Mastering Hatches in LusoCAD: Associativity and Separate Hatches

Welcome to another LusoCAD tutorial! The Hatch tool is essential for adding detail and clarity to your drawings. Today, we're going to delve into some of its powerful creation options: associativity and creating separate Hatches.

What is a Hatch?

In LusoCAD, Hatch fills a specific closed area in your drawing with a pattern/weave. It is commonly used for:

• Representing different materials (such as concrete, steel or terrain).
• Distinguish between different sections in an assembly.
• Add visual clarity and depth to your projects.

When you start the Hatch command, a window pops up where you can customise the appearance, pattern and scale of the Hatch. More importantly, this is where you decide on its fundamental behaviours.

Understanding the Annotative Hatch

One of the first options you'll see is the annotative. Selecting this option automates the process of sizing your Hatch pattern. It guarantees that, regardless of the scale of your viewport, the pattern will be printed or displayed at the correct size on the final sheet, saving you manual adjustments.

Creating Hatches: Single vs. Separate

LusoCAD allows you to select multiple contours in a single command. By default, this will create a single Hatch entity that covers all the selected areas.
However, if you need each area to be a separate entity, simply tick the box "Create separate hatches". This will generate individual hatches for each contour you select, all without having to restart the command.

The Key Decision: Associative vs. Non-Associative Hatch

One of the most crucial settings to understand is the Hatch's associativity. This property defines how the Hatch interacts with its outline, and is a choice you must make during creation - it cannot be changed afterwards.

Associate Hatch
One Hatch association is intelligently linked to its contour. If you modify the outline by moving or stretching it, the Hatch pattern automatically updates to fill in the new shape. This is incredibly useful for dynamic projects where changes are frequent, as it ensures that your Hatch always stays in the right place.

Hatch Non-Associative
One Non-associative hatch, on the other hand, is completely independent. Once created, it has no connection to its original outline. If you modify the outline, the Hatch will remain static, exactly as it was. You would have to delete and recreate the Hatch to match the new outline.

The Hatch Creation Process

LusoCAD follows a logical order when generating a Hatch. Understanding this can help you solve problems with complex contours:

1. Create the Hatch object: Start the command and set its properties.
2. Specify the outer contour: This is the main, outer boundary of the area you want to fill.
3. Add internal contours: These are any internal boundaries that should be treated as "islands" or cut-outs within the outer contour.

This structure helps LusoCAD correctly interpret how to fill the area, leaving the designated spaces empty.

Key Points

Now you know how to use the Hatch options effectively in your LusoCAD drawings.

• Use association hatchbacks for dynamic projects that may change.
• Use non-associative hatchbacks for static areas.
• Use the "Create separate hatches" to efficiently create individual hatches for multiple areas at once.

Mastering these simple options will optimise your workflow and increase the accuracy of your selected projects.