The Civil Standards tab provides access to features and settings stored in DGNLIB or design files.

The top level has the current design file and Libraries. Libraries are the collection of DGNLIB files that are associated with the MicroStation project. As settings and standards are used they are copied into the design file.

Civil Cells

This branch lists all the standard Civil Cells that have been created and are available either within the active design model or from a DGN library file. Civil Cells are a collection of previously stored Civil objects that are created using rules that are flexible yet well defined to use repeatedly in many projects. Civil Cells are normally stored in one or more DGNLIB files and access similar to MicroStation cells or roundabouts. Any listed Civil Cells can be placed via right clicking to place the selected Civil Cell. The command prompts for selection of external components as necessary in the definition of the selected Civil Cell.

Design Standards

Design standards are used to monitor required curvature and other alignment checks on horizontal Civil geometry elements and slopes and K values on vertical geometry elements.

The standards are stored in a design library (DGNLIB) which can be read-only and stored in a central location for use by all users and referenced by the configuration variable MS_DGNLIBLIST. A DGNLIB is an empty file similar to a seed file where you can set up various MicroStation and Civil resources. An organization can utilize numerous DGNLIBs, both horizontal and vertical standards are stored in one DGNLIB is recommended, but separate from other DGNLIB-type data. If utilizing both Metric and English units, you may want one DGNLIB for each.

The standards are set up within the Project Explorer. Note the hierarchy from the Project Explorer is mirrored in the Design Standards Tool Bar pick lists. The hierarchy is customizable to conform to your organization's standards.

As most organizations utilize AASHTO standards, the default libraries included in the installation package are based on the 2001 and 2004 versions of "r;A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets.

The Project Explorer is accessed by selecting File > Project Explorer from the main menu or from the Primary Tools menu bar. It is more efficient to complete the vertical standards first, as they are referenced when building the horizontal standards.

Right-click on the individual entry and select Properties from the pop-up menu to review the settings.

Horizontal Design Standards Properties

Vertical Design Standards Properties

Create New Horizontal and Vertical Standards

The general procedure is:

1. Determine the hierarchy for vertical and horizontal standards. This also determines how much to create from scratch and how much to copy and paste. Keep in mind users see the hierarchy you build, so keep the names intuitive.
2. Open the DGNLIB file with one of the Civil products. The tools cannot be accessed with only MicroStation loaded. Select File > Project Explorer from the main menu.
3. Within Project Explorer, click on the Civil Standards tab.
   Note: Your tabs may be configured differently than the illustrations. Tabs can be changed under Settings > Project Explorer on the main menu.
4. Navigate the hierarchy to Horizontal and Vertical. This is the starting point if you are building from scratch.
   
5. Create the first part of the hierarchy. Avoid the inclination to build the entire hierarchy when you begin. Build the first standard, then copying and pasting into the next standard is easier as many of the field values are the same. Example, the entries for 2 lane versus 4 lane road are the same, and the values are slightly different. Rather than typing everything twice, set up the 2 lane folder, then copy and paste the completed folder to 4 lane and change the values as needed.
6. Select the location where you want to begin, right click and select New from the pop-up menu. A new entry is made in the table entitled Vertical Design Standard. To rename, right click and select Rename and change the name. The hierarchy can be nested.
7. To set the values for each entry, highlight the entry, right click and select Properties from the pop-up menu.
   
8. Click on each field and adjust the values. To set the K Value, set the Vertical Table Type to K Table, then click on Table to display the icon (three dots). Click to open the pop-up Table Editor.
   
9. Add the information to the Table Editor (one line for each design speed) and close.
10. Continue adding the rest of the Vertical Standards by copying the first entry and adjusting the Minimum and Maximum Slope, and Difference in Grade, if needed. By copying, you already have the K Value Table information, so it does not have to be re-entered. When using the standards, selection of a horizontal entry of 50 kph or mph will use a default from the vertical list of 50 kph or mph.
11. When the Vertical Standards are complete, move onto the Horizontal Standards. The process is exactly the same adding new entries and populating the standards. The Transition Table is done using the Table Editor.
    
    
12. Transition Table - note the Green Book has Default Transitions, but not Minimum Transitions.
13. Once you have completed a set of entries for one superelevation value (i.e., 4%) it's easiest to copy the entire grouping and paste into your standards. Rename (i.e., from 4% to 6%) then adjust the values within the 6% grouping. This maintains the values within each entry, so you only have to adjust the Transition Table.

