create dimensions in autocad

Dimensions

Create several types of dimensions and save dimension settings by name.

Here is an example of several types of dimensions using an architectural dimension style with imperial units.

Linear Dimensions

You can create horizontal and vertical dimensions with the DIMLINEAR command (all dimension commands start with a DIM prefix). Notice that the button is a drop-down list that includes the most popular dimension commands.

The following illustration demonstrates one method for using the DIMLINEAR command. Once you start the command, press Enter or the Spacebar, select the line (1), and then click the location of the dimension line (2).




For the 8'-0" dimension below, you can use the other method. You start the DIMLINEAR command, click two endpoints (1 and 2) and then the location of the dimension line (3).




Use the DIMLINEAR command to create horizontal and vertical dimensions, and the DIMALIGNED command to create dimensions that are parallel to an object.





TipBecause it is easy to accidentally snap to the wrong feature or to part of a dimension object, be sure to zoom in closely enough to avoid confusion.

Modify Dimensions

For quick adjustments to dimensions, nothing is faster than using grips.
In this example, you select the dimension to display its grips. Next, you could click the grip on the dimension text and drag it to a new location, or you could click one of the grips at the end of the dimension line and drag the dimension line.





TipIf the changes are more complicated than this, it might be faster simply to delete and then recreate the dimension.

Dimension Styles

Dimension styles help establish and enforce drafting standards. There are many dimension variables that can be set with the DIMSTYLE command to control virtually every nuance of the appearance and behavior of dimensions. All these settings are stored in each dimension style.
The default dimension style is named Standard (or ISO-25 when using a default metric drawing template file). It is assigned to all dimensions until you set another style as the current dimension style.
The current dimension style name, in this case Arch, is also displayed in the drop-down list of the Annotation panel.




You can create dimension styles that match nearly any standard, but you will need to invest time to specify them completely. For this reason, you should save any dimension styles that you create in one or more drawing template files.