Diff 2.018 1.877 1.736 1.601 1.489 1.371 1.241 1.101 0.951 0.790 0.619 0.437 0.264 0.135 0.048 0.005 0.000 0.000

The following partial profile shows this bifurcation transition graphically:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Designing Typical Cross Sections The following schematic shows the required cross section for this model. I needed the various points in the cross section to address lane and shoulder width changes and to accommodate variations in shoulder cross sections in superelevations.

I needed horizontal and vertical control for six transition points to the left and six to the right in the final assembly to enable accurate modeling of the supplied design. I named these L8L3 (SB) and R3R8 (NB). Following Autodesk Land Desktop conventions, I numbered my transitions from centerline out and prefixed them with L (left) and R (right) as appropriate. Since this modeling project started in Land Desktop, I kept the same naming convention to eliminate confusion. The assembly (template in Autodesk Land Desktop terms) I needed required multiple subassemblies to address the various horizontal and vertical controls being applied. For simplicity, I show generic subassemblies here since I was modeling only the top surface of the roadway. Since the project had a constant 370 mm pavement thickness, I was able to lower the final surface for placement of the subbase material. The following shows the assembly used with the corresponding control locations for horizontal and vertical transitions:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Designing Horizontal Transitions I defined the horizontal transition alignments from the existing polylines that represented the specific features of the roadway: edges of shoulder (L3, L8, R3, R8), edges of pavement (L5, L6, R5, R6), and shoulder rollovers (L4, L7, R4, R7). The following is a portion of the road plan showing the various transitions, with the defined alignment name in parentheses:

Creating alignments from polylines, the alignment list for this project now appeared as follows:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Designing Vertical Transitions The superelevations used were not symmetrical about the point of intersection of the curve/spiral, and the built-in superelevation routines could not adhere to the supplied design, so I modeled these from the superelevation spreadsheets provided by the designer. To further complicate the superelevation issue, the original designers applied runout and runoff differently to the NB and SB portions of the curve to account for the bifurcation transition and difference in circular curve radius The following is a typical superelevation chart from the project:
SOUTHBOUND PAVEMENT ORDINATE WIDTH (m) (m) -0.144000 -0.144000 NORTHBOUND PAVEMENT ORDINATE TRANSITION REMARKS (m) RATE -0.144000 0.000741 BEGIN SE TRANS

REMARKS

TRANSITION RATE 0.000000 0.000000

e RATE

7.200000 -0.020000 7.200000 -0.020000

0.000000 0.000000

-0.144000 -0.144000

7.200000 -0.020000 7.200000 -0.020000

0.000000 BEGIN SE TRANS -0.000741 -0.000741

-0.144000 -0.144000 -0.226709

7.2000

-0.020000

7.200000 -0.020000 7.200000 -0.031487

-0.000741 -0.000741

-0.288000 -0.333376

7.200000 -0.040000 7.200000 -0.046302

-0.000741 -0.000741

-0.432000 -0.440043

7.200000 -0.060000 7.200000 -0.061117

END SE TRANS

-0.000741 -0.000741

-0.546709 -0.576000

7.200000 -0.075932 7.200000 -0.080000

e WIDTH RATE (m) 109082.439000 -0.020000 7.200000 109090.492000 109100.000000 109100.000000 -0.006992 7.200000 109109.439000 0.000000 7.200000 109117.492000 109120.000000 109120.000000 0.007823 7.200000 109128.439000 0.014074 7.200000 109136.439000 0.020000 7.200000 109140.000000 109140.000000 0.022638 7.200000 109144.492000 109160.000000 109160.000000 0.037453 7.200000 109163.439000 0.040000 7.200000 109171.492000 109180.000000 109180.000000 0.052267 7.200000 109182.439000 0.054074 7.200000 109190.439000 0.060000 7.200000 109198.492000 109200.000000 109200.000000 0.067082 7.200000 109217.439000 0.080000 7.200000 109220.000000 109225.492000

STATION

-0.050341 0.000000

0.000741 0.000741

LEVEL SECTION

0.056325 0.101333 0.144000 0.162992

0.000741 0.000741 0.000741 0.000741

Begin Roll-over

0.269659 0.288000

0.000741 0.000741

0.376325 0.389333 0.432000

0.000741 0.000741 0.000741

Begin Roll-over

0.482992 0.576000

0.000741 0.000741

END SE TRANS

As is evident in the preceding table, applying standard superelevation parameters based on the design centerline would not work because the superelevation applied asymmetrically on the NB and SB curves. Also notice that the design applied a rollover type shoulder at specific points in the alignment. Not to be confused with the rollover rate, a rollover shoulder indicates where the high side shoulder takes on a positive slope for a portion of its cross section and a negative slope for the balance. I discuss this below when I introduce shoulder rules. To address this atypical superelevation, and to provide exact modeling data for crucial stations not depicted on the 25 m design cross sections, I had to build a Microsoft Excel worksheet that would calculate and organize the data for this design. With the design grade and the superelevation data, I could calculate the edge of pavement elevations for the NB and SB cartways at standard intervals and at crucial horizontal and vertical design stations (points of curvature, points of tangency, PVCs, PVTs, and so on).

