Automatic field calculation for data tag for simple objects - advice

[rousvit]

Hi, I'm still learning the workflows in Vectorworks after moving from BricsCAD, so my question may be trivial, and the solution is probably simple. But obviously, I'm missing some knowledge.

I want a data tag that I use for simple objects (polygon, rectangle, etc.) that represents complex retention objects (rain garden, open subbase layer, or something similar). What I want from the data tag is to give me the name of the object (simple, no problem), the area of the object (simple, no problem), and the volume of the object (this is the problem).

The volume should be calculated automatically from the area—it's just for the first estimation, so I want the calculation to be Area * Depth of water (I will enter in the equation—hard setting) * Void volume of gravel (I will enter in the equation—hard setting).

Is there any way to build a data tag that I will use for a rectangle that will automatically fill the field for "volume"? Now, I have a data tag that will read the name and the area, and I manually enter the above-mentioned calculation in the record field of the object to give it the "volume". But I think there has to be a better way to do it.

 

[Tom W.]

I may be misunderstanding what you're asking but you can add a Record Format to your Polygon/Rectangle + enter the depth value there then call on that Record Field value in the Data Tag.

 

So for example if you created a Record called 'Volume' which had a field called 'Depth (m)' + attached that to your Polygon/Rectangle you could then use the following formula in the 'Formula' pane of the Data Tag:

 

=TXT(AREA*'Volume'.'Depth (m)', CubicMeters)

 

The tag would then display the 'volume' of the 2D object based on whatever value you enter in the attached Record.

 

 

Edited March 12 by Tom W.

[Jonathan Pickup]

I don’t understand why you want to use a simple 2-D object to create what is in effect a three dimensional object. If you used a hard scape object, you could create the 3-D depth required, and you would then automatically have the area and the depth of the object. This can then be reported easily with a tag or with a report. You could then create a hard scape object style that you could then apply to the hardscapes as required. When you view these objects in 3-D, you could apply a watery texture to them.

 

I know you could create a 2-D object and place the tag on it, but long-term, I would advise you to look towards 3-D objects that do what you want.