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Civil Site Design V24.10

This page contains important information regarding the installation and use of Civil Site Design V24.10.

Civil Site Design is available for the following platforms (note: V24.01 does not support Autodesk 2016/2017 platforms) :

  • AutoCAD 2018 to AutoCAD 2024
  • BricsCAD V21 (version 21.2.06 or later)
  • BricsCAD V22 (version 22.1.07 or later)
  • BricsCAD V23
  • Civil 3D 2018 to Civil 3D 2024
  • Civil Site Design Plus

CONTENTS

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

UPDATED FILE FORMAT

If you are currently using a prior version to Civil Site Design V23.10, then Civil Site Design V24.00 on a drawing will upgrade the data format. This will make the Civil Site Design data incompatible with all previous versions.  This format change will be applied when the drawing is opened and any Civil Site Design command is run. There is no undo for this change.

After accessing the data with Civil Site Design V24.00, opening the same drawing in a version of Civil Site Design PRIOR TO V23.10, will display a message that the database format is incompatible and all Civil Site Design functionality will be disabled while open in that version.

NAHIMIC SOFTWARE INTERFERES WITH MODEL VIEWER

We have found that the software ‘Nahimic’ may prevent Model Viewer from displaying – the installation of Nahimic creates a conflict in Eyeshot (the graphics engine we use in Model Viewer).

If Model Viewer will not open, please check if Nahimic is installed. If so, updating Nahimic may resolve the issue. Uninstalling it will resolve the issue.

Nahimic software provides enhanced audio (typically for gamers) and is commonly installed with gaming laptops. More information about Nahimic can be found here: https://www.nahimic.com/gamers/

INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS

CIVIL SITE DESIGN

If you are upgrading from Civil Site Design V23 or earlier, you will need a V24 license key to continue use beyond the default 30 day evaluation period.

Subscription customers can obtain their V24 license keys, and obtain Home Use Licenses, directly from the Customer Centre:

customer centre

Refer to the Software Installation Guide for installation instructions:

software installation guide

users must right click on the application icon and select ‘Run as Administrator’. This only needs to be done on first time operation of the software.

CIVIL SITE DESIGN PLUS

Installation and licensing instructions differ between Civil Site Design and Civil Site Design Plus. Here are the instructions for installing and licensing Civil Site Design Plus:

CIVIL SITE DESIGN PLUS INSTALLATION GUIDE

Important Note: On first operation of Civil Site Design plus, users must right click on the application icon and select ‘Run as Administrator’. This only needs to be done on first time operation of the software.

FEATURES V24.10

  • String Vertical Grading Editor
    • Added a new Survey tab to enable display of projected Stringer Survey String linework, as well as COGO points.
    • Fast Mode and Rebuild Models buttons added to the VGE  – no need to go to the Models tab for this functionality
  • Design Data Form
    • Offset to Polyline variation added
      • Includes additional offset option and max offset (from CL) check
      • Offset method option of nearest or furthest, for when the polyline can be found multiple times at a section
    • Added a Recalculate button on the Design Data form to recompute all Design Data form entries – useful if edits are made to polyline and/or alignment geometry.  
  • New scripting language (ScriptX) included for Variations.
    • ScriptX is a bespoke scripting language within Civil Site Design, enabling users to craft
    • custom scripts for the modification and manipulation of cross sections
    • ScriptX has built-in functions to return the intersect between projects with surfaces and also defined line segments, expanding functionality beyond the current in-built variations.
    • ScriptX items are added alongside other Variations to apply changes to cross section codes, so order of operation is important.  
    • Check out the documentation detailing the language, format and how to apply ScriptX files to edit cross sections: www.civilsurveysolutions.com.au/downloads/CSD/Documents/ScriptX-ProgrammersReference.pdf 

