Label Slope Command
Command Licensing and Default Menu Location
- The Label Slope command is part of the RPS Modeling Toolbox
- The command is located on the RPS Reporting commands menu ribbon
- The command is located in the Drafting menu group
Release and Update Information
The first version of the command was released on July 29 2024
Command Description
Provides a fast and easy way to label the slope plus other associated information (Horizontal, Vertical and Slope Distance, Bearing / Azimuth) between two 3D locations derived from points, lines, or a surface model. The label includes an arrow pointing in the direction of downhill slope between the two locations and a smart text label that includes the selected label information. The command can also label Station and Offsets of points in relation to a selected reference line that includes an arrow from the point perpendicular to the reference line.
Video Demonstration
The following video shows how to utilize the Label Slope command.
Command Interface Description
The Label Slope command dialog looks as follows
Selected layer:
The Layer for Slope Labels is set in RPS Settings - Label Settings to facilitate drawing automation and consistency. The current Layer Setting defined in RPS Settings is displayed as a reference only and can only be edited in RPS Settings - Label Settings. To access that control click the Edit Settings button.
Note that if you use the Label Slope command in any project, if your defined layer does not exist, the layer, layer group, and all associated layer settings will be created automatically.
Selected text style:
The Text Style for Slope Labels is set in RPS Settings - Label Settings to facilitate drawing automation and consistency. The current Text Style Setting defined in RPS Settings is displayed as a reference only and can only be edited in RPS Settings - Label Settings. To access that control click the Edit Settings button.
Note that if you use the Label Slope command in any project, if your defined Text Style does not exist, the Text Style will be created automatically in the Text Style List for the project.
Note that if you are using Sheet sized Text Styles, that the Plot Scale is an important factor (see below) i.e. if your Text Style is setup to draw text at 0.08 Sheet Units, and your Plot Scale is set to 50, then your Text Height will be 50*0.08 i.e. 4.0 units high on the drawing. Before placing your slope label, make sure that your Plot Scale is set to the correct value for the drawing you are creating.
We recommend that the Text Style includes the Autoflip setting so that it is always readable on the drawing the correct way up.
We also recommend that the Text Style use a Stroke font vs a True Type font (current TBC defect in True Type fonts) so that the text and arrow get drawn above any background information in the drawing.
We also recommend that the layer for Slope Labels be set to Foreground Display Priority for the same reason.
RPS Settings File
The Label Slope settings file is stored in your RPS Settings file location (defined by RPS Settings - File Locations) and is in a file called RPSLabelSlopeSettings.rps.
Scale:
This displays the current Plan View plot scale (Project Settings - View - Plan View - Plot scale). This is used in the sizing of text on the drawing if your Text Style is defined using Sheet Units. If the Scale is set to 50 (1" = 50’) and your Text Style is set to draw the text 0.08 Sheet Units high then the Text Height in the plan view will be 50 * 0.08 units i.e. 4.0’ high.
Note that Text is readable on plans when it is ~1/16" i.e. 0.0625 high or greater.
Note that knowing the final scale of your drawing output is an important factor when labeling and annotating drawings.
In TBC the text height is computed once when you initially create the text. After that you can modify the text height using the properties pane for selected text objects. If you change the text style for a text object, the text height is also recomputed when you make the change to allow for any changes to Plan Plot Scale.
Change Plot Scale Button:
If the Plot Scale is not set as you need it, click this button to change the Plot Scale to the correct value for the drawing that you plan to create. This only affects the size of the text that you are placing on the drawing. We recommend that if you are going to plot at 1" = 50’ scale that you set that here and have your text style set to an appropriate height in Sheet Units so that it is readable and sized correctly on your final plans.
We do not recommend using e.g. Scale = 50 here if you plan to plot later at 1" = 20’ scale for example, because that will oversize the text for the final drawing scale that you will be using. if you want the Slope Label Text to be taller and bolder than e.g. Point Labels, use a height of 0.1 or 0.12" vs a point label of 0.06 or 0.08 etc.
Custom Arrow size checkbox
The default arrow head size for the command is 2.0 units, however if you are labeling long or short slopes you may want to override that value with a custom value. Check this checkbox to enter your custom value. Note that TBC limits the arrow head size to 50% of the length of the leader line i.e. for an arrow head size of 2, the minimum leader length is 4 etc. The command will automatically resize the arrow head on lines shorter than 2x the arrow head size to 1/3 the length of the leader line being drawn. i.e. for a leader line length of 3 when arrow head size is 2, the arrow head will be resized to 1 unit in length.
Label Slope or Label Station and Offset
Choose the labeling method that you wish to use.
Label Slope labels the Slope % / Ratio between two selected locations. The label includes the Slope value, an Arrow pointing from the High Point to the Low Point plus additional optional label values including
- Bearing / Azimuth of the slope direction
- Slope distance between the two selected locations
- Horizontal distance between the two selected locations
- Vertical distance between the two selected locations (Static Text option only)
The default is to use Smart Text in the labels, however if you require vertical distance, that is not currently available as Smart Text, so you can elect the static text option to create labels including Vertical distance.
Note that static text does not update with changes to the project data. Smart text does update, however the updates are made to the following elements only and are linked to the slope arrow itself.
