Add and modify symbols in drawings
You can add symbols in drawings as such and in marks, notes, object representations, and line arrows, for example. Symbols can be created and edited in Symbol Editor (SymEd). The file extension for symbols is .sym.
Add symbols in drawings
You can add symbols in an open drawing as such.
The symbols can be represented in three different ways: without leader line, with leader line, and along line. Tekla Structures adds symbols using the properties defined in symbol properties.
Add symbols in marks
You can add symbols in marks. You can select the symbol file to be used and the symbol to be added in the mark.
Change a symbol in a symbol file
You can manually modify a symbol in a symbol file. We recommend that you save the modified symbol file with another name in another folder, for example, in the model, firm or project folder.
In Symbol Editor, you can copy symbols between symbol files (*.sym). Press Ctrl + C and select the symbol you would like to copy, then open the symbol file you want to copy to (or a new symbol file), select the location for the symbol and press Ctrl + V.
Change the symbol file in use
You can change the currently used symbol file if the current symbol file does not contain the symbol that you need.
- If you want to change the symbol file for a symbol that you have added in a mark, double-click a mark in an open drawing. Double-click the symbol in the mark editor. In the Mark content - symbol dialog box, select a new symbol file from the list of symbol files. Then select the desired symbol.
- Open the Symbol Properties dialog box by double-clicking a symbol that you have added in a drawing. Click Select... next to the File box. Select a new file from the Symbol files list and click OK or double-click the file. Then select the desired symbol.
Create a new symbol file
In addition to the default symbol files that are delivered with Tekla Structures, you can create symbol files of your own, and save them in model, firm, or project folder, for example.
If you decide to use your own files, you can add DXK_SYMBOLPATH in the options.ini file under the model folder and define your own symbol file folder paths there. The symbol files are read in a certain search order, see section "Symbol file search order" below.
Modify symbol properties
You can modify the properties of symbols in an open drawing.
To modify the symbol properties:
Customize leader line arrow symbols
If you do not find a suitable leader line arrow in the Arrow list in mark properties, for example, you can add an arrow of your own in the list.
First you need to create a new arrow symbol in the Symbol Editor, and save the
created symbol in the arrow.sym
file. Then you need to add the position of the new symbol in the
arrow.sym to the arrow.txt configuration
file, which tells which arrows are available for use in your environment.
We recommend that you define a firm folder for symbols, because the default folders are overwritten when you upgrade to a newer version of Tekla Structures. Add the firm folder to the advanced optionDXK_SYMBOLPATH. For instructions about defining a firm folder, see the related section below.
Add surfacing symbols in drawings
You can add surfacing symbols in cast unit drawings using the Add surfacing symbols macro.
Before you start, ensure that you have an object that has surface treatment in the model, and that you have created a cast unit drawing of that object. Also check in the view properties that surface treatment Visibility is set to Visible.
- Open a cast unit drawing that has a part containing surface treatment.
- Click the Applications & components button in the side pane to open the Applications & components catalog.
- Click the arrow next to Applications to open the applications list.
- Double-click Add surfacing symbols.
- In the Create surface symbols dialog box, select the texts that you want to include in the surface treatment symbol from the Available elements list and add the texts to the Elements in mark by clicking Add >.
- Select All Views to include the symbols in all drawing views, or Selected Views to include the symbols only in the views you select.
- Change the font settings, if necessary.
- If you selected Selected Views, select the views where you wish to have surface treatment symbols.
- Click Create.
Tekla Structures creates the surface treatment symbols according to the defined settings. You can change the symbol properties and the text afterwards in the text properties that are displayed when you double-click the symbol. For example, you can change the symbol file and number.
Symbol Editor
You can open Symbol Editor by clicking
. In Symbol Editor, you can create new symbol files, and create and modify symbols.The Symbol files dialog box in drawing mode allows you to change the symbol file in use. It also provides access to Symbol Editor.
We recommend that you have a look at the Symbol Editor User's Guide so that you get familiar with creating new symbols and modifying the existing ones. You will find a link to the guide on the PDF documentation page.
We strongly recommend that you do not modify the original symbol files delivered with your Tekla Structures application. If you need to modify any symbols, copy the original symbol file and work on the copy, keeping the original symbol file intact.
If your symbols are located in a protected folder, the symbols are read-only, because you cannot save a modified symbol in a protected folder if you are not an administrator. In this case, run Tekla Structures as administrator.
Symbol file search order
The symbol files (.sym) are searched from the following folders in the following order:
-
All
DXK_SYMBOLPATH
foldersThe advanced option DXK_SYMBOLPATH is defined in the environment initialization file <your_environment>.ini and in the Tekla Structures initialization file teklastructures.ini.
Alternatively, you can add your own DXK_SYMBOLPATH in options.ini under the model folder and define your own symbol folder paths there. Note that also the path settings in the <your_environment>.ini file need to be added there.
The reading order of the .ini files containing the
DXK_SYMBOLPATH
definition:1. teklastructures.ini
2. <your_environment> .ini
3. options.ini
-
Current model folder
Add here any additional symbol files that you might need.
All symbol files that are found are
available to be used in Tekla Structures. If there are duplicate file names, the first one found is
used and the rest are discarded. If the model folder contains a symbol file that has
the same name as another symbol file in DXK_SYMBOLPATH
, the one in
the model folder is discarded.
Example of overriding a symbol temporarily
If there is no permanent need to add your own symbol paths in the options.ini file in the model folder, you can temporarily override symbols. In this example, you will temporarily override the weld symbol with a customized symbol located in your model folder:
- Customize the symbol in ts_welds.sym first.
- Copy the edited ts_welds.sym in your model folder C:\TeklaStructuresModels\ <mymodel>
- Open the options.ini file located in your model folder, and add the line DXK_SYMBOLPATH=C:\ TeklaStructuresModels\<mymodel>; C:\TeklaStructures\2017\Environments\common\symbols; + possible other symbol folders in your local environment.
Define a firm folder for images and symbols
You can define a firm folder where Tekla Structures always searches for the images and symbols. When you store the images and symbols in this folder, you do not have to move them from folder to folder when you install a new version of Tekla Structures. Installing a new version does not replace the files in the firm folder.
Define the firm folder in the options.ini file under the model
folder or user.ini using the advanced option XS_FIRM
.
To define the firm folder for images and symbols in the options.ini file: