The image shows a Profile View in Civil 3D 2011 with AutoCAD solids projected. I chose not to do a vertical exaggeration but you can correctly display vertically exaggerated AutoCAD solids in a profile view. The real sizzle here is slicing through a point cloud and having it displayed in the profile view. Unfortunately, plotting does not include this point cloud data
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The big question, “How’d he do that?”
I used the ucs and extrude commands to create the cylindrical tank and supports. The point cloud was my guide for size and placement.
Alignment, profile view, project objects to a profile view – all stuff you can figure out easily.
Yeah, you can use a visual style on a profile view and get this wonderful shaded effect on the solids.
I used a Camera object in AutoCAD to create the slice through the point cloud using front and back clipping planes. Use the View command to access the settings for the camera view.
I created a viewport in paperspace for the profile view, then another viewport for the point cloud.
I used the View command to restore the camera view in the second viewport to display the point cloud in a section view that is oriented the same as the profile view.
From paperspace I set the 2 viewports to the same scale then moved the point cloud viewport to line up with the objects in the profile.
I used draworder to put the point cloud viewport behind the profile viewport.
You must set the point cloud viewport visual style to 2d wireframe so it does not hide the profile view.
If you try plotting the point cloud does not display. I tried plotting to pdf and dwf. I tried pngout command. All failed to produce the desired hybrid display. Let’s not end on a sour note. The screen capture is still a very nice result. Look at all the digitizing that was avoided. A profile with shading and a high level of detail is a significant improvement in visual appeal over our profile products of the past.