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D The shoulder rules applied to this design specified that on the low side of superelevations, the normal 4 percent shoulder slope would acquire the superelevation slope (E value) when it reached 4 percent, and would follow the E value through the curve and then descend with the E value until it reached the normal 4 percent slope. On the high side, I applied a two-step rule. For E values of 2 to 4 percent, the normal shoulder slope of 4 percent transitioned to 2 percent over a distance of 8 m prior to the superelevation station. For E values of 6 percent or more, the shoulder transitioned from 2 percent to a crowned shoulder of 1.2 m at 3 percent and 3.0 m at 2 percent over a distance of 8 m prior to the station where E equals 6 percent. The following is a schematic of the shoulder rules as applied to the left horizontal curve in the data set.

To address all the required control points in the roadway, I needed a total of 12 vertical control points (L8L3 and R3R8) in the final template. The R3 point in the NB lane followed the design centerline profile, and the L3 point in the SB lane followed the values contained in the bifurcation table. These two points also followed the design centerline alignments for the NB and SB lanes, which varied in offset from the design centerline based on bifurcation distance.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D The edges of shoulders transitioned horizontally in specific areas to accommodate entrance and exit ramps. I controlled the horizontal transition with transition alignments gleaned from the supplied drawing. I calculated the elevations in the Excel spreadsheet following the various superelevation and shoulder rule parameters (discussed earlier) that may have been in effect. The following is a portion of the spreadsheet used to create transition control profiles for each segment of the SB roadway. The L designations (L8L3) refer to transition points in the template and correspond to the points on the preceding shoulder rule schematic. The NB portion of the roadway uses similar notation (R3R8).

To identify the areas where each of the design parameters is in force, I have applied the following color-coding scheme to the preceding worksheet:

Design grade data Shoulder slope transitionlow side of superelevation (SE) Rollover transitionhigh side of SE (24 percent) Rollover transitionhigh side of SE (rounded to 2 percent) Width transitions Normal section Super transition Graphical grade section