The Design Standards branch lists the design standards that are available within the active design model or a DGN library, and initiates the command to create new Design Standards for both Horizontal and Vertical geometry within the active Design model. The Design standards defines Design standards that are used to assist the designer in maintaining required curvature and other checks when performing geometric layouts and are normally based on accepted standards for a geographic area or authority, thus a recommendation is to create and store these in DGN libraries

To create a new design standard, select Horizontal or Vertical and then right click to select the command New. After clicking on new enter the name of the Design Standard and populate the properties panel as shown.

The properties for each Horizontal standard are:

• Design Values
  • Speed - this is the design speed for the standard.
  • Default Radius - this is the radius used to populate commands when initiated.
  • Minimum Radius - this is the minimum radius for the corresponding design speed. Utilizing values lower than this radius will cause a warning to be displayed.
  • Transition Type - can be by Table or Equation.
  • Table - If transition type is table then this is used to populate the table.
  • Include Transitions
  • Check Tangency
• Arcs
  • Maximum Arc Length
  • Minimum Arc Length
• Tangents
  • Maximum Tangent Length
  • Minimum Tangent Length
  • Maximum Deflection - the maximum angle between the lines where two tangents join without a curve.
• Vertical Design Standards

Feature Definitions

The features definitions can be created via pre-existing feature tables from the GEOPAK DDB, InRoads XIN or MX PSS files or by manual generation of individual features from within the Feature Definition category. To use existing feature tables from one of the Civil native products, create a link to the existing files. In this scenario any future changes required for the features are accomplished in the native application not in Civil Standards entries. The exceptions to this rule are noted below, as some feature information is not currently stored in some or all of the native feature tables. Example, surface feature information is not stored in the GEOPAK DDB file.

The feature definitions can be used to define the symbology and display of the feature in all viewing possibilities, element naming, automatic selection of templates, attributes for quantity calculation of areas, and exporting of the element to the native COGO database.

To create feature definitions or link to an existing feature table, right click on the branch Feature Definitions.

The available options link to an existing feature table (type available depends on the current Civil product being used), Link Survey Feature Definitions, New Category, New Feature Definition and paste (if available from the clipboard).

A feature definition can be:

• Linear
• Point
• Surface

Basic rules of features are:

• If a Feature Definition generated via linking to an existing product feature table, then the feature definition only contains a pointer to the parent feature definition in the existing feature table.
• If a Feature Definition is changed, the existing objects that reference that Feature Definition updates automatically to the new settings.
• Copies of Feature Definitions used in a design are stored in the DGN where they are used similar to MicroStation levels.
• By default a native style is assigned for all view display options (plan, profile, 3d, etcetera) of a feature, but it can be overridden by an element template.
• Feature view display settings reference a native style from a DDB, XIN or PSS file or an element template that resides within the current file or a DGN library.

In addition, the behavior of a feature when used is defined in a features definition. This includes if a feature is automatically annotated, naming of the feature, exporting the feature object to the native product, creation of corresponding 3d elements and the option to link a corridor modeling template to the feature.

Feature Settings

Auto Annotate - If true then any annotations defined in the original DDB, XIN or PSS are applied to the element immediately when it is created or edited.

Name Prefix - the base object name to which an increment number is usually added. If the feature is linked to an existing native product feature table, then it uses the name contained in the linked XIN, PSS or DDB file, however the default name can be changed here.

Auto Export - If true then the elements are automatically exported to an MX (FIL), InRoads (ALG) or GEOPAK (GPK) coordinate geometry database.

Filters

The Filters branch lists the graphical filters and filter groups that are defined in the current design model or an attached DGN library. A filter is a set of search parameters (based on an elements symbology, type, cell name, feature, etc.) to automate the extraction of 3D data into a terrain. A filter group is a set of one or more filters.

Project Settings

This defines the settings used as default for Corridor design and Survey creation. The Corridor design settings create multiple settings that can be used at various time increments in a project. Example, a Conceptual, Preliminary and Final Project Setting can be created that defines template management and the corridor model creation at 3 different points in the life of a design project, thus allowing the user to update the corridor by simply selecting the applicable project setting for the corridor. The corridor settings include template management, the inclusion of critical sections and the output that is created.

The Survey settings define the standards and behavior used when creating a field book and objects generated by survey data.

Survey Settings

The Survey settings define the standards and behavior used when creating a field book and objects generated by survey data. Refer to Civil Survey for detailed information.