Measurements
Table of contents:
Introduction
Measurements
Length
Angle
Let's talk about the Measurements tool. In other applications, similar functionality is commonly referred to as Measure, Dimension Tool, or Distance and Angle Measurement. While the naming may vary, the function remains the same: it allows you to calculate distances between selected points, measure angles between edges or faces, and define precise dimensional values within the workspace.
In SelfCAD, the Measurements tool can be found in the Utilities section of the main Toolbar. It enables you to measure lengths and angles directly on your model, and it also allows you to resize them by entering exact values. In practice, this allows users to verify proportions, ensure dimensional accuracy, adjust models to meet specific requirements, refine mechanical parts, and prepare designs for manufacturing or 3D printing with precise measurements.
The Utilities category serves as a modeling assistance toolkit, focused on improving accuracy and workflow efficiency rather than reshaping geometry. Measurements play a key role in maintaining precision throughout the design process. In this article, we'll explore how to use the Measurements tool effectively and control dimensions in your models.
Activate the tool
Measurements Tool does not require selecting any object, so you can get straight into the tool itself. To activate it, you need to choose it from the Utilities drop-down list in the Main Toolbar or use a shortcut by pressing the ‘U+M’ combination on your keyboard. This way, you’ll open a Tool Setting Panel with all of the customizable options for this feature on the left side of your screen.
Length
There are two measurement modes available in the Measurements tool. The first one is called Length, which is the default mode. It allows you to measure the length of objects or the distance between points in the scene. To create a measurement, select the starting point with the cursor, then select the endpoint. The measured value will appear in the textbox located in the bottom-left corner of the grid.
Resize
You can resize the measured Length by simply typing in a different value into the text box in which it is displayed. The Move option in the tool panel allows you to customize the direction in which the resize will take place, offering more precise control over the resize operation.
Apply to entire object
The Apply to entire object setting is available only in Length mode and works together with the Resize feature. When enabled, resizing a single edge will apply the change to the entire model, scaling the object as a whole instead of modifying only the selected part.
Angle
The second mode is called Angle. It works similarly to Length mode, but instead of measuring a single line, you select points in the grid to define the angle you want to measure. The measured angle will appear in the text box located in the bottom-left corner of the grid.
Resize
You can resize the measured Angle by simply typing in a different value into the text box in which it is displayed. The Move option in the tool panel allows you to customize the direction in which the resize will take place, offering more precise control over the resize operation.
And that’s about it for the Measurements. After reading this article, you should know the basics of this tool and how to use it, and know about its different applications. Of course, the graphics shown here were just examples, and using this tool with different settings will give you slightly different effects, but its underlying principles will always stay the same.
That's all I have for you today. I wish you success in your future projects. See you, and stay tuned for more content to come!