Navigate Camera

(3D only) Used to interactively move or fly through a design using the keyboard and/or the mouse.

You can access this tool from the following:

Toolbox: Cameras

When you open the Navigate Camera view control for the first time, it is in Basic Mode. In Basic Mode, navigation options for the keyboard and the mouse are predefined, so you can move through a design immediately, without adjusting any settings. In Advanced Mode, you can change the default navigation options.

When using the mouse to navigate, you can use either of two methods:

Click and drag — click and hold the button on the mouse as you move it. Release the button to complete the operation.

One-click operation — click in the view to commence the navigation. Move the mouse as required (without holding down the button), then click again to complete the operation.

In both cases, the scroll wheel can be used to move the camera forward/backward.

The following list contains all the keyboard shortcuts used to control camera movement, speed, and orientation.

Keyboard Key	Effect
Left arrow, `<A>` or `<J>`	Same as moving the mouse to the left.
Right arrow, `<D>` or `<L>`	Same as moving the mouse to the right.
Up arrow, `<W>` or `<I>`	Same as moving the mouse forward.
Down arrow, `<S>` or `<K>`	Same as moving the mouse backward.
Home, `<Q>` or `<U>`	Resets the camera’s roll, elevation, and orientation (see the Roll, Elevate, and Orient fields under Camera Orientation in the Define Camera tool settings window). For example, pressing the Home key on your keyboard: Once - resets the camera’s tilt angle to zero degrees (roll). Twice - resets the roll, then resets the camera’s elevation angle to zero degrees (camera is horizontal to the ground). Thrice - resets the roll, then resets the elevation, then resets the camera’s orientation angle to zero degrees (camera is in the direction of the positive X-axis).
`<+>`	Increases the Distance field by 10 percent. For example, if your Distance is set to 10 (feet), pressing the `<+>` key on your keyboard increases the Distance to 11 feet. Changes are applied to both the Arrow Keys and the Mouse column.
`<[>`	Increases the Degrees field by 10 percent. For example, if your Degrees is set to 30, pressing the `<[>` key on your keyboard increases the Degrees to 33 degrees. Changes are applied to both the Arrow Keys and the Mouse column.
`<->`	Decreases the Distance field by (approximately) 10 percent. For example, if you had increased your Distance by 10 percent (from 10 feet to 11 feet), pressing the `<->` key on your keyboard decreases the Distance back to 10 feet. Changes are applied to both the Arrow Keys and the Mouse column.
`<]>`	Decreases the Degrees fields by (approximately) 10 percent. For example, if you had increased your Degrees by 10 percent (from 30 degrees to 33 degrees), pressing the `<]>` key on your keyboard decreases the Degrees back to 30 degrees. Changes are applied to both the Arrow Keys and the Mouse column.

