Scheduled Images

In Air Device schedules, it can nice at times to have a representation of the air device shown for clarity. So a square cone diffuser and perforated face curved vane diffuser are easily differentiated. This may also prove useful for other objects.

To accomplish this, the use of a Graphic Definition is needed. Here are some steps to adding an image to your schedule:

1. First, create blocks of all the different images you will want to have, save them in one drawing file in a folder that is accessible from AutoCAD.

2. Start a new drawing, insert that drawing file into your drawing (to bring in those blocks). Then erase them, but don't purge them out.

3. Format > Style Manager > Drawing1.dwg > Documentation Objects > Property Set Definitions, double click on "DuctEngineeringData" (if it is not there, insert a temporary duct and then delete it, then the Property Set should be available).

4. Click on the "Add Graphic Property Definition" button, name it "AirDeviceImage", make the "Source" a Block (you could use .bmp files too, but they don't come out as clean as blocks), set the default to be *NONE*, click OK

5. Save the drawing as a Template (this way when you start new drawings, the Property Set and blocks needed are automatically part of the drawing), close

6. Start a new drawing using your new template, add a new Air Device (mvpartadd)

7. Click on the Air Device and go to properties, go to the "Extended Data" tab, under DuctEngineeringData, click on the *NONE* for AirDeviceImage

8. Change the "Block Name" to one of the blocks that you inserted into the drawing, click OK

9. Add an Air Terminal Schedule Table, right-click on it and select "Edit Schedule Table Style"

10. Go to the "Columns" tab, click on "Add Column", select the AirDeviceImage Definition from DuctEngineeringData, change the "Heading" to be "IMAGE", click OK, click OK

Here is an example schedule showing a couple different air devices with different images: