Duct Gallery

Used to place HVAC duct.

Accessed from the HVAC ribbon:

The following gallery displays which can be left floating or docked to the drawing area.

The following table shows the component options in the gallery along with the key in syntax. Selecting a tool from one of the placement galleries activates the Place Component dialog. The generic placement settings, along with the unique set of dimensional and data properties provide the core workflow used to accurately position equipment components in the model.

Component	<Component Class> in Placement Key In syntax (Mechaddin Place <Component Class> dsc=HVAC)
Duct	HVAC_RECTANGULAR_DUCT
Oval Duct	HVAC_FLAT_OVAL_DUCT
Round Duct	HVAC_ROUND_DUCT
Flexible Duct	HVAC_FLEXIBLE_DUCT
Hookup Tool	Displays the Hookup Tool dialog providing a quick method for you to connect a run of duct or pipe to a terminal device (Grille, Register, Diffuser, Sprinkler heads etc) or a piece of equipment.

Placement Settings

Select an option from the Duct gallery to display the Place Component dialog. This dialog is common to all HVAC components and allows you define a component's physical parameters as well as general properties before placement. The dialog remains open throughout the placement process.

In the Place Component dialog's Settings tab, select a placement point to determine which port serves as the placement point for the component. The options in the Placement Point list will vary depending on the component being placed. (Available Placement Points for Duct are Main_Port and Run Port.)

Placement Point	When placing fittings, branching components and other piping components other than pipe, the Placement Point drop down enables with the following options: Main_Port Run_Port
Apply Slope Settings	Applies to Piping components ONLY
Connection Validation	Connection validation performs a validation check based on the joints definition and connection criteria set in the configuration variables. If the connecting components fail this check these are not connected. If this option is turned off, a valid joint is created between component even if they do not satisfy the connection criteria.
HVAC Match Settings	The HVAC Match Settings options when enabled will automatically adopt the Size and System of an existing component in the drawing when you are connecting to that component. The current values for these settings as defined in the Standard Preferences dialog will be overridden. For example, if you have an HVAC system HVU-HVS-101 set in the Standard Preferences dialog, then you place a new HVAC component to a component on a different system (HVU-HVS-102), using the Match Settings options, then the new component will be placed on the HVU-HVS-102 system and will adopt the same size as the existing component.

The HVAC Port Settings tab of the Place Component dialog allows you to define the End Preparations for the ports on the component to be placed. An example is shown below:

End Prep	Defines which port to apply the EndPrep Type, Size and Length values to. You are able to define different values for each port if desired.
EndPrep Type	HVAC_Flange_End, HVAC_MALE_END, HVAC_Female_End, HVAC_Plain_End
EndPrep Size	Enter a size for the EndPrep Type. Note: This is disabled if HVAC_PLAN_END is selected.
Endprep Length	Enter length for the selected EndPrep Type.

AutoFitting Settings

When placing duct, it is suggested to enable the AutoFitting method which will automatically recognize and place components where a change of direction, or a transition is included in the placement process. The AutoFittings settings will define the type of component that will be automatically placed in these situations. Use the tabs displayed below to define the placement options for Elbows, Transition and Branch components using the AutoFitting method.

Enable	When enabled, all the settings provided in the above AutoFitting interface will be applied when placing the duct components. If the check box is disabled, the AutoFitting rules from the AutoFittingRules.xml file will get applied and all the controls from AutoFitting tab will be disabled.
R/D	The value entered in R/D textbox will decide radius for the elbows placed using the AutoFitting method.
Rectangular Elbow Options	Type: Select either Radius Elbow or Mitered from the list. This determines which type of elbow is placed using the AutoFitting method. Standard Throat Length: Determines the throat length of the mitered elbow.
Round Elbow Options	There are three types of Round Elbow types available: Round Stamped Mitered Segmented Placement of the Round Stamped elbow is dependent on its availability in the selected spec. If the size is not available, the AutoFit function will search for a Mitered/Segmented elbow in the spec and place accordingly.
Oval Elbow Options	The Oval Stamped type is the only available. However, depending on the Number of Segments defined, either a stamped or segmented elbow will be place. Number of Segments = 0 (Stamped elbow placed) Number of Segments >1 (Segmented elbow placed)

Transition Divergence Angle	For Transitions (Reducers) should provide option to define maximum allowable divergence angle. If values entered for this exceed this limit transition length should be recalculated according to max allowable angle.

Branch Options	Two options are available as branch options: Takeoffs Tees Each option provides a different set of options to choose from for placement as detailed below.
Takeoff Options	If the Takeoff branch option was selected, then the following takeoff options are available for placement: Rectangular Takeoffs Angled Radius Round Takeoffs Angled Conical
Tee Options	When the Tee branch option is selected, the following set of Tee options are available for placement: Rectangular Tee Options Radius Tee Square Throat Tee Round Tee Options Round Tee Saddle Tee

The Design Conditions tab provides fields to define the physical parameters of the component. The field options will vary depending on the type of component being placed.

The Rectangular duct option requires values for the Main Width and Main Height. These fields will by default use the current values defined in the Standard Preferences dialog, but the values defined in the Design Conditions fields will override the default.

Note: If placing a predefined component from the spec such as Round or Oval duct the fields in this tab will be read only.

Placement

To place a run of Duct, pick a start point in the drawing and use the mouse to pick a second point in the drawing to determine the direction and length of the run. You can continue to click data points to route additional segments. Click to Data button to end the duct run. The command will remain active until another command is selected.

Note: Placement points can also be entered into the Accudraw window if desired.

When placing a duct run with a bend, it is suggested to use the AutoFitting method described above. The while you are selecting data points that include a change in direction, or a transition, AutoFitting will use the settings defined to place the correct component type at the location.

The Oval and Round duct options will use the bend radius and angle values to search the spec and place an elbow or bend that is defined in the spec. If one is not defined, then no bend component will be placed.

Flexible Duct Curves

With Flexible Duct, you can create curves with the placement using the mouse select multiple data points in the drawing as shown in the left figure below. Note the curve of the Flexible duct that is created when selecting the data points. To complete the placement process, right-click the data button after any data point and the duct will be placed as shown in the figure to the right.

How To