Setting	Description
Active View	Sets the view in which to navigate the camera. If you try to navigate in a view which does not have a camera turned on, a warning message displays. Once you dismiss the message, the camera is turned on in parallel projection for that view.
Mode	Allows the use of custom keymaps. The navigation option that you choose from this location in the settings window only applies to the keyboard. Fly — Move forward/back, turn left/right: Up arrow, or moving the mouse forward — moves the camera forward along the current angle of the camera. For example, if the camera is pointed at an upward angle, you will move forward and upward along that angle. Down arrow, or moving the mouse backward — moves the camera backward at the current angle of the camera. For example, if camera is pointed at an upward angle, you will move backward and downward along that angle. Left/right arrow, or moving the mouse to the left/right — same as Turn. Turn — Turn about camera axes: Up arrow, or moving the mouse forward — turns the camera upward, perpendicular to the ground (as if standing still and turning your head toward the sky). Down arrow, or moving the mouse backward — turns the camera downward, perpendicular to the ground (as if standing still and turning your head toward the ground). Left arrow, or moving the mouse to the left — turns the camera to the left parallel to the ground (as if standing still and turning your head toward the left). Right arrow, or moving the mouse to the right — turns the camera to the right parallel to the ground (as if standing still and turning your head toward the right). Slide — Move up/down/left/right in camera plane: Up arrow, or moving the mouse forward — moves the camera up, perpendicular to the ground (as if you were looking straight out of a glass elevator that was going up). Down arrow, or moving the mouse backward — moves the camera down, perpendicular to the ground (as if you were looking straight out of a glass elevator that was going down). Left arrow, or moving the mouse to the left — moves the camera left, parallel to the ground (as if you are looking straight out of the window of a train moving in the direction of your left shoulder). Right arrow, or moving the mouse to the right — moves the camera right, parallel to the ground (as if you are looking straight out of the window of a train moving in the direction of your right shoulder). Glide — Move forward/back/left/right in camera plane: Up/down arrow, or moving the mouse forward/backward — same as Fly. Left/right arrow, or moving the mouse to the left/right — same as Slide. Walk — Move forward/back at current height, left/right swivel: Up arrow, or moving the mouse forward — moves the camera forward, parallel to the ground (as if walking into the design). Down arrow, or moving the mouse backward — moves the camera backward, parallel to the ground (as if walking away from the design). Left/right arrow, or moving the mouse to the left/right — same as Swivel. Swivel — Turn about design axes: Up/down arrow, or moving the mouse forward/backward — similar to Turn, except that the camera turns up or down perpendicular to the tilt of the camera, and stops when it points straight up or straight down. Left arrow, or moving the mouse to the left — turns (swivels) the camera to the left, parallel to the tilt of the camera. Right arrow, or moving the mouse to the right — turns (swivels) the camera to the right, parallel to the tilt of the camera. Float — Move up/down/left/right in design plane: Up/down arrow, or moving the mouse forward/backward — Similar to Slide, except that the camera moves up or down perpendicular to the tilt of the camera. Left/right arrow, or moving the mouse to the left/right — Similar to Slide, except that the camera moves to the left or right parallel to the tilt of the camera. Dolly — Move forward/back/left/right at current height: Up/down arrow, or moving the mouse forward/backward — same as Walk. Left/right arrow, or moving the mouse to the left/right — same as Float. Tilt — Tilt camera about camera axes: Up/down arrow, or moving the mouse forward/backward — same as Turn. Left arrow, or moving the mouse to the left — tilts the camera to the left (as if standing still and leaning your head toward your left shoulder). Right arrow, or moving the mouse to the right — tilts the camera to the right (as if standing still and leaning your head toward your right shoulder).
Mouse	If on, the mouse is enabled (in addition to the keyboard) for controlling camera movements. If off, only the keyboard is enabled for controlling camera movements. You can assign the same Mode navigation options to the Mouse as you can to the keyboard.
Arrow buttons	Clicking these buttons is analogous to pressing the corresponding arrow keys on the keyboard. The arrow buttons change depending on the navigation option chosen.
Show Settings/Hide Settings	Shows/hides the `<Shift>`, `<Ctrl>` and `<ctrl+Shift>` options as well as other settings related to the camera, speeds and view cone.
Show Shortcut Keys (?)	Displays the default shortcuts for the keyboard and the mouse. Pressing the `<?>` key on the keyboard also displays the default shortcuts.
Shift key	Allows you to assign a navigation option to the `<Shift>` key. Once set, you can control the camera using the `<shift+arrow>` key or `<shift+mouse>` combination.
Ctrl key	Allows you to assign a navigation option to the `<Ctrl>` key. Once set, you can control the camera using the `<ctrl+arrow>` key or `<ctrl+mouse>` combination.
Ctrl-Shift	Allows you to assign a navigation option to the `<ctrl+Shift>` key combination. Once set, you can control the camera using the `<ctrl-shift+arrow>` key or `<ctrl-shift+mouse>` combination.
Camera Height	If on, lets you key in a value to set the height of the camera above the geometry in the model. When this setting is enabled, the camera moves forward/backward at a constant height above the geometry, rather than in the direction upward or downward that the camera is pointing.
Prevent Camera Collision	If on, camera detects collision with elements in its way and stops further movement.
Continuous Mouse Movement	If on, mouse movement controls the direction and the speed with which the camera will move/turn. The motion of the camera will continue, even if the mouse is stationary, until you enter a second data point (one click operation), or when you release the mouse button (click and drag operation). If off, mouse movement controls the direction and the amount that the camera will move/turn. The camera moves/turns only when the mouse is moved.
Show Edit Handles	If on, displays the edit handles, which allows you to manipulate the camera.
Accelerate/Decelerate with mouse	If on, the speed will be scaled based on the distance of the current cursor position to the anchor position of the cursor. If off, the speed is not scaled and the speed value is based on the mode used.
Center Anchor Point	If on, centers the anchor point for interactive motion.
Display View Cone	If on, displays the orientation of the camera in the non-active views.
Fly Speed	Sets the Fly speed from 0 to 100 miles/kilometers per hour.
Walk Speed	Sets the Walk speed from 0 to 100 miles/kilometers per hour.
Other Speed	Sets the speed from 0 to 100 miles/kilometers per hour for all modes other than Fly and Walk.
Default Speeds	Returns the fly and walk speeds to their defaults.

Key-in: CAMERA NAVIGATE