Place a Beam

Before placing a Beam, go to Beam Settings to adjust its core geometry, height, positioning and end cuts.

See Beam Positioning Panel

To place a Beam, choose one of Geometry Methods (input methods) from the Info Box.

Single Beam

1.Choose the Single Beam method from the Info Box.

Note: If you are drawing a slanted beam, only the Single Beam method is available.

BeamSingleInfo.png 

2.Click twice to place each end of the Beam.

3.In the 3D window:

Snap the endpoints to existing elements

Click Shift to constrain input to an editing plane.

Beam3D.png 

Note: If the Beam already has a defined slant angle (in Settings or Info Box), the slant angle prevails, regardless of the constraint.

For a slanted Beam: see Create a Slanted Beam.

Chained Beam

1.Choose the Chained Beam method from the Info Box.

2.Click in succession to place segments of a chained Beam.

BeamChainedInfo.png 

This input method is analogous to creating a chained Wall.

See Create a Chain of Walls.

In the 3D window:

Snap the endpoints to existing elements

Click Shift to constrain input to an editing plane.

Rectangle/Rotated Rectangle Beam

Choose one of these methods from the Rectangle Beam icon’s pop-up:

BeamInfoBoxRotatedRect.png 

For a regular rectangle beam, click twice to define its two opposite corners.

For a rotated rectangle, click twice to define a side of the rectangle, including the rotation vector, then drag and click again to complete.

Horizontal Curved Beam

Curved_Beam_3D.png 

To create a horizontally curved Beam, do one of the following:

Curved Beam Input from Info Box

CurvedBeamMethod.png 

Choose one of the three curved input methods. These methods are analogous to creating a curved Wall.

See Create a Curved Wall.

Other Ways To Create Horizontal Curved Beams

Create curved Beam segments as part of a Chained Beam.

Select a straight Beam on the Floor Plan, then use the pet palette commands to curve it, or edit using tangent.

Magic Wand: Trace the shapes of curved drawing elements with the Magic Wand.

BeamMagicWand.png 

Related Topic:

Curve a Beam Vertically