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Concatenating station/elevation for each of the six control points (L8L3) for the SB lane gave me the format for a profile that I could bring into the drawing (via the Create From File command) and add to the design alignment profile. I generated the following data from the portion of the worksheet shown above:
SB L8 Profile 109000 366.481 109012.174 366.205 109014.5 366.153 109014.6 366.163 109020 366.043 109040 365.597 109060 365.151 109080 364.706 109097.145 364.323 109100 364.261 109115.516 363.938 109120 363.851 109136.492 363.556 109140 363.498 109144.492 363.426 109160 363.067 109171.492 362.795 109180 362.566 109190.492 362.282 109198.492 362.063 109200 362.022 109220 361.481 109223.516 361.387 109225.492 361.335 109240 361.115 109260 360.816 109280 360.518 109300 360.199 109320 359.885 109340 359.564 109360 359.242 109380 358.921 109400 358.600 109417.9 358.313 109418 359.056 109420 359.022 109440 358.714 109460 358.462 109480 358.251 109500 358.089 109520 357.960 109540 357.866 109557.818 357.811 SB L7 Profile 109000 366.616 109012.174 366.349 109014.5 366.297 109014.6 366.283 109020 366.163 109040 365.717 109060 365.271 109080 364.826 109097.145 364.443 109100 364.381 109115.516 364.058 109120 363.971 109136.492 363.676 109140 363.618 109144.492 363.546 109160 363.187 109171.492 362.915 109180 362.705 109190.492 362.444 109198.492 362.243 109200 362.205 109220 361.709 109223.516 361.623 109225.492 361.575 109240 361.355 109260 361.056 109280 360.758 109300 360.439 109320 360.125 109340 359.804 109360 359.482 109380 359.161 109400 358.840 109417.9 358.553 109418 359.056 109420 359.022 109440 358.714 109460 358.462 109480 358.251 109500 358.089 109520 357.960 109540 357.866 109557.818 358.051 SB L6 Profile 109000 366.664 109012.174 366.397 109014.5 366.345 109014.6 366.331 109020 366.211 109040 365.765 109060 365.319 109080 364.874 109097.145 364.491 109100 364.429 109115.516 364.106 109120 364.019 109136.492 363.724 109140 363.666 109144.492 363.594 109160 363.235 109171.492 362.963 109180 362.761 109190.492 362.509 109198.492 362.315 109200 362.278 109220 361.800 109223.516 361.717 109225.492 361.671 109240 361.451 109260 361.152 109280 360.854 109300 360.535 109320 360.221 109340 359.900 109360 359.578 109380 359.257 109400 358.936 109417.9 358.649 109418 359.078 109420 359.048 109440 358.762 109460 358.526 109480 358.344 109500 358.215 109520 358.140 109540 358.118 109557.818 358.147 SB L5 Profile 109000 366.820 109012.174 366.553 109014.5 366.501 109014.6 366.499 109020 366.380 109040 365.940 109060 365.500 109080 365.060 109097.145 364.683 109100 364.621 109115.516 364.302 109120 364.216 109136.492 363.924 109140 363.867 109144.492 363.796 109160 363.562 109171.492 363.389 109180 363.261 109190.492 363.104 109198.492 362.984 109200 362.961 109220 362.662 109223.516 362.610 109225.492 362.580 109240 362.363 109260 362.064 109280 361.766 109300 361.467 109320 361.168 109340 360.869 109360 360.570 109380 360.271 109400 359.972 109417.9 359.704 109418 359.702 109420 359.672 109440 359.386 109460 359.150 109480 358.968 109500 358.839 109520 358.764 109540 358.742 109557.818 358.771 SB L4 Profile 109000 366.772 109012.174 366.505 109014.5 366.453 109014.6 366.451 109020 366.332 109040 365.892 109060 365.452 109080 365.012 109097.145 364.635 109100 364.573 109115.516 364.254 109120 364.168 109136.492 363.876 109140 363.830 109144.492 363.772 109160 363.538 109171.492 363.365 109180 363.237 109190.492 363.080 109198.492 363.008 109200 362.985 109220 362.686 109223.516 362.634 109225.492 362.604 109240 362.387 109260 362.088 109280 361.790 109300 361.491 109320 361.192 109340 360.893 109360 360.594 109380 360.295 109400 359.996 109417.9 359.728 109418 359.726 109420 359.696 109440 359.410 109460 359.174 109480 358.992 109500 358.863 109520 358.788 109540 358.766 109557.818 358.795 SB L3 Profile 109000 366.772 109012.174 366.505 109014.5 366.453 109014.6 366.451 109020 366.332 109040 365.892 109060 365.452 109080 365.012 109097.145 364.635 109100 364.573 109115.516 364.254 109120 364.168 109136.492 363.876 109140 363.830 109144.492 363.772 109160 363.538 109171.492 363.365 109180 363.237 109190.492 363.080 109198.492 363.008 109200 362.985 109220 362.686 109223.516 362.634 109225.492 362.604 109240 362.387 109260 362.088 109280 361.790 109300 361.491 109320 361.192 109340 360.893 109360 360.594 109380 360.295 109400 359.996 109417.9 359.728 109418 359.726 109420 359.696 109440 359.410 109460 359.174 109480 358.992 109500 358.863 109520 358.788 109540 358.766 109557.818 358.795

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D The final piece of control data I needed consisted of the vertical profiles for each of the transitions in the assembly. Using the design spreadsheet, I created a set of data that represented station/offset for each component of the roadway. Using this data, I created an ASCII file in the format of station, elevation for each transition point. Using Profiles>Create From File in the pull-down menus, I imported these values as a defined profile for the design alignment. My profile list for the design alignment now appeared as follows:

The following diagram shows the right (NB) transitions through a fully superelevated curve to the left where the rollover shoulder on the high side is in effect:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D A blowup of the R6R7 transition profiles shows how the rollover shoulder was created:

Note that I also added a profile called Median. Since the purpose of this project was to model the cartway and shoulder areas only, the median area does not directly concern us. However, using the design grade for the median center created some odd-looking topography in the bifurcated area, so I derived a median profile by averaging the inner edge elevations of the NB and SB shoulders and creating a profile from the averages. This produced an even grade between the innermost edges of the shoulders and made viewing the contours less confusing. So far, I have described how I accumulated the horizontal and vertical control data for each aspect of the design template, treating NB and SB as separate entities. To complete the model, I brought this data together into a corridor definition that included the 12 vertical controls (L8L3, R3R8) and the corresponding 12 horizontal controls (L8L3, R3R8) calculated from the various sources of the provided design data (AutoCAD drawing, design sections, design profiles, and superelevation worksheets).

