Break lines ignored due to a long layer name

Summary

When creating a surface in MDT by selecting break lines, if those polylines are on a layer with a very long name, the program may ignore them without warning: the layer is listed as included, but its polylines play no part in the surface calculation. The cause is a limit on the length of the layer name inherited from the requirements of the CAD platform itself. The recommendation is to keep layer names short.

Applies to

• MDT — the documented case expressly mentions MDT 25. The limit comes from the layer name length accepted by the CAD platform itself, not from the MDT version.

• Integration with ZWCAD 2024.

• Surfaces > Create Surface function with selection of break line layers.

Symptoms

• When creating a surface with break lines on a layer with a very long name, the program ignores those polylines without warning.

• The layer appears as added (right-hand column) in the layer selection box, but its polylines are not taken into account when the surface is generated.

Cause

The number of characters of the layer name that MDT recognises is limited by the requirements of the CAD platform itself. MDT does not correctly recognise layer names that exceed the width of the list box where the layers are selected.

Solution

Case: break lines ignored on layers with a long name

When creating a surface, if the name of the break line layer is very long, MDT may ignore its polylines without warning. The number of characters of the layer name is limited by the requirements of the CAD platform itself, so it is advisable to keep layer names short: MDT does not correctly recognise names that exceed the width of the list box where the layers are selected.

If the problem persists

• Regarding the behaviour of layers with long names, tell technical support your CAD platform and version so that the case can be assessed.

Category: Interface and customisation · Level: Intermediate