CAD tip working on a slope CAD tip working on a slope - typically part of In-House CAD training courses
There are many ways that you can rotate objects which have been drawn with the default axes, onto a slope such as the angled wall of a building. But you can end up doing this multiple times.
So a more efficient way is to use the UCS command, commonly known as "User co-ordinate system".
Widely used in 3D CAD, the UCS command is a great tool that you can also use in 2D. Type UCS and take it's object option. Click on a line object and the UCSICON will orientate itself to the line. You can then use ortho mode to draw walls at right angles to the line, insert blocks correctly aligned to the slope. You can even use the PLAN command to rotate your drawing to your new UCS.
However the object method can give 2 results, depending on where on the line you select. So a better way, if you have a convenient right angle, is to you use the 3 point method. Type the command UCS, pick the new origin point at the right angled corner, then click a point on the required X axis, followed by a click on the required Y axis. Mentioned on the command line as "a point on the XY plain", which is not applicable in 2D CAD.
To get back to normal world UCS, type UCS, Enter, Enter. Which accepts the <world> default on the command line.
Hope that helps.