- Slope % or ratio
- Bearing / Azimuth
- Slope distance
- Horizontal distance
Note: If you draw a slope arrow between two 3D points and then later grip edit the slope arrow itself, and move the head of the arrow from one 3D point to another 3D point location, the text will only update if you also grip edit the text to move and rotate it into a new location, that will cause it to update and refresh. Note that while the text is “Smart Text” the text location does not get updated when you grip edit the slope arrow, you have to make those move and rotate edits yourself to realign the text label with the updated slope arrow.
If you label a slope between two points on a 3D surface model, the text labels will update more reliably if you grip edit the arrow head over the surface.
Note that TBC allows you to either Move a leader line
Static Text Checkbox:
The text that is used to display the slope / other data label can utilize Smart Text (the default) or Static Text (alternative). Smart Text has some limitations in TBC including
- Inability to support Vertical Distance
- With Leader Lines, the bearing / Azimuth is always computed from the Tip of the Arrow Head to the tail of the leader line i.e. for this command that would be uphill, however we are showing the arrow in a down slope direction and displaying all slopes as downhill - so not ideal if you label Bearings.
The benefit of Smart Text for e.g. Slopes is that the text will dynamically update if either end of the leader is modified to display a new slope value and or other values.
The benefit of the static text is that it can be used to display any text value, however if you change the slope arrow in any way, the text will not update to reflect the changes being made. When you check the Static text checkbox, you can also select Vertical Distance between the selected locations as a label option.
Bearing / Azimuth Checkbox:
The Slope value is always labeled by the command, regardless of the checkboxes that are enabled in this group of controls. If you also want to label the Bearing / Azimuth of the slope, check this checkbox.
If you are using Smart Text for the labels, remember the slope arrow points down slope but the Azimuth / Bearing value is displayed in the uphill direction. This is a TBC defect at this time (July 2024).
Slope Distance Checkbox:
The Slope value is always labeled by the command, regardless of the checkboxes that are enabled in this group of controls. If you also want to label the Slope Distance between the selected locations, check this checkbox.
Horizontal Distance Checkbox:
The Slope value is always labeled by the command, regardless of the checkboxes that are enabled in this group of controls. If you also want to label the Horizontal Distance between the selected locations, check this checkbox.
Vertical Distance Checkbox:
The Slope value is always labeled by the command, regardless of the checkboxes that are enabled in this group of controls. If you also want to label the Vertical Distance between the selected locations, check this checkbox. Note that this option is only available when using the Static Text option.
Enable Surface Elevation Checkbox:
If you want to derive either or both of the two 3D locations for the slope label from a surface model, check this checkbox. The clicked locations can be at surface vertices or anywhere within the triangle model of the surface. The elevation of the location is derived from the clicked location on the surface itself.
Surface Model Selector:
If you check the Enable Surface Elevation checkbox, select the reference surface that you wish to use here.
Arrow Head Size
In TBC, Leader lines have a single open style arrow head. The Arrow Head control currently permits the Arrow Head to be drawn only when the Arrow Head size is less than half the length of the leader line. i.e. For a Leader Line of length 4.01’ the Arrow Head Size 2.0 is just acceptable and will be displayed, but at less than 4.0’ the arrow head will be disabled.
The Arrow Head size is a property of the leader line that can be changed in the Properties Pane.
This setting allows you to set your desired Arrow Head size for your slope arrows, we recommend a value of 2.0 unless you are labeling distances shorter than 4.0’. For long slope labels, you may wish to increase the size of the arrow head.
Select 3D Point 1:
Select the first 3D location, this can be a point, a location on a line, a location on a surface etc. If there is a point / line location at the same location as a possible 3D location on the surface, the Point or Line will always take precedence over the surface elevation.
Select 3D Point 2:
Select the second 3D location, this can be a point, a location on a line, a location on a surface etc. If there is a point / line location at the same location as a possible 3D location on the surface, the Point or Line will always take precedence over the surface elevation.
The label and slope arrow will be generated automatically on the second location click. The command will loop around ready for the next pair of 3D locations.
The arrow indicator will be drawn using a Leader Line object between the two 3D locations. The text will be drawn parallel to the slope arrow.
The arrow will always be drawn in the direction of decreasing slope.
Note that if you are labeling between pairs of lines e.g. pond slope between contours, we recommend that you have Near Snap, End Snap and Perpendicular Snaps enabled.
Note that if you are labeling using locations within triangles on a surface, you must have Free Snap enabled.
Note that if you are labeling between points, you must have Point Snap enabled.
Example showing Slope Only Text
Example showing all labeled values (Static Text)
Header Bar Commands:
In the Header Bar of the command you will find quick access buttons to other commands that you may find useful while using this command. These include the following
- Help
- RPS Settings
- Takeoff Lines
- Smart Edit
- Adjust Linestring Elevation
- Create Point
- Text Style Manager
Command Tips:
If there are any specific command hot keys or controls that you should be aware of while running the command you can find them here in the Command Tips section of the command dialog.
For example, all RPS Commands have Online Help documentation and videos that can be accessed by clicking the ? in the Header Bar, Clicking F1 or by Clicking the blue help link in Command Tips.
OK:
There is no need to use the OK key because the slope arrow and text will be automatically created on the second location selection. The OK key can however be used when e.g. you use the Right Click COGO snaps to establish a 2D location to which you want to add an elevation before accepting the 3D coordinate created.
Close:
Click Close to close the command with no further changes.
Use Case Videos
The following videos show the use of the Label Slope command in a work process context
Feedback and Enhancement Requests
If you would like to provide feedback on the use of the Label Slope command or to request enhancements or improvements to the command please click Reply below.