Add Fixture Mode to the Instrument Summary please

[kelrock]

It would be very beneficial to be able to add Fixture Mode to the Instrument Summary.  In this day of age with fixtures with a multitude of modes, it would really help when sending out a light plot.

[spettitt]

I'd recommend having a look at Graphic Legends, if they are available to you. They can show anything you like - I've got mine showing both Top/Plan and Front, Left and Iso Left views, Active count and then both Mode Name and Footprint, as some mode names don't inherently tell you the footprint. Feedback on them has been very positive.

[mjm]

3 hours ago, spettitt said:

I'd recommend having a look at Graphic Legends, if they are available to you. They can show anything you like - I've got mine showing both Top/Plan and Front, Left and Iso Left views, Active count and then both Mode Name and Footprint, as some mode names don't inherently tell you the footprint. Feedback on them has been very positive.

@spettitt-hey there: I have been too busy to investigate Graphic Legends & they sound awesome. Any chance you have an example file or pdf demonstrating what you are achieving? Thanks 😅

[spettitt]

A larger GL that you might find on a cover page:

A smaller fixture key that I might drop in a title block:

I messed with attributes and layout a bit to show more of what's possible - I'm not saying the above is necessarily how I might use them!

 

Just play around with adding objects and text to a cell layout, and then linking some of the text to be dynamic in the OIP. You can define whatever tag fields you want to find your own style that works for you.

 

My three tips:

Graphic Legends may auto-resize when recalculated based on the contents. Objects within each 'cell layout' have constraints settings to control how they interact with the boundaries, which then influences how the boundaries are generated. It's harder to wrap your head around than symbol-based geometry that is reproduced as it was drawn, but once you have your style set up that generates how you want, it can rapidly be deployed across projects without having to mess with it each time.

 

1) If needed, nest some invisible geometry inside to 'lock' some of the auto-sizing behaviour, i.e. a hidden line of a fixed height or width.

 

2) I haven't had good results with the 'Auto-Constraints' tickbox, which is in the OIP when an Object is selected when editing the cell layout. I'm sure it has uses for different, more fluid, types of graphic legends, but I'm more interested in a regularised grid look, and I've had better results by unticking it.

 

3) Let the Image Scale be dictated per-instance, rather than being fixed to inherit from the Style. This means if a weird fixture (like a Portman P2) looks really squashed or whatever, you can just quickly nudge the scale for that instance rather than having to mess with editing styles, which may then affect other pages. Also, I usually want the GL border to snap to other title block geometry around it, and if it keeps changing size, it's hard to make all 4 corners snap to where I want. Therefore, If I have a little overhang off my title block, I can creep up on the scale value that brings the bottom corner inline with my title block.

 

Problems:

- GLs don't show any Data Vis overrides. Not a problem for me at the moment, but I know I'll find a need for it in the future and it would be ideal if they added it.

- Although they can filter to viewport, they can't report by Fixture In Schematic View. We will definitely have sheets where everything on the sheet is a schematic view, and in this case, they will count 0 and thus not generate. For this, I just take the VP filter off and live with it.

 

 

Edited March 28, 2023 by spettitt

[mjm]

@spettitt—super duper! Thanks for those pro tips as well.

[Arthur_Devillers]

hi guys, very helpful to have this graphic legend tool, i just discover it...
I can't find the OIP data to add Quantity of fixtures to my cells ? could you help me ? 

[spettitt]

For a selected text object inside the Cell Layout, scroll to the bottom of the OIP and click 'Use Dynamic Text'. Then Define the field like so:

 

[Arthur_Devillers]

thanks a lot ! I was near to it, I have add lighting info before the CT

[Arthur_Devillers]

Hi, i'm back on it, do you know if it's possible to have in the graphic legend, the detail of a hanging position object ? I have convert all my rigging part in Hanging position object but when I want to create a legend about all the composants of this system, I can't have anything, only appeared the full hanging object, or the truss items not included in a Hanging Object... 

If someone have an idea about this, you will save me lot of time 😛 

[spettitt]

Sorry Arthur, I don't know. I don't use Hanging Positions in our work.

[Arthur_Devillers]

no problem ! thanks for your answer

[Scott C. Parker]

FYI, I can finally share...

GDTF profile info will be available in the new Equipment Summary Key in VW 2024.

Just as you can show Watts or Weight, the GDTF info can be toggled on/off if you've added the GDFT file to your lighting units.

[Steven Morgan]

@Arthur_Devillers better late than never. To

have it see the truss inside of a Hanging Position you need to check the "Plug In Objects" box in the Criteria window.