IMPROVEMENTS V24.10

  • 4K (text scaling) support
    • Forms have been adjusted to support 4k monitors, where text scaling is applied.  
    • Forms will resize to accommodate text scaling
    • Some forms may display differently – this was done to overcome issues with the previous form layout that restricted 4k compatibility
    • Note: Some dropdown picklists may require resizing – if you find any where the width of the picklist affects your ability to select the correct item, please contact us on the Helpdesk with a screenshot or description of the form with the issue.
  • String Vertical Grading Editor 
    • Auto Profile Command
      • Inclusion of hover graphics on Auto Profile entries
        • Reference Surface
        • Reference Civil Points
        • Resheet
        • From String
        • Fixed Level
        • From File
        • Fit Parameters
  • Design Data form
    • Enabled double click to add new entries.
  • Model Builder
    • Added an Add Region button to the Include/Exclude Codes form to streamline selection of start and end chainages (stations) in a single operation
  • Selected Sections form
    • Added a chainage picker in the Sections List form for Extra Sections
  • Multi Setout command
    • Enabled Selected Sections lists to be used for the positions of setout points along each String.
    • Added a button to edit Selected Sections list
  • Subgrade Model Manager form
    • Added a performance setting to display full section views for standard sections only (not all string sections used)
    • Improved performance on Surface Resolve in Subgrade Model Manager
  • Create Points command
    • When creating or graphically editing a point, snapping to an object will also inherit the z value of the object.
  • Pack Mode 
    • Pack mode now includes a GUID in the data folder name, if the user Temp folder is selected as the data path.  This is helpful for recovery of data files in the event of a crash, and addresses issues around opening the same drawing name opened in multiple CAD sessions, switching between the two and editing the same data folder
    • A new GUID is assigned each time the drawing is opened (thus creating a new CSD Data folder)
    • Added a Tools menu with the following:
      • Clean Temp Folder command, which deletes all CSD Data folders stored in the Temp folder
        Important Note: if drawing files are open that are packed with data stored in the Temp folder, they will immediately lose access to the current ‘working’ folder of the data.  Do NOT save the drawing – instead run the command General > Unpack from Drawing to reinstate the data from the drawing file.
    • Option to open the Temp folder with Windows Explorer
  • Superelevation
    • Added button to include chainages at the curve Secant 
    • If a cell is blank (for left/right crossfall or left/right widening) then the value is interpolated from the previous/next cell that has a value.  This is beneficial for road widening, enabling users to type in only the start widening of zero and end widening value and the software linearly interpolating between
    • Colour coded the cells so each even numbered curve is coloured grey
    • Apply a red highlight to cells where there is a design compliance message (such as radius too small)
    • Form is now resizable

FIXES V24.10

  • When adding Templates to Survey Strings via the point parameter tools, in Civil 3D these breaklines keep getting added on top of each other each time the surface rebuilds, without being cleared.  This slowed down the processing after multiple edits.  This is now fixed.
  • Fixed an issue with Superelevation generating errors when Add Line was used to add additional superelevation entries
  • SURVEY
    • Fixed refresh issues when adding points whiles the Survey String Manager is open
    • Fixes an issue whereby editing a Survey String Set via the Survey String Manager would remove all survey strings
    • Text Property Display controls applied to points were not being applied to points when displayed in viewports
    • Templates applied to survey strings would display at zero elevation in Model Viewer

KNOWN ISSUES V24.10

  • 4k monitor support
    • Some forms will display differently in both 100% text scaling (standard DPI) and 150-250% text scaling (high DPI).
    • Some picklists may be truncated – please report picklists that are not wide enough to display inputs via the Help system.
    • Some images may display smaller in high DPI settings
    • Message boxes are not modified to support 4k and may truncate informational text display.
    • It may be required to resize forms in 4k – this is because Windows stores the previous form size 
  • If you run Save As on an unpacked CSD project:
    • In Civil 3D, the TotalModel surface (if previously created) will exist and drafting linework will reside in the drawing – running Cleanup will remove the drafting.
    • In AutoCAD/BricsCAD or CSD Plus
      • TotalModel will remain in the data
      • The Sampled Surface will display as a block in the drawing, able to be deleted.  
      • Drafting linework will reside in the drawing – running Cleanup will remove the drafting.
  • Template previews will only display if the Template has been viewed in the Template Editor.
  • Acronis anti-virus and malware applications may assume that the Pack Mode process (whereby we zip the software data folder and include it inside the drawing file) is a possible malware threat.  This is a false positive and can be added to the allowlist.
  • Subgrade Models
    • After deleting a Subgrade Model, remnants of that model may still display.  Clicking on Refresh in the Subgrade Model Manager form, or closing and reopening the Subgrade Manager form, will resolve the issue.
    • It is possible to open the Subgrade Model Manager form multiple times.  Whilst this doesn’t result in a crash, there may be issues opening some forms from this form, and there could be conflicts between edits applied on the multiply opened forms.
    • When adding COGO points for a Subgrade Model, every linear breakline that is included in the model will be included as a COGO point.  At each subgrade layer (excepting the top surface) there are always two linear features with a small (0.005) offset between them.  This is to support surface triangulation and allow for ‘steps’ in the subgrade depth to apply at the code.  
  • Cadastral Lines command
    • If duplicate point numbers are created in a drawing, the software will automatically use one of the duplicates only
    • Mixing traverse lines and side shots will result in the ‘traverse’ polyline being removed up to the first side shot.  It is recommended to separate traverse lines and side shots into different groups
  • After resizing or rotating a viewport, the REGENALL  command needs to be run to update the viewport and point label display.
  • If the user does not set a Point Style within Point Code Set, the default of ‘[User Assign] – 5 Fields’ may be selected. This style is blank and does not show any of the point attributes visually within the drawing if used. This is to alert the user to a mistake in their Point Style Selection. 

