Automated Area?

[bapprill]

I am an architectural draftsman, and was wondering if there is anyway to automate to process in finding square footage. The challenge is not just the automation, but getting the program to recognize the difference between parts of a house that count towards sq. ft. and those that don't. (ie. bedrooms vs. garages) ~~ Laziness is the mother of invention ~~

 

[borgunit]

It can be done but you would have to be more detailed on how you make drawings. Do you use layers to distinguish various areas, or by color, linetypes, names?

BU

 

[bapprill]

We use different layers for each floor, and each component. Such as first floor, dimensions and text, windows and doors, etc. Each layer also has its own color. ~~ Laziness is the mother of invention ~~

 

[borgunit]

http://www.afralisp.com/lisp/area.htm

This may help you pretty quickly, otherwise let me know.

 

[bapprill]

I think this will work........
The only problem is I dont have any experience with LISPs.
How do I utilize the code they provide? ~~ Laziness is the mother of invention ~~

 

[borgunit]

For a semi-quick way:
Type in -BOUNDARY
Select inside the room you are measuring
Hit ENTER
Type in AREA
Type in O (object)
Type in L (last)
Hit ENTER

Does this accomplish what you are looking for?

 

[bapprill]

Somewhat....
Here is the situation:
We have a database (Access 2k) which keeps track of all our work. It includes info such as width, depth, date, builder, house type, foundation type, sq. ft., etc. We also insert .DWG files for each floor plan so we can look at the plan without having to open AutoCAD every time. Entering and/or verifying this data is currently a very tedious process. Im trying to automate as much of this as possible. I would like to be able to insert the .dwg floor plan and have either AutoCAD (macro, script, etc.), Access (Lisp, macro, VBA Module, etc.) or possibly third party software calculate some of this info. I dont even know if its possible. But if it is, I would certainly be interested. ~~ Laziness is the mother of invention ~~