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Creating the Corridor I created a corridor using the preceding assembly, the centerline alignment, the 12 horizontal alignments, the 12 vertical alignments, and the median profile for the centerline grade. The first step in corridor constructions was to specify the baseline (CL Route 15 Partial), region range (109+000 to 110+380), assembly used (Rte 15), and frequency of sampling. The following shows the parameters applied:

You establish the frequency of sampling by clicking the ellipsis () in the frequency column. The following dialog box appears for user entry: For robotic control, I had to strike a balance between reasonable frequency of data to produce a good constructed surface and the memory capability of the control systems. Using 1 m sampling, data for about one-half of the NB lane (Sta. 106+000 to 110+480) completely exhausted the memory in the control unit. I switched to 4 m sections on tangents and 2 m data on curve and spirals for the NB and SB lanes. On the access ramps I used 2 m spacing on tangents and 1 m on curves and spirals due to the rapidly changing superelevations and tight horizontal geometry. The user-specified stations shown reflect unique locations on the alignment where horizontal changes occur in the assembly. Although I could have enabled the At Horizontal Geometry Points option, this would have provided only centerline geometry points and nothing for the attached alignments for transitions.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D The last step in modeling the corridor was to attach the transition profiles and alignments to the corridor definition. Clicking the ellipsis in the Logical Name column for the corridor region takes you to the Logical Name Mapping dialog box. The software attaches the various alignments and profiles by name to the corresponding subassembly in the corridor assembly. When constructing the assembly, I used names for the subassemblies that reflected their purpose (median, shoulder, lane) and the transition points that controlled them (L3, R4, and so on). This made attaching the profiles and alignments much easier to understand.

I have now described how I applied all the defining data to the corridor design. After processing, the Autodesk Civil 3D software displayed the corridor showing the sampling data, the links between sampled sections, and the corridor contours. The following diagram shows a portion of the corridor approaching the first horizontal curve to the left in the vicinity of the bifurcation transition (left) and a portion in the vicinity of the access ramps where considerable lane width transitions occur (right):

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Note the superelevation transition on the left snapshot and how the rollover shoulder develops. The right snapshot shows the lane width anticipation of an exit ramp while the main cartway is in full superelevation. It is interesting to note that the preceding displays represent a single objecta corridorand this corridor contains or directly references all the data used in its creation. If an alignment changes, the corridor reflects the change. If a profile changes, the contours of the corridor reflect that change. Making a simple change no longer requires tedious reapplication and reprocessing of bits and pieces of data in design control. Its impossible to miss a step when making changes because the software requires no steps once the corridor is built. If any of the defining data changes, Autodesk Civil 3D reflects those changes in the corridor display when it rebuilds. You can add more sampling stations and the corridor rebuilds automatically when you accept the added stations.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Creating the Output Model The final product of all this work was a surface that a robotic control unit could use for subgrade placement and grading. Everything I created above simply became the input to the model. The contractor did not need this information except for verification purposes. The only data I transmitted to the field was the surface. You create a surface from the corridor using the Corridors>Export>Corridor Surfaces command. In this instance I used the default surface name of Rte 15 Top. The following diagram shows the same areas viewed previously as a corridor, but now the display shows only the surface contours on the left and the surface triangles on the right:

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D Use in the Field When I had previously used Autodesk Land Desktop, the contractor used the 3D faces created from the processed sections to build a surface in Topcon Office-3D, which could import 3D faces from AutoCAD drawings. Since Autodesk Civil 3D software currently cannot export the 3D faces from the corridor or the triangles from the corridor surface, I output the surface in LandXML format to bridge the gap from Civil 3D to the robotic total station that controlled the grading process. Following are several photos of the grading and control equipment in operation on Route 15. Notice that you dont see the normal forest of grade stakes, steel stands, or string lines along the roadway.

GPS-controlled placement of subgrade material. This method, although accurate enough for material placement (+/30 mm), was not accurate enough for final grading. Instead of using two different methods, the contractor opted to use robotic control for all placement and grading operations.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

The robotic total station used to control the grading operation. Occupying a known point, the total station communicated in real time with the grading equipment, so it had the exact location of the box/blade and instantly adjusted the elevation to match the loaded roadway surface.

The dozer/stone box with robotic transponder attached

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

The grader with the robotic transponder attached. Note the absence of grade stakes and other means of manual grade control.

A view of the project looking up-station at the superelevated curve near the ramp area. Note the bifurcation transition before the curve.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

A view of the project looking down-station at the bifurcated roadway.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

A blowup of the ramp area. This view actually shows three different corridors.

