HIGHWAY DESIGN

WITH
AUTODESK AUTO CAD CIVIL 3D

[Link] J.N. Meegahage

Senior Engineer, RDA Engineer, RDA
Course Content
 Interface

 Points

 Surface

 Alignment

 Profile

 Corridor

 Cross Sections

 Quantity Calculations

 Setting Out Data & other reports

CIVIL 3D INTERFACE Main Menu
Bar
Traditional –
File, Edit, View,
Quick access Frequently used tools.. Insert, etc…
toolbar
To choose what
Application Workspace interface you work
Menu
with
New, Open, Save, Save as …

Tabs (eg. Home Tab)

most usable tools are stored in
Panels (eg. Create Design)
Ribbon
Introduced to manage space by shrinking toolbars with
easy reference
DESIGN DATA ARE STORED IN THE “TOOL SPACE”

This is an access to drawing objects

Prospector- design objects - Points , Surfaces , Alignments

Settings - Object styles - layers, labels & Tags

Tool box - out put - reports

OPEN A TEMPLATE
1. Open Civil 3D 2016 Metric from your desktop short cut

2. Go to Application menu and click New

3. Browse to Civil 3D Class Exercise  Data

4. Select RDA Plan profile & [Link] and Click Open

5. A drawing template should be opened before you do anything on Civil 3D for the first time.

6. Go to Application Menu and select save.

7. Browse to Civil 3D Class Exercise Completed folder

8. Save the drawing with the name Open Template [Link]

Drawing template can contain standard AutoCAD information, such as AutoCAD settings and layers, and AutoCAD
objects, such as lines and text.
In addition to that it contains data on object styles, labels styles and other Civil 3D settings.
IMPORTANT NOTE
From here onwards all the drawings
you open as exercise files on this class
are created using the RDA Plan profile
& [Link] template.
IMPORT POINTS
1. Open the drawing 1-Import [Link] from the Civil 3D Class Exercise
folder
2. Go to Ribbon  Home Tab  Create Ground Data Panel Points
3. Click the Drop down  Point Creation Tools (Left image)
4. Create points window opens. click on the import points button at the
right corner. (Right image)
5. The import points window will open. Click on the
sign.

6. Make sure you have file type as .csv on the window.

Browse to Civil 3D Class Exercise Data Practice
[Link]. Click open.

7. Specify the file format as PNEZD (comma delimited).

8. Check the box Add points to Point Group. Click to

set a name for group

9. Give the name as Practice points and Click OK.

10. Click OK again and double click your mouse wheel to

ZOOM EXTENT
11. Save as the drawing with name 1-Import Points [Link] in
your completed folder. Close the drawing. (Left image)
12. Close the drawing. (Right image)

Click the x to close

the drawing
POINT STYLES & POINT LABEL STYLES
1. Open the drawing 2-Point Styles and Point Label [Link].
2. Go to prospector  point groups  click sign to expand (Left image)
3. Right click practice points  Properties  Information Tab (Right image)
4. Select point style as basic and click OK. See how the point style
changed. Repeat step 2-4 with several point styles and check how it
works.
POINT STYLES & POINT LABEL STYLES
5. Go to prospector  point groups  click sign to expand

6. Right click practice points  Properties  Information Tab

7. Select point label style as Description Only and click OK. See how the point
label style changed. Repeat step 2-4 with several point label styles and check
how it works.

8. Finally Set Point Style to RDA General and Point label style to RDA point label
style click OK.

9. Save as the drawing with name 2-Point Styles and Point Label Styles
[Link] and close the drawing
CREATE SURFACE
1. Open drawing 3-Create [Link]

2. Go to prospector  Surfaces  Right

Click  Create Surface (Top image)

3. Create surface window opens. Set Name

as EG , Description as Existing Ground and
Style as contours (Background) (Bottom
image)

4. Click OK. Save as the drawing with name

Create Surface [Link] and
close the drawing.
ADD POINTS TO SURFACE
1. Open drawing 4-Add points to [Link]

2. Go to prospector  Surfaces Expand surface by clicking

(Top image)

3. Go to EG  Click  Definition  Click  Point Groups

 Right click  Add (Top image)

4. Point groups window appears. Select Practice Points and

click OK. (Bottom image)

5. You will see the surface is created.

6. Save as the drawing with name 4-Add points to Surface

[Link] and close the drawing
VIEW SURFACE THROUGH OBJECT VIEWER
1. Open the drawing 5-View the surface through object
[Link]

2. Select the surface by clicking on the yellow border

around it.

3. Right click  select object viewer. Object viewer

window appears. (Top image)

4. Set various visual styles/view controls and drag your

mouse around the surface to see it in 3D view. Click
close button to exit the viewer. (Top image)

5. Close the drawing.

 SURFACE STYLE
1. Open the drawing 6-Surface [Link]

2. Select the surface by clicking on the yellow border around it.

3. Right Click and go to Surface Properties. Surface properties window

appears. (Top image)

4. Go to information tab  Surface styles

5. Set surface style as contours and triangles and click OK. (Bottom image)

6. Repeat step 2-5 and set various styles and see how surface style
changes.

7. Finally set the surface style as Border Only and save as the drawing with
name 6-Surface Style [Link] and close the drawing
 ADD SURFACE BOUNDARY
1. Open the drawing 7-Add Surface [Link]

2. Using the knowledge of the previous exercise, set

the surface style to _No Display and click OK.

3. Type OSNAP on your command bar and press

ENTER. (Top image)

4. Drafting settings window opens. Go to Object

snap tab.

5. Uncheck Object snap on (F3) and click OK.

(Bottom image)

6. Alternatively you can use F3 on your key board to

toggle OSNAPS
7. Type PL on your command bar to create a
polyline.

8. Start the polyline inside the red circle and go

around the points and come to yellow circle.
Make sure all the point are inside the
polyline. (Top image)

9. Once you click inside yellow circle press C on

your keyboard. It will make a closed polygon.
(Bottom image)
10. Select the polygon.
11. While the polygon is selected Change the layer to 3-Boundary (Refer
image)
12. Go to prospector  Surfaces  EG  Right Click  Surface Properties
13. Set the surface style to Border only again
14. Go to prospector  Surface  EG  Definition
 boundaries  Right click  Add

15. Add boundaries window will appear. Set the

parameters as in the image and click OK.

16. It will ask to select an object. Select the

polygon you just created.

17. See how the previous boundary shrink in to the

new boundary

18. Save as the drawing with name 7-Add surface

boundary [Link] and close the
drawing
 ADD BREAKLINES TO SURFACE
1. Open the drawing 8-Add Breaklines to [Link]

2. Type LA on your command bar. Layer manager will appear

3. Click once on 3-Boundary layer. (Refer image)

4. On the freeze column Click so that the layer freeze. Then the icon will appear as . Close the layer manager.

5. You will see the yellow polygon is disappeared.

6. Type LA and go to layer manager again

7. Unfreeze layers1-TOPO and 2-Breaklines

8. Close the layer manager

9. You will see new items on your drawing.

10. The grey coloured block is the TOPO survey of the area.

11. The brown coloured lines represent the edges and the
center of the existing road.

12. Select all the brown coloured lines

13. Go to prospector  Surface  EG  Definition 

Breaklines  Right click  Add

14. Add breaklines window will appear. Set the parameters as

in the image.

15. Click OK. Breaklines will be added to the surface.

16. Freeze the 2-Breaklines layer again.

17. Save as the drawing with name 8-Add Breaklines to

surface [Link] and close the drawing.
 CREATE ALIGNMENT
1. Open the drawing 9-Alignment Practice part [Link]
2. Type OSNAP on your command line
3. Make sure object snap is turned off as in the image.
4. Click OK.
5. From the Ribbon  Home Tab  Expand Alignment  Alignment
creation tools (Left image)
6. Create Alignment-Layout window appears. Set the parameters as in
the image and click OK. (Right image)
7. Alignment layout tools tool bar will appear.
7. Select Fix line (Two Points) From the tool bar

8. Click near the left edge of the white line at the left and then click near the
right edge of the same line & Press Enter. A red line will appear. This is
called an Entity. Also this is called a tangent.

9. Repeat the steps 7-8 to create an entity at right side line also.
10. Select Free Curve Fillet (Between two entities, through point)

11. Follow the command bar instructions. Select left side entity. Then select
right side entity. Hover the mouse closer to empty area between two
entities. A curve will appear. Click on a desired location to set the curve.

