Pen Maps

Pen maps differ from customary pen table resymbolization in that they operate on individual vectors instead of entire elements. If you are familiar with printer driver (.plt) pen records, this feature can be considered a user interface for pen records, with the data stored in the pen table instead of the .plt file.

Pen maps let you apply multiple output color and width symbology to different parts of the same element. For example, an element with a multi-colored custom line style or an associative hatch linkage definition with a different color, may now be assigned unique widths for the specific colors. This is not possible using element-based output actions.

Note that pen table pen maps are supported only when plotting to printer drivers using change_pen=color or both.

The order of resymbolization is as follows:

• First, any pen records defined in the .plt file are applied.

• Next, any pen maps in the pen table are applied. If desired, you may disable individual pen table pen maps in order to keep the .plt definitions.

• Finally, any RGB-color, grayscale, screening, and/or millimeter-width actions in the pen table's element-based output section are applied.

Map Colors

You can create design-color to output-color, output-width, output-grayscale, and output-screening mappings, via the Pen Table - Map Design Colors to Output Pen Symbology dialog box. This dialog box opens when you click the Map Colors... button in the Global Actions section of the Modify Pen Table dialog box. This mapping method is implemented in the same manner as the "pen" records in the printer driver file, and can be considered a user interface for that feature. This approach lets you create color and width resymbolization on a per-stroke basis. This is the only way some results can be achieved, such as screening multi-colored associative patterns and custom line styles. Pen table pen color maps are supported only for printer drivers using change_pen=color or both.

When the Pen Table - Map Design Colors to Output Pen Symbology dialog box is opened from a new pen table, or an existing one that does not contain any pen maps, the list box is empty. To begin, select the "Create" button (or the "Create New Pen Maps" item on the Edit pull-down menu). That creates the default set of 255 design-color-to-output-symbology pen maps.

The pen map list box consists of the following columns:

• Design Color — Only color indices 0 through 254 may be mapped. Output symbology cannot be assigned to the background color (index 255).

• Enabled — Individual pen maps may be disabled if desired. This preserves the settings in the pen table file, but prevents them from affecting the plot. The Enabled column may be useful if you wish to use both pen table pen maps and .plt pen records. Unless disabled, pen table pen maps override those in the .plt file.

• Print Color — Optional specification of print color using the RGB color model.

• Print Grayscale — If checked, the print color is converted to grayscale.

• Print Screening — Optional screening factor, with range 1-99. This control is used to “wash-out” a color towards white in the printed output. A 50% screen, for example, moves a color halfway to white. Screening can be used to save ink, or to de-emphasize elements plotted in that color. A screening value of 100 means do nothing.

• Print Width — Optional print width in either millimeters or inches.

If you have an existing .plt file with pen records, you may import them by selecting Edit > Import from Printer Driver in the Edit menu of the Pen Table Pen Maps dialog box.

To define print symbology, select one or more rows in the list box, then click the Edit... button, which opens the Edit Pen Map(s) dialog box. To modify a single row, you also may double-click the row to open the Edit Pen Map(s) dialog box.

When a print color is defined, the preview color in the button control represents the effective color (with grayscale and screening applied).The figure below depicts editing a pen map where the print color has been set to black, the print width to 2mm, and the screening factor to 25%. When a print color is defined, the preview color in the button control represents the effective color (with grayscale and screening applied).

The figure below depicts editing multiple pen maps, where different print colors, widths, and screening values are defined. In all the selected rows, the enabled flag is on and the grayscale flag is off. For the option buttons labeled "varies", the corresponding value controls are disabled, and no changes are made if the dialog is exited via the OK button. If the option selection is changed from "varies" to an explicit setting, the corresponding value control is enabled, and that value is applied to all the selected rows when OK is pressed.

All pen maps may be removed from the pen table by selecting Edit > Clear All Pen Maps in the Pent Table Pen Maps dialog box.

Weight Maps

You can map print output widths for each of the MicroStation weight values via the Pen Table - Map Design Weights to Output Width dialog box, which opens when you click the Map Weights... button in the Global Actions section of the Modify Pen Table dialog box. This mapping also is available via the printer driver weight_strokes record. This is an alternative to using element-based output actions to map weight to output width. It is better suited to multi-weight associative patterns and custom line styles.

CTB Import

When an AutoCAD CTB plot style table is imported, the pen table automatically creates a pen map from the CTB file's color-to-width mappings. For typical CTB files, no element sections are created. The configuration variable MS_PENTABLE_IMPORTCTB_NOPENMAP may be used to revert to the old element section behavior if desired.

If the CTB file contains resymbolization not supported by the pen table's pen map feature, appropriate element sections are created. Pen maps cannot be created from STB files. If an STB file is imported, element sections are created.

CTB Export

If a pen table contains a pen map section, the pen maps may be exported to an AutoCAD CTB file by selecting File > Export CTB File in the Modify Pen Table dialog box.

When a CTB file is exported, MicroStation writes only the data relevant to the pen map section. Other pen table resymbolization actions, such as end caps, line joints, patterns, and the like, are not exported to the CTB file.

If a CTB file is imported into the pen table, and then exported, the extra data that MicroStation does not modify is preserved. This must be done, however, in a single pen table session.

MicroStation does not store any "unrecognized" CTB data in a pen table file.

MicroStation cannot export to an STB file.