Working with layers in AutoCAD. Using layers in AutoCAD Creating a new layer in AutoCAD

Programs for drawing, animation and three-dimensional modeling use a layer-by-layer organization of objects placed in the graphic field. This allows you to conveniently structure elements, quickly edit their properties, delete or add new objects.

A drawing created in AutoCAD, as a rule, consists of primitives, fills, hatches, and annotation elements (dimensions, texts, marks). Separating these elements into different layers provides flexibility, speed and clarity to the drawing process.

In this article we will look at the basics of working with layers and their correct use.

Layers are sets of sub-bases, each of which has set properties corresponding to objects of the same type located on these layers. This is why different objects (such as primitives and dimensions) need to be placed on different layers. While working, layers with their objects can be hidden or locked for ease of work.

Layer Properties

By default, AutoCAD has only one layer called “Layer 0”. The remaining layers, if necessary, are created by the user himself. New objects are automatically assigned to the active layer. The Layers panel is located on the Home tab. Let's look at it in more detail.

“Layer Properties” is the main button on the layers panel. Click it. The layer editor will open in front of you.

To create a new layer in AutoCAD, click the “Create Layer” icon, as in the screenshot.

After this, you can set the following parameters:

Name. Enter a name that logically matches the contents of the layer. For example, "Objects".

On/Off Makes the layer visible or invisible in the graphics field.

To freeze. This command makes objects invisible and uneditable.

Block. Layer objects are present on the screen, but they cannot be edited or printed.

Color. This option specifies the color in which objects placed on the layer are painted.

Line type and weight. This column specifies the thickness and type of lines for layer objects.

Transparency. Using the slider, you can set the visibility of objects as a percentage.

Seal. Set whether or not to allow layer elements to be printed.

To make a layer active (current), click the “Set” icon. If you want to delete a layer, click the “Delete Layer” button in AutoCAD.

In the future, you can not go to the layer editor, but manage the properties of layers from the “Home” tab.

Assigning a layer to an object

If you have already drawn an object and want to transfer it to an existing layer, simply select the object and select the appropriate layer from the drop-down list in the Layers panel. The object will take on all the properties of the layer.

If this does not happen, open the object properties through the context menu and set the value to “By layer” in those parameters where this is required. This mechanism ensures both the perception of layer properties by objects and the presence of individual properties of objects.

Knowing how to work in layers is necessary when completing any projects and any drawings.

A layer is a set of primitives united according to some characteristics. Three properties that affect the display of an object on the screen are color, weight and line type. A combination of these three properties can be saved in the memory of an autocad file as a separate layer. To create, delete and manage layers, you need to go to their property manager.

In the manager window we see a list of layers that are in the drawing file and their properties. By the way, layers have much more properties than color, weight and line type.

Let's go through the main parameters of layers; in addition to the previously announced color, weight and type of lines, there are also:

The first parameter is the status of the layer. The status can be current or secondary. All new lines and texts you create will be on the current layer.

The second parameter is the name, or the name of each layer.

There is also a “Print” property. If this parameter is made inactive, then all primitives drawn in this layer will not be printed.

The file always contains layer “0”. This layer cannot be deleted. It is assumed that some sketches or sketches will be made in this layer.

The “Defpoints” layer is intended for auxiliary constructions. Initially, it is not in the drawing, but if we create it, then its characteristic feature will be that it cannot be printed.

Other lessons on the topic

In this video and tutorial we will show you how to work with properties in AutoCAD, as well as how the properties panel and copying work. The lesson will answer the following questions: – What are Properties in AutoCAD? – How to enable the properties panel in AutoCAD? – What are quick properties and how to disable them? – How to copy properties in AutoCAD […]

In this lesson we show what system requirements your computer or laptop must meet in order to work comfortably in AutoCAD. Video version of the lesson: Master AutoCAD in 40 minutes by completing a basic course from Maxim Fartusov. Text version of the lesson: Perhaps one of the most popular questions, along with how to download the AutoCAD program, is the question related to the system requirements of the AutoCAD program. […]

Layers in AutoCAD

For greater convenience of work and quality control of drawings, it is recommended to use layers. What are layers in AutoCAD and what are they used for? And how will they help you? Let's start in order:
A layer is a property of objects that is created and assigned by the user. Using this property, it is easy to divide objects into groups and change their line type and line weight, as well as hide unnecessary groups from the drawing space.
So, for example, having created one drawing with a floor plan, we can, by turning off the display of pilaf materials, get architectural plans. Or create additional constructions to check any aspects of the design, and then, hiding them, print the necessary elements. Layers also help to instantly change the thickness and line types of all objects included in this layer, which will allow you to monitor the thickness of the lines and, when printing, produce clear, graphically pleasing drawings from AutoCAD.
The layers panel is located in the main panel on the workspace

By default, AutoCAD has one or two layers, in my case one

Also, sometimes there is a defpoint layer, this is a standard layer that will not be printed; in its properties you cannot even activate printing.

