Clipping Planes in Autodesk InfraWorks

Civil structures in InfraWorks, such as bridges and tunnels, can be quite complex. It can be difficult to study them visually or to get crucial dimensions within the structure. Clipping planes can provide better visualization and design of such civil structures by clipping away content and displaying the cross section of the structure. 

Clipping planes are versatile: 

• You can have multiple clipping planes on a structure and enable or disable any of them for effective design/visualization tools.  

• You can reverse the direction of the clipping plane. 

• You can display or hide the terrain and surfaces crossing the clipping plane. 

• You can align your view perpendicular to the clipping plane. 

• You can adjust the angle of the clip from the default perpendicular. 

• You can delete clipping planes. 

• Gizmos represent clipping planes for easy selection when the clips are disabled. 

• You can use clipping planes to temporarily expose the interior of a structure.  

You can enable and view clipping planes through the right-click menu of the structure by selecting Show Clipping Planes.  

For the first clipping plane, you will be prompted to create the plane when they are enabled. Move your cursor to the desired location along the structure and press <Enter>. 

The clipping plane displays as a flag above its location and has two states: unclipped and clipped. You can change the clipped or unclipped state by clicking on the flag. When enabled, you can manually reposition the clipping plane location by clicking and dragging the red arrow along the structure. 

Clipping Plane Toolbar 

When clipping planes are enabled, the Clipping Plane toolbar displays, which can be used for tighter control over the positioning of the planes. 

1. Reverse Direction: Swaps the clipped geometry to the opposite side of the plane.  

2. Align Camera: Aligns the camera to view the clip plane perpendicularly. 

3. Clip Terrain: Allows the terrain and surfaces to be clipped by the plane along with the civil structure. 

4. Offset: Sets the location of the clip plane from the Start Station of the structure. 

5. Skew: Sets the horizontal rotation in degrees of the plane relative to the perpendicular. 

6. Create Plane: Adds a new clipping plane. Move your cursor to the desired location and press <Enter> to create the clipping plane. 

7. Delete Plane: Removes the currently selected clipping plane. 

Clipping the Terrain 

When the terrain is clipped, everything in the model is clipped and hidden beyond the clipping edge. When the terrain is unclipped, all surfaces are revealed (ponds, road subsurfaces, coverage, and grading areas), but everything else in the model is hidden. 

Aligning the camera with the clipping plane allows for detailed dimensioning. 

Conclusion 

Clipping planes for civil structures in InfraWorks are a great addition to the software. Clipping planes help study and analyze the civil structures, can aid in measurements and dimensions, and are quite versatile in their functionality. 

About the Author

Learning Content Developer<br><br>Jeff specializes in infrastructure tools such as Civil 3D and Infraworks, delivering training classes and contributing to the learning guides for these Autodesk software applications. Jeff has worked for several Autodesk resellers and has had roles of both CAD and BIM Manager with Civil and Architectural firms.

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