V23.00 and earlier

  • Where a COGO point is visible to the alignment (measured perpendicular to the alignment) multiple times (such as a looped alignment) Civil Site Design may adopt the chainage/offset of the furthest intersect, instead of the closest.  A new Point Property called ‘Reference Chainage’ can be used to force the chainage you want the software to us, in the event the automated calculation isn’t suitable.
  • High degrees of overlap in applied Templates on Survey Lines will generate unexpected elevation results on the offset linework.
  • Using XML import for alignments with spiral-spiral curve geometry will be imported as non-editable alignment geometry.
  • Circular alignments will not be imported correctly via the Alignment LandXML import tool.  A small gap between the start and end position is required
  • Draped Strings viewed in forms will display in uppercase
  • In Civil 3D 2018 the Batter code widths cannot be graphically edited using grips
  • Using the Offset alignment will create an alignment with a start chainage of zero (it will not adopt the start chainage of the source alignment).  To assign a start chainage, users can run the Trim Alignment command (when running this command, there is an option to set a start chainage.  Set a start and end chainage that is before and after the offset alignment chainage range, so it is NOT trimmed)
  • AutoCAD 2018 & Civil 3D 2018 platform users will not have Civil Site Design object grips enabled.  A stability issue has been detected in the 2018 platform when grips are enabled.
  • AutoCAD platform: If a polyline is drawn and then converted into an alignment, grip editing the alignment will leave a ‘ghost’ of the original alignment geometry on screen.  Typing REGEN will clear this duplicate and it will not return
  • Using XML import for alignments with spiral-spiral curve geometry will be imported as non-editable alignment geometry.
  • Circular alignments will not be imported correctly via the Alignment LandXML import tool.  A small gap between the start and end position is required
  • Draped Strings viewed in forms will display in uppercase
  • Using the Offset alignment will create an alignment with a start chainage of zero (it will not adopt the start chainage of the source alignment).  Users can however run the TRIM ALIGNMENT command on offset (and other non-editable alignments) and set a Start Chainage there (set the trim range to be well before and well after the actual extents of the alignment, so nothing is trimmed)
  • Command: Pipes Tab > Service Design Panel Drop-down > Service Pipes/Pits (or Service Objects)
    • This command allows users to assign a network name. At present, the software creates a network name called Pipe-Editing, regardless of the user input name. This can cause issues with 3D output, as all networks have the same name.
  • Civil 3D Pipe Network Creation Tools
    • Inlet/Outlet type parts are not supported at this time.
    • If there is no match between a Civil Site Design part and a Civil 3D part, no pipes or structures will be created
    • Pipe Data Source is not managed at the time of creating the profile views – the first network will automatically be assigned. Pipe Data source needs to be manually set by the user post creation of the profile views
    • Alignments created by the software will not trace curved pipes – geometry will consist of a straight line between structures.
    • Selecting surface profiles at the time of creating the Civil 3D pipe network is a once off assignment. This cannot be changed by using Manage Network and updating. The Profiles will need to be deleted and recreated. To do this:
      • Delete all Profiles for the Pipe Network
      • Use the Manage Networks to Update the Pipe Network with the desired surface.
    • If the Civil 3D pipe network is created and then curved pipe/s are applied in Civil Site Design (replacing previously straight line pipes) the user will need to delete that Civil 3D pipe in the drawing and run the Sync Networks command to create the curved pipe.
  • Cul-de-saccreation
    • It is possible that upon first creation of a Cul-de-sac, the centre line string of the incoming road may extend through the cul-de-sacs and result in crossing strings in Totalmodel.  Reviewing the Cul-de-sac geometry and string creation settings and then Updating the string should resolve the issue.
  • Knuckle creation: Widening Options
    • Using the widening option of Move the ‘Match to Code’ may result in unexpected elevation changes at the start/end of the knuckle if the adjacent road elevations are adjusted.
      • If this widening option is desired it is recommended instead to select “None” and then use Variations and Batter overrides on the Road to associate the EB code to the knuckle string.  Section edits over the knuckle range would include: Variation > Set Code Offsets &/or Levels to String, then Variation > Delete All Sections Outside Selected Codes to remove codes outside of the EB code, then Batters > Slope Batters (set the side with the knuckle to have blank entries for cut/fill).
  • Export Corridor
    • Regions are created to support changes in default widths on the template – this is deliberate to help speed up the corridor (by reducing the number of parameter overrides)
    • It is recommended that when exporting a corridor that includes a cul-de-sac with offset geometry, the Apply targets to cul-de-sac settings be un-ticked.  Applying targets to cul-de-sacs in this case will likely result in errors in the exported corridor.  Users can review the Corridor Settings to change this option and then run Sync Corridors to update the corridor in the drawing.
  • Exchange Settings
    • If Subassembly Composer was used to create the desired subassembly, it is recommended to use the Import PKT option when selecting the subassembly, and not selecting it from the Tool Palette it may have been added to. If the subassembly doesn’t live in a Catalog (even though it may be in a tool palette) it will not work in the corridor.

It is likely that a message will display when using Select Subassembly, about providing read/write access to certain folders. The software is trying to access all folders that contain subassembly catalogs and finding issue – follow the instructions in the message to resolve the issue. This does not stop you from exporting corridors, but may limit the list of subassemblies you can use.

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