Creating Arrays in AutoCAD 2023: Webcast Q&A

Thanks to those of you who attended my webcast about how to create different types of arrays in AutoCAD 2023 on Nov 17, 2022. For those of you who could not attend the live webcast, you can view the on-demand presentation here.

The following are some of the questions that were asked during the webcast and I hope that these answers will explain this feature a little further.

Question: In rectangular array for a classroom, if I need to omit one of the desk/chairs from the array, can that be done? For example, for having an accessible station instead.

Answer: Yes, you can omit one of the items from an array. There are a few ways to achieve this and depends on the end pattern that you want to have.

• To have control over each item in the array individually, you can clear (deselect) Associative in the Array Creation contextual tab. This can be accomplished at the time of creating the array, if you know that you need to control each item individually. You can then remove the individual item as the group is no longer an array.

• The other method is to keep the array associative such that you can make adjustments to the array as a single object. Associative arrays maintain their relationships and makes it very easy to modify the array pattern, spacing and location of the array as a whole. In such a situation, you can delete one of the items while modifying the array. After creating the associative array, click on the array to display its grips and the Array contextual tab (note that it is different than the Array Creation contextual tab). Press and hold the <Ctrl> key on the keyboard and click on the item to remove. It selects that item from the array. Press the <Delete> key on the keyboard to remove the item from the array. If you click on the array, you will notice that the associative array is still intact.

• If you want to replace one of the items in an associative array with a different item, use the  (Replace Item) option. This is also available while modifying the array.
  1. Click on the array to display its grips and the Array contextual tab. Select the  (Replace Item) option.

1. 2. Select the replacement object and its base point.

1. 3. Click on the item you want to replace.

Question: How do you create a path array along a multi-curve polyline?

Answer: Following are the steps to create a path array along the multi-curve spline:

1. Select  (Path array) from the Home tab>Modify panel.

2. Select the objects to array and press <Enter>.

3. Select the path curve and press <Enter>.

4. The objects are arrayed along the curved path.

5. You can use the Measure/Divide options to either maintain the object spacing that you have specified (Measure) or evenly spacing the objects along the length of the path (Divide).

Question: How do we get the Array creation ribbon?

Answer: The Array creation tab is a contextual tab and is displayed only after you are in the Array command and have performed the initial prompts, such as selected the objects to be arrayed (for Rectangular array) and additionally selected the path (for Path array) or the center point (for Polar array).

Question: Which array can be used to create spiral steps?

Answer: You can use the Path array to create steps in a spiral staircase. You will first draw a helix and then array the stair steps along the helix path. As in 2D, there are 3D Array commands where you have the options of creating Rectangular, Polar, or Path type of array.

Thanks again to those that attended my webcast where I provided a short overview of the different types of Array commands. As mentioned, the information was pulled from our AutoCAD 2023 Fundamentals learning guide which is available for you on our ASCENT eStore.

About the Author

Learning Content Developer<br><br>Renu has worked with Autodesk products for the past 20 years with a main focus on design visualization software. Renu holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering and started her career as an Instructional Designer/Author where she co-authored a number of Autodesk 3ds Max and AutoCAD books, some of which were translated into other languages for a wide audience reach. In her next role as a Technical Specialist at a 3D visualization company, Renu used 3ds Max in real-world scenarios on a daily basis. There, she developed customized 3D web planner solutions to create specialized 3D models with photorealistic texturing and lighting to produce high quality renderings.

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