To create a new layer you need to go to the layer editing manager

In the Layer Properties Manager we see all existing layers and their properties. The active layer is marked with a green check mark. Let’s create a new layer and call it “Example.” You can also create layers using the key combination Alt+D

If it’s hard to see, then the columns can be moved apart as in Word or Excel by pulling them outside the border
By double clicking on the square we will set the display color of our layer

Now we have two layers. Let's draw several objects in these layers and see what advantages designing drawings in layers gives us

To switch between layers, go to the drop-down menu and select the layer we need

As we can see, objects in the example layer are automatically drawn in blue.
So, the advantages:
1) Quick selection of layer objects: select any object, right-click and select select similar from the context menu.

As we can see, only the circles drawn in this layer were selected, the same can be repeated for rectangles, etc. To select everything on the layer we are interested in, you need to use the quick selection function, which will also be very useful to you in the future.

In the Quick Select dialog box we see the parameters by which you can select elements

Apply to the entire drawing, select the layer property and in the value indicate the name of the layer “example”

And click “Ok”

As we can see, all objects on this layer are selected.
2) Turn off and freeze layers. If objects on any of the layers interfere, then the layer can be turned off. You can disable layers in AutoCAD by opening the drop-down list of layers and clicking on the light bulb icon

In this case, we want to disable the current layer and AutoCAD gives us a warning
In this case, if we turn it off and draw, the objects will immediately disappear, i.e. get into the hidden layer.

The light bulb turns gray and all objects that were in this layer are hidden.

3) Quickly changing the properties of object lines is perhaps the most basic thing that layers give us. Imagine you have drawn a project, and it turns out that the lines of one layer need to be thicker. We go to the layer properties and simply change the thickness of the lines

Very often in the AutoCAD system it is necessary to change the color of an object, the thickness and type of lines. True, constantly changing line parameters when drawing one object or another is not the most productive activity.

For convenience and efficiency of work, the AutoCAD system provides the use of so-called layers. Therefore, let's take a closer look at what a layer is in the AutoCAD package and what it is needed for.

Each layer in AutoCAD is a transparent sheet of paper on which certain objects are drawn, for example, only external or internal load-bearing walls, partitions, windows, etc.

When layers are superimposed on each other, the final drawing is obtained. Moreover, you can create the required number of layers.

Working with layers in AutoCAD 2015 is carried out using the Parameter Manager and special commands.Here are a few operations that can be performed with layers:

① Each layer in AutoCAD can be given its own personal name.

② For each layer you can set its own color, line type and thickness.

③ Any of the layers can be made visible or invisible.

④ For each layer you can set your own printing parameters.

Thus, working with layers in AutoCAD provides a lot of advantages. Those. you can group objects of the same type on separate layers.

You can also assign your own drawing parameters to each layer (type, color and thickness of lines), which will be used automatically when selecting a layer.

You can change drawings instantly. For example, by making the layer with partitions invisible.

The list of layers available in the drawing is available on the tab "Home" in Group "Layers".

What is the zero layer in AutoCAD?

By default, a zero layer is created in AutoCAD for new drawings (AutoCAD layer "0"). It is designed to ensure that every project contains at least one layer. Layer "0" cannot be deleted. It also cannot be renamed.

You create and configure all other layers in AutoCAD yourself.

As practice shows, it is convenient to create AutoCAD blocks on the zero layer. This is due to some peculiarity of cleaning the drawing after blocks.

Why do you need the defpoints layer in AutoCAD?

Defpoints is an AutoCAD utility layer that appears automatically in a drawing when you add at least one dimension. This layer is responsible for the handles for snapping dimensions to AutoCAD objects. This layer cannot be deleted or renamed. Therefore, when working in the program, do not pay any attention to it.

How to use layers in AutoCAD?

