Concept: Hanging Positions and Associated Loads

Hanging positions represent the hanging points for lighting instruments as well as stage equipment like curtains, video screens, speakers, cables, and other loads. Hanging positions should be placed on the light plot before the load objects are added. Once the event space has been modeled, with the stage and hanging positions defined, the file can be used as a template for future light plots in that space (see Creating Templates).

Creating Hanging Positions

Creating a hanging position is generally a two-step process. First, insert or draw the geometry of the hanging position. Then, convert the geometry into a hanging position object, ready for equipment placement.

Several types of objects can be used as the basis for a hanging position object:

The Braceworks product has additional tools and commands, and creating the rigging structure is a more involved process. See Concept: Braceworks Structural Analysis.

While a hanging position cannot directly participate in Braceworks calculations, the trusses or lighting pipes that make up the position can. By converting trusses and lighting pipes to intelligent hanging position objects, you can take advantage of both Braceworks and Spotlight functionality when Working with Associated Loads.

When multiple objects are selected for conversion, you have the option to create a hanging position for each selected object, or to create a single hanging position from all selected objects. Use one of the following methods to create the hanging position(s):

● For a selected truss or lighting pipe object, click the Convert to Hanging Position button on the Object Info palette. This method selects the entire connected system for conversion to one or more hanging positions.

Choose whether to create a symbol from the geometry, or to embed the geometry in the hanging position object. If this is a uniquely shaped hanging position, or if you want to edit the geometry more easily, choose to keep the geometry. If you choose to create a symbol instead, you can use it to insert multiple positions with the Hanging Position tool. You can insert symbols from the current file, the symbol libraries, or a Favorites file.

Working with Associated Loads

When a load object is attached to a hanging position, it assumes the height of the hanging position and becomes “associated” with it. This association has several advantages:

● A hanging position and its associated loads can be moved and rotated as a unit.

● Lighting instruments can be auto-numbered according to their hanging position.

● Instrument summaries and other reports can be created for each hanging position.

Associated loads can be placed at an offset to avoid overcrowding the light plot. For example, if instruments are attached to the top and bottom of a truss, you can display the top-hung instruments above the truss system. Witness lines can be drawn to indicate the instruments’ hanging points on the truss, for display and calculation purposes. The hanging points define where the associated loads are calculated (Braceworks required).

There are several ways to associate loads with a hanging position. The association can be automatically created when the load is inserted or when it is moved in the drawing. For details, see Associating Load Objects with a Hanging Position. In addition, various commands allow you to associate, edit, and disassociate loads from a hanging position.

Action	Method	Description
Associating Loads
Insert a load on a hanging position	Symbol insertion	Spotlight Setup and Adding Lighting Instruments
Move a load to a hanging position	Click-drag operation	Attaching Loads to a Hanging Position by Dragging
Attach one or more loads to a hanging position, with or without drawing witness lines	Hanging position context menu command	Attaching a Hanging Position to Loads by Clicking
Attach multiple loads to a hanging position without drawing witness lines	Object context menu command	Attaching Loads to a Hanging Position by Clicking
Editing Associated Loads
Set the hanging point of a single load and draw a witness line	Drop-down context menu command	Setting the Hanging Point of an Associated Load
Move a single load to its hanging point	Drop-down context menu command	Moving an Associated Load onto its Hanging Position
Move all loads on a hanging position to their hanging points	Hanging position context menu command	Moving All Associated Loads onto the Hanging Position
Disassociating Loads
Disassociate a single load from its hanging position	Drop-down context menu command	Removing a Single Load from its Hanging Position
Disassociate multiple loads from a hanging position	Hanging position context menu command	Removing Multiple Loads from a Hanging Position

If a hanging position is copied, it is automatically renamed; any attached loads that are copied are associated with the new hanging position. Deleting a hanging position does not delete the attached loads.