1 MIN 1 CAD: Raise Productivity with CAD Commands Beginning with R

“R” you ready for some CAD commands beginning with R? What’s more exciting is that we’re exploring the enhanced CUI feature of the latest ZWCAD 2021 as well! Feel free to read on!

REFEDIT

With REFEDIT, you can edit an external reference (Xref) directly in the drawing. Steps:

1. Input [REFEDIT] and press Enter.
2. Select the Xref you’re editing.
3. Modify and save it.

As you can see, I edited out some similar entities in the selected Xref without having to open or modify the original file, which would be updated simultaneously.

There are 2 other ways to edit an Xref: a) select it and click “Edit Reference In-Place” in the “Edit Block in-place” panel under the “External Reference” Ribbon contextual tab;

b) double-click on it to invoke the Reference Edit dialogue box. Speaking of double-clicking, you should know DBLCLKEDIT the system variable, which controls whether the double click actions are associated with CUI settings. BTW, this video will show you how to customize double click actions in the latest ZWCAD 2021.

REDO

You must be familiar with UNDO whose keyboard shortcut is Ctrl+Z. How about REDO, which can recover the effects of the last UNDO command? You can invoke this command simply by inputting [REDO] or pressing Ctrl+Y. In the GIF below, you can see that I accidentally undid the erasing of the palm tree. Then, I realized I did want to remove it, so I used REDO to reverse the UNDO.

Since the CTRL and Y keys are placed quite distantly, you can use CUI or Smart Mouse to make REDO more accessible. To customize keyboard shortcuts with CUI, simply follow the steps below. Steps:

1. Input [CUI] and press Enter to invoke the Customize User Interface dialogue box.
2. Click the + symbol beside “Keyboard Shortcuts”.
3. Click the + symbol beside “Accelerator Keys” to unfold the drop-down list.
4. Select “REDO”, edit the key in the Access section, and click “OK”.

Now, I’ve adapted the result of “Ctrl+Q”, which is to redo instead of to exit, for my personal design habit.

Smart Mouse is also a shortcut of choice. By default, you can simply press the right mouse button while dragging the mouse from left to right to use REDO.

REVOLVE

Do you still remember how to create a solid in ZWCAD with the EXTRUDE or LOFT command? This time, I’m introducing REVOLVE, which can help you create solids or surfaces with existing closed objects, or surfaces with open objects, revolving around an axis. Steps:

1. Input [REV] and press Enter.
2. Select the entities you’re revolving.
3. Define the axis of revolution by specifying the starting and end points.
4. Specify the angle of revolution.

Having used REVOLVE to select some regions, I created a bowl, a goblet, and even a simplified version of the Canton Tower effortlessly!

1. Objects that self-intersect or are part of a block can’t be revolved.
2. When it comes to creating solids, I have to mention ISOLINES. The higher its value is, the more vivid your 3D entity will appear.

REVSURF

REVSURF is similar to REVOLVE, but helps create a mesh instead by revolving the selected linear objects (including lines, arcs, circles, and 2D or 3D polylines) round a specified axis at a certain angle. Steps:

1. Input [REVSURF] and press Enter.
2. Select the linear objects you’re revolving.
3. Select the axis of revolution.
4. Specify the angle to begin surface of revolution.
5. Specify the degrees to revolve entity.

Using REVSURF, you can get a simplified version of the Canton Tower mesh easily as well. As I’ve mentioned when talking about EDGESURF, you can adjust the mesh density by changing the values of 2 system variables that respectively control the number of units in the M and N directions, “SURFTAB1” or “SURFTAB2”, before invoking this command.

RULESURF

Designs aren’t always regular. How to add some fun, a.k.a. irregular and complex surfaces, to your design, then? RULESURF is the tool to create a ruled surface between two curves! Steps:

1. Input [RULESURF] and press Enter.
2. Select an entity to define the first end of the ruled surface.
3. Select another entity to define the other end of the ruled surface.

That’s all for today! I really “r”ecommend that you try practicing these CAD commands beginning with R in ZWCAD 2021 because you will be blown away by not only the convenience of CUI, but also the rapid drawing opening speed (You can even win free 180-day ZWCAD 2021 licenses by witnessing it!), smooth visual effects, etc. “S”tay tuned for the next article of this series!