Advanced Section Viewport Properties

Advanced properties define the extents and attributes of the section viewport. Specify them when the viewport is created, or after the viewport has been created; edit the properties from either the Object Info palette or the Properties dialog box.

Finite sections are useful when you want to create interior elevations. For example, draw a section line across a particular room of a building, and set the layer visibility only for the room’s floor to create an interior elevation of only that room. For an even more precise interior elevation, use a clip cube to create the section viewport; the extents are automatically set according to the clip cube’s shape.

The X, Y position of perspective vertical section views is at the center of the section line. The Z position depends on the height range selection (finite or infinite).

To specify the advanced properties of a section viewport:

From the Create Section Viewport dialog box or Create Horizontal Section Viewport dialog box, click Advanced Section Properties.

Alternatively, select the viewport, and then from the Object Info palette or the Properties dialog box, click Advanced Properties.

The Advanced Section Properties/Advanced Horizontal Section Properties dialog box opens.

For vertical section viewports, click the Extents tab to specify either an infinite section view, or the length, height, and depth of a finite vertical section viewport.

Extents for horizontal section viewports are managed from the Cut Plane and Extents dialog box; see Setting Horizontal Section Viewport Cut Planes and Extents).

Click to show/hide the parameters.

Click the Attributes tab to specify the appearance of objects on and beyond the section plane. Objects on the cut plane can maintain an individual profile, or can be divided into structural and non-structural groups to display them differently according to class settings.

Certain 3D objects can be designated as structural, allowing their appearance to merge with other structural objects on the section plane. Merged objects display as a single unit with one continuous fill. The following objects can be designated as structural by selecting Merge with Structural Objects in Sections from the Object Info palette.

● CSG solids (add/subtract/intersect/section)	● Deforms (generic solid)
● Extrudes	● Multiple extrudes
● Extrude along paths	● Chain extrudes
● Tapered extrudes	● Cylinders (extrude)
● Extruded rectangles (extrude)	● Extruded polygons (mesh)
● Meshes	● Subdivisions
● Solids (sphere/cone/hemisphere)	● Sweeps
● Stair structures (top face, bottom face, front face, inside/outside)	● NURBS surfaces

Click to show/hide the parameters.

Click the Display tab to specify the section viewport display properties.

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Parameter	Description
Length Range	Specifies the length range of the section viewport
Infinite	Cuts the section by an infinite plane
Limited by Section Line Length	Limits the section only to the length defined by the section line
Height Range	Specifies the height range of the section viewport
Infinite	Does not limit the section to a Z range; the Z position is in the center of all the visible layer extents in the Z direction
Finite	Limits the display of the section viewport to a range defined by the Start and End Height Z values; the Z position is at the center of the range of specified heights
Extents Beyond/Before Cut Plane	Specifies the depth of the extents beyond or before the cut plane
Infinite	All objects on the indicated side of the section line are displayed
Finite	Displays objects on the indicated side of the section line up to a specified depth (the beyond depth can be indicated graphically by dragging a dotted line on the design layer; see Modifying Section Lines Graphically)

Parameter	Description
Cut Plane	Objects on the cut plane can be merged into a single profile, maintain individual profiles, or be divided into groups of structural and non-structural elements (useful for displaying cabinets and walls differently, for example)
Merge Cross Sections	Merges the sectioned objects’ cross section profiles into one profile
Create Structural and Nonstructural Groups	Merges the structural objects’ cross section profiles into one group, and the non-structural objects’ cross section profile into another, allowing them to have a different class setting
Separate Cross Sections	Generates a separate cross section for each sectioned object
Use Attributes of Original Objects	Each sectioned object is displayed with the attributes of its original object. ● Merge Structural Objects with Same Fill: If adjacent structural objects or components have the same fill, merges the fills so that they display as a single unit. ● Add Profile Line: Adds a profile line around all sectioned structural objects in the viewport.
Attribute Class/Structural Class	To control the appearance of the line and fill for the section profiles, select a class from the list of classes present in the drawing, or create a new class. If the suggested Section Style class is selected, it is added to the drawing; its line and fill attributes can be edited from the Organization dialog box. If Create Structural and Nonstructural Groups is selected, the class selected here applies only to structural elements.
Nonstructural Class	When Create Structural and Nonstructural Groups is selected, specifies the line and fill class for non-structural elements, or you can select New to create a new class
Objects Beyond/Below Cut Plane	Specifies the fill and line style for objects beyond the section plane (for section viewports that display objects beyond/below the section plane)
Fill
Use Original	Uses the fill style of the original objects for objects beyond the section plane
Use Class	To control fill style, select a class from the list of classes present in the drawing, or create a new class
Line Style	Changes section viewport settings for line thickness and line type
Use Original	Uses the line thickness and line type of the original objects for the objects beyond the section plane
Use Class	To control line thickness and line type, select a class from the list of classes present in the drawing, or create a new class

Parameter	Description
Cast Shadows of Objects Removed by Section	When rendering, includes shadows cast by objects that are not included in the section viewport, for a more realistic effect (especially for interior elevations). This parameter is not available for design layer section viewports.
Black and White Only	Changes all colors in the section viewport to black or white; this is useful for displaying two section viewport copies on the same sheet layer, with one in color and the other in black and white. However, if the document preferences display setting is black and white, viewports will also display as black and white.
Adjust Flipped Text	Re-orients rotated and flipped text in the viewport so that it is always readable (regardless of the flipped text document preference; see Document Preferences: Display Tab)
3D Conversion Resolution	Sets the segmentation resolution for curved surfaces in a section view, regardless of the Vectorworks preferences resolution setting (see Vectorworks Preferences: 3D Tab). Changing the resolution of an existing section viewport causes the viewport to become out of date; the higher resolution settings require longer update times.
Scale Factors	Changes section viewport display scale settings for lines and line styles
Line Weight Scale	Enter a number larger than 1.0 to make the section line weight thicker. Enter a number below 1.0 to make the line weight thinner. The scale value must be larger than zero.
Line Type Scale	A line type could be used for a section viewport if the section is in a class with a line type (in the Attribute Class/Structural Class parameter) or the objects beyond the section plane have been set to a class with a line type (in the Use Class parameter). Enter a number larger than 1.0 to make the line weight of the line type sections thicker. Enter a number below 1.0 to make them thinner. The scale value must be larger than zero.