A view of Ramp C entering the main NB lanes. Note how the ramp transitions from full superelevation to a manual superelevation to match the cross slope of the NB lane.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Conclusion
Model-based design potentially benefits all parties involved in the design process, from designers to contractors to clients. Model-based design reaches its full potential if you use the proper tools, such as Autodesk Civil 3D software. This section summarizes the benefits to designers, contractors, and clients. Benefits of the Model to Contractors and Clients The compactness of the final model, coupled with the exacting definition used to compile it, gives contractors a data set they can use to accurately and efficiently construct a complex roadway and appurtenant areas, with a minimum of manual stakeout and virtually no postprocessing of the design data. The contractor applies the output model directly to the ground, eliminating layout mistakes and achieving significantly enhanced efficiency. In the actual case study project, the contractor surpassed completion goals for the remaining construction season. Since we reverse engineered this project from plotted documents and other supplied data that did not follow classic rules of behavior, we had to do far more work to reflect the supplied design in the final model than we would have done to model it completely in the design stage. We spent a lot of time and effort to gather the data, create definitions from the data, transform sparse information into a more verbose format needed to control the vertical transitions within the alignment, and compile all this input data into a corridor model. If we had used the Autodesk Civil 3D model-based design techniques from the beginning, the output model would have emerged as a normal product of the design cycle, which we could have delivered to the contractor in addition to the plotted drawings. Whether we had used robotic control of grading or conventional line/grade stakeout, we still would have needed to process this data into a usable form that accurately reflected the design intent. We could have saved all this time and effort if a design model had been available. Benefit of the Model to Designers As a side benefit of true model-based design, you discover errors during the design phase. You can almost consider the model a digital prototype that makes it easy to see when conflicts arise. The exit and entrance ramps in this project provide a good example of this benefit. Based on superelevation data and the profiles, the mating edge of one of the exit ramps differed from the edge of the NB lane it was mating with by 0.2 m. When I discovered this anomaly from the offset in the finish contours of my model, I contacted the designers and they supplied me with revised superelevation data for the ramp that resolved the problem. It appears that they had discovered and corrected this anomaly on their end but had failed to update the construction documents accordingly. Everyone makes errors, and we do everything we can to make sure they never leave the office. With a large project like this one, the chance of errors becomes greater when many people work on different aspects of the projects. The QA process also becomes complex. The more heavily methods rely on manual input in creating the construction documents, the harder it is to find and correct errors. From the contractors point of view, having a single surface that directly controls the grading operation is far simpler and less prone to human error than calculating, setting, labeling, and using grade stakes.

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True Model-Based Design with Autodesk Civil 3D

Time Savings in Model Creation Using Autodesk Civil 3D Although using Autodesk Land Desktop with Autodesk Civil Design produces identical results to using Autodesk Civil 3D software, these two approaches involve quite different processes. Civil 3D, being model-based, does not require the repeated manual updating of data to reflect changes. It does not require you to resample when you add stations, then reapply transitions to the new stations, then reprocess the sections, and then rebuild the surface and contours. Civil 3D automatically updates the surface and contours for the current state of the designwhat you see in the corridor object is the current state of the design. Since I modeled this project with both the Autodesk Land Desktop 2004 and Autodesk Civil 3D tools, I can easily see how much time I would have saved creating the model if I had used Civil 3D originally did the project. The hours of redefining and reapplying horizontal and vertical transitions would still be mine. I would not have spent hours redefining and re-creating the roadway surface for visual checking. I would not have wasted hours because I had picked the wrong transitions to apply to design control and then had to correct them. I estimate I could have cut my actual modeling time (not counting data acquisition and processing) by 5075 percent using Civil 3D over Land Desktop. I would have realized part of this savings by virtue of the model being the data, enabling me to see in real time the exact state of the design. The balance of the time savings would have resulted from removing me (and the chance for manual error) out of the chain of operations required in Land Desktop. Time Savings of Model-Based Design Had the original designer used model-based design, all the hours I put into this project could have been spent elsewhere. The contractor would have obtained the surface model directly from the design, and I could have passed on the time and cost savings to the contractor and client. As we obtain better tools for model-based design such as Autodesk Civil 3D , we must commit to truly model in the design stage rather than revert to cartooning the design when things get a little sticky or deadlines loom. Model-based design does require specific input at specific points in the design process, but with a tool like Civil 3D, a design can start simply and evolve as additional design decisions are made.

Autodesk and Civil 3D are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document. 2005 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.

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