12. Press Enter or Right Click to End the command.

13. Save as the drawing with name 9-Alignment Practice part 1

[Link] and close the drawing
1. Open the drawing 10-Alignment Practice part [Link]
2. Click on the alignment you just created (click on the Red or Blue
entity).
3. Right click  Edit Alignment Geometry. The Alignment layout tool
bar will appear.

Note
Whenever you accidentally closed
alignment layout toolbar you can
use this method to get it back.
1. Make sure object snaps are turned off.
2. Click Fixed Curve (Three Point) Note
When you create drawing
entities make sure you always
draw towards same direction.
eg. If it is left to right then
always left to right

3. Click near the left edge of the first curve. Then click
near the middle of the curve and finally the right
edge. Press Enter. A blue curve will appear. If you
can’t see the blue curve, select the white curve and
delete it by pressing delete on your key board

4. Repeat step 2-3 to create the second curve.

5. Click Free Curve Fillet (Between two entities, Radius)

6. Command line asks to select first entity, Select the tangent at the left

7. Then Command line asks to select next entity select the curve next to
tangent

8. Press Enter to accept the solution angle.

9. Type R on the command line and press Enter to create a Reverse curve.

10. Type radius as 500 & Press Enter. A curve will appear in between the
tangent and the fixed curve
1. Click Free Line(Between Curves)

2. Select the third curve of the alignment as first entity

3. Then select the last curve as next entity
4. A tangent will be created between the two curves

5. Save as the drawing with name 10-Alignment Practice part

[Link] [Link] and close the drawing
 EDIT ALIGNMENT ENTITIES
1. Open the drawing 11-Edit Alignment [Link]
2. Select Alignment  Right Click  Edit Alignment Geometry
3. Click delete sub entity button

4. Command bar will asks for sub entity to delete. Click on the
last curve. Press Enter or Right Click. It will be deleted.

5. Click Sub-Entity Editor . Then click Pick Sub-Entity Editor

6. The command bar asks to select a sub-entity. Select the
first curve. The curve parameters will be shown on the
editor (Top image)

7. Set the parameter constraint to false as in the second

image. (Bottom iamge)

8. Change the radius to 1000. (Bottom image)

9. You can use this method to change length & Radius of free
& floating Entities.
10. Do not use this method with fixed curves and fixed
tangents.

11. Similarly change the radius of other curves to rounded

values. Finally press Enter

12. Close sub-entity editor

13. Save as the drawing with name 11-Edit Alignment Entities

[Link] and close the drawing
 ALIGNMENT STYLES AND LABEL STYLES
1. Open the drawing 12-Alignment Style and Label [Link]

2. Select Alignment  Right Click  Alignment Properties

3. Alignment properties window will open.

4. On the information tab  change object style to Basic 

Click OK. This is called the Alignment style (Refer Image)

5. Repeat step 2-4 and set other styles and see how
alignment style works.

6. Finally set Alignment style to RDA Design Style& Click OK.

7. Select Alignment  Right Click  Edit Alignment Labels

8. Alignment label window appears. Click Import label set

(Top image)

9. From the select label set small window, set label set as
RDA Major and Minor Geometry Points. (Middle image)

10. Click OK.

11. Again Click OK.

12. Alignment labels will appear on drawing. This shows the

length of the alignment with increment of 20m intervals.
Further it shows curve starting and end point stations.
(Bottom image)

13. Save as the drawing with name 12-Alignment Style and

Label styles [Link] and close the drawing.
 CREATE REAL TIME PROJECT ALIGNMENT
1. Open the drawing 13-Create real time project [Link]

2. In this drawing you have a existing road center line marked with
magenta colour.

3. Using your previous knowledge create an alignment on this drawing.

4. Try to follow the existing centerline of the road as far as possible.

5. When using curves try to use the radius greater than 155m.
 CREATE OFFSET ALIGNMENT
1. Open the drawing 14-Create offset [Link]

2. Select the Alignment. From the Ribbon click offset

alignment. Create offset Alignment window will appear.
(Top image)

3. Suppose we have two 3.5m lanes either side of the center

line of the road. So the offset distance would be 3.5m

4. Fill in the data as in the image and click OK. The offset
alignment would appear on the drawing. (Bottom image)

5. Save as the drawing with name14-Create offset alignment

[Link] and close the drawing.