Let's see in practice how to work with AutoCAD layers. As an example, open a drawing from the folder C:\Program Files\Autodesk\AutoCAD 2013\Sample\Sheet-Sets\Manufacturing. This folder contains sample drawings that are placed on your computer when you install AutoCAD.

I'll open the drawing "VW252-02-1000.dwg".

View the list of layers it contains. In the list, find the “Dimentions” layer (translated from English as “dimensions”) and click on the light bulb image in front of the layer name. As a result, the light bulb will go out.

Now click anywhere on the workspace outside the list of layers. What changed?

Greetings colleagues!

When implementing CAD, the question often arises: How to bring DWG drawings received from subcontractors and other contractors to the internal design standard adopted by the enterprise?

The built-in utility will help you here Layer translator in AutoCAD. The layer translator allows you to bring the layers of a specific drawing to the standard. The description of the standard can be either a drawing in DWG format, or a file describing the DWS design standard, or a DWT drawing template.

Layer translator in AutoCAD

Algorithm for the operation of the layer translator.

1. Design standard. Let's assume that you have a design standard, such as methodological support for CAD, that is accepted and that you use it in your work. In this case, you only need to create a file describing this design standard - the DWS file. To do this, open any DWG drawing in which everything is created and designed according to the standard, execute the Save As... command and save it in DWS format, giving the appropriate name, for example, the same as the name of the standard.

2. Open the drawing, the layers of which need to be brought into the desired form.

3. Launch the Layer Translator with the command SLOYTRANS (_LAYTRANS) or the button on the "Manage" ribbon

4. Source layers. In the window that appears on the left side of Source Layers, we see the layers that are in the current drawing.

Look carefully. What's not to like about this? For example, according to our standard, the names of layers with line types should be designated with a capital letter (i.e., not thin, but Thin) and without any abbreviations, and the drawing stamp is located in the title block layer, etc. At this stage we can immediately delete autocad layers marked with a yellow symbol in the list. Right-click on the list and select the command "Delete unused."

5. Loading a description of the enterprise standard – Download button. We select either an existing, correctly designed DWG drawing, or a previously created DWS standard, or a customized DWT template. Why is it better to use DWS? Because the DWG file can be very large, and not all layers can be stored in the DWT template, some of them can be created during the work as needed. In any case, there is no need to worry that something will get corrupted in the selected file; it only serves as a prototype according to which the current drawing will be converted. Another reason to use a DWS file is that you can use it in other teams to audit and control drawings. After loading, a list of layers according to your standard will appear in the Destination Layers area on the right side of the window.

At any time, you can add layers from other files or standards to AutoCAD by simply loading them in the same way. If necessary, you can create a layer right here by clicking the New... button and describing the properties of the layer.

6. Set the layers to match. If the names of the source and target layers in AutoCAD are the same, then you can simply click the “Same Name” button, in which case the correspondence will be set automatically.

In our example, only the layers named 0 and Thin matched. For the remaining layers, we set the match manually by specifying the source layer and the destination layer and clicking the Match button. In our case, we will indicate the layers thick and main, STAMP and main inscription.

As layers are matched, they disappear from the list of original layers.

7. Setting up the mapping table. If this is necessary, then double-click on the desired layer and change the properties. These properties will be assigned to the layer in the current drawing.

If the mapping was created by mistake, it can be deleted with the appropriate command. The created correspondence table can be saved as a DWS design standard by clicking the Save button.

8. Broadcast options. Click on the Settings button - here you can define several important options:

• Set the color BY LAYER for objects - all objects located on the translated layers will be assigned the BY LAYER property
• Set linetype for objects BY LAYER
• Set transparency for objects BY LAYER
• Convert objects in blocks - all objects in blocks located in the translated layers will be transformed
• Keep a transaction log - writes the transaction log to a LOG file in the source drawing folder
• Show contents of selected layer - when you select a layer in the Layer Translator window, its contents will be displayed in the drawing area

In other words, if in the received drawing the primitives have specific colors or line types set in their properties, and you have adopted the BY LAYER standard, then by enabling these options, you can assign the necessary properties to the primitives.

9. Click "Convert" The system will ask whether you need to save the settings in the DWS file or not.

Ready! In the current drawing, the layers and objects lying within those layers will be converted to your enterprise standard.

Thank you for reading to the end! I invite everyone to my courses: How to get started in AutoCAD And How to Make the Most of AutoCAD in Design

When working on the publication, materials from Autodesk Community activist Andrei Mikhailov were used.