> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.aliengh.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Views and drawings

> Named plans, sections and elevations, layout sheets at standard scales, and exploded axonometrics.

Get from a model to a drawing set without setting up a single viewport by hand. Every view is a Rhino named view, so it stays in your file and restores with its clipping plane.

<Tip>Components that write to the Rhino document (`run`, `make`, `view`) do it behind a button, and each press replaces what the last one made. Re-solving never piles up duplicates.</Tip>

| Component | What it's for |
| - | - |
| [Site views](#site-views) | Plan, site plan, two centreline sections and four elevations around your site in one click, as Rhino named views, with an optional layout sheet. |
| [Views](#views) (next beta) | Named plans, reflected ceiling plans, elevations, sections, isometrics and a perspective of any geometry, clipped and framed. |
| [Layout](#layout) (next beta) | Your named views on A4 to A0 sheets at the largest standard scale that fits, with view titles and a title block. |
| [Exploded axo](#exploded-axo) (next beta) | Pull a building or object apart by part, branch or height band, with dashed explosion lines, labels and an isometric view saved for you. |

***

## Site views

`site_views`

Plan, site plan, two centreline sections and four elevations around your site in one click, as Rhino named views, with an optional layout sheet.

**Cost:** Free.

### Inputs

| Input | Type | On the component | Default | What it does |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| `site` | list of Curve | Select in Rhino | — | site boundary (e.g. from vic\_site\_map) |
| `context` | Number | Slider 5–300 | `40` | site plan reach beyond the site (m) |
| `geometry` | list of Geometry | Select in Rhino | — | context to frame and cut: buildings, terrain, roads (optional) |
| `align` | Boolean | Switch | off | align to the site's long axis instead of north |
| `sheet` | Text | Dropdown | `A1` | layout sheet to make with every view. One of `none`, `A3`, `A2`, `A1` |
| `run` | Boolean | Button | — | create (or replace) the named views, section planes and sheet in Rhino |

### Outputs

| Output | Type | What it gives you |
| - | - | - |
| `views` | list of Text | view names |
| `planes` | list of Plane | picture plane of each view |
| `frames` | list of Curve | what each view shows |
| `sections` | list of Curve | cut lines through the geometry |
| `info` | Text | views, scales, what was created |

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How it works">
    * Frame: true north, or the long axis of the site's minimum rectangle (align).
    * Views: 'Alien · Plan', 'Alien · Site plan', 'Alien · Section X' (looking north), 'Alien · Section Y' (looking west), 'Alien · Elevation north/south/east/west' clipped 0.5 m outside the site so the site's own buildings show.
    * Clipping planes live on a hidden 'Alien views' layer (hidden planes still clip).
    * Sheet (A3/A2/A1): plans on top, sections and elevations in rows, one standard scale for all (the site plan gets its own), Pen display mode, labels on 'Alien sheet labels'.
    * run (a button) replaces everything the last run made: tagged objects, 'Alien · ' named views and pages.
    * Without run, the outputs still give the view names, camera planes, frames and section lines.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

***

## Views

`views`

<Info>New since 0.02-alpha: arrives in the next beta.</Info>

Named plans, reflected ceiling plans, elevations, sections, isometrics and a perspective of any geometry, clipped and framed.

**Cost:** Free.

### Inputs

| Input | Type | On the component | Default | What it does |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| `geometry` | list of Geometry | Select in Rhino | — | what the views show and are framed to (breps, meshes, curves...) |
| `layer` | Text | Text field | blank | or frame the objects on this Rhino layer (when geometry is unwired) |
| `preset` | Text | Dropdown | `plan + elevations` | which views. One of `plan + elevations`, `plan + sections`, `plans`, `elevations`, `axonometrics`, `all`, `custom` |
| `custom` | Text | Text field | `plan, north, east, section x, iso SW` | views for 'custom', comma separated: plan, rcp, top, north, south, east, west, section x, section y, iso SW, iso SE, iso NE, iso NW, persp |
| `cut` | Number | Slider 0–20 | `1.2` | plan cut height (m): above the lowest point, or above each level |
| `levels` | list of Data | Wire | — | level records (from levels): a plan and RCP per level, cut above each |
| `cuts` | list of Data | Wire | — | section lines (curves: the view looks to the left of the line) or planes (looks along the normal); replace section x and y |
| `display` | Text | Text field | `Technical` | display mode saved with each view (a Rhino display mode name) |
| `margin` | Number | Slider 0–50 | `2` | space around the geometry in each view (m) |
| `prefix` | Text | Text field | `Alien views` | view name prefix: a press replaces the views made with this prefix |
| `make` | Boolean | Button | — | create (or replace) the named views and their clipping planes in Rhino |

### Outputs

| Output | Type | What it gives you |
| - | - | - |
| `views` | list of Text | named view names (wire into layout) |
| `planes` | list of Plane | picture plane of each view: frame centre, X right, Y up |
| `frames` | list of Curve | the extent of each view |
| `sections` | list of Curve | cut lines through the geometry at each plan cut and section |
| `marks` | list of Curve | section marks for plans: cut line, arrows and letters |
| `info` | Text | what happened: a summary, sources and notes |

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How it works">
    * Presets: plan + elevations, plan + sections, plans, elevations, axonometrics, all, custom ('plan, rcp, north, section x, iso SW, persp').
    * With level records: a plan and RCP per level, cut inside each storey (a second back-facing plane limits the depth).
    * Wired section lines look to their left (planes along the normal), lettered with plan section marks.
    * make creates or replaces the views and clipping planes registered for the same prefix (never someone else's); without it, frames and cuts preview only.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

***

## Layout

`layout`

<Info>New since 0.02-alpha: arrives in the next beta.</Info>

Your named views on A4 to A0 sheets at the largest standard scale that fits, with view titles and a title block.

**Cost:** Free.

### Inputs

| Input | Type | On the component | Default | What it does |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| `views` | list of Text | Text field | — | named views to place (e.g. from views or site\_views); unwired: every view the Alien view components made |
| `sheet` | Text | Dropdown | `A1` | sheet size. One of `A4`, `A3`, `A2`, `A1`, `A0` |
| `orientation` | Text | Dropdown | `landscape` | sheet orientation. One of `landscape`, `portrait` |
| `arrange` | Text | Dropdown | `auto grid` | auto grid: several views a sheet; rows: plans, elevations, sections and 3D views in rows, one scale a row. One of `auto grid`, `one per sheet`, `rows` |
| `scale` | Text | Dropdown | `auto` | auto: the largest standard scale that fits each view. One of `auto`, `auto, one scale`, `1:20`, `1:50`, `1:100`, `1:200`, `1:250`, `1:500`, `1:1000`, `1:2000` |
| `display` | Text | Text field | `from view` | detail display mode: 'from view' uses each view's own (Technical instead of none or Wireframe), or a Rhino display mode name |
| `project` | Text | Text field | `Project` | title block: project |
| `title` | Text | Text field | `General arrangement` | title block: drawing title |
| `number` | Text | Text field | `A101` | drawing number (counts up over several sheets: A101, A102...) |
| `date` | Text | Text field | blank | date (blank: today) |
| `drawn` | Text | Text field | `Alien` | drawn by |
| `prefix` | Text | Text field | `Alien sheet` | sheet name prefix: a press replaces the sheets made with this prefix |
| `make` | Boolean | Button | — | create (or replace) the layout pages in Rhino |

### Outputs

| Output | Type | What it gives you |
| - | - | - |
| `pages` | list of Text | layout page names |
| `scales` | list of Text | scale of each placed view, in order ('1:100'; 'NTS' for perspectives) |
| `sheets` | list of Curve | preview of the sheets at paper size (1 mm = 1 mm) from the world origin: border, details, view titles, title block |
| `info` | Text | what happened: a summary, sources and notes |

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How it works">
    * Arrangement: auto grid, one per sheet, rows (plans, elevations, sections, 3D, one scale a row).
    * Scale: auto (largest standard scale that fits), one scale, or forced (cropped with a note); perspectives NTS.
    * Title block: project, drawing, number (counts up across sheets), scale, sheet k of n, date, drawn by.
    * make replaces the sheets made with the same prefix; press it again after re-making the views.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

***

## Exploded axo

`exploded_axo`

<Info>New since 0.02-alpha: arrives in the next beta.</Info>

Pull a building or object apart by part, branch or height band, with dashed explosion lines, labels and an isometric view saved for you.

**Cost:** Free.

### Inputs

| Input | Type | On the component | Default | What it does |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| `geometry` | tree of Geometry | Select in Rhino | — | parts: one branch per group (e.g. per level), or a flat list exploded part by part; unwired: a sample building |
| `mode` | Text | Dropdown | `vertical stack` | how the groups move apart. One of `vertical stack`, `height bands`, `along vector`, `radial` |
| `spacing` | Number | Slider 0–50 | `3` | gap opened between neighbouring groups (m); radial: how far the outermost group moves |
| `axis` | Vector3d | Wire | — | direction for 'along vector' (unwired: world Z) |
| `band` | Number | Slider 0.1–50 | `3.2` | band height for 'height bands' (m) |
| `keep_base` | Boolean | Switch | on | the first (lowest) group stays where it is |
| `beside` | Boolean | Switch | off | draw the result beside the original (along +X) instead of over it |
| `leaders` | Text | Dropdown | `corners` | dashed explosion lines between where each group was and where it is. One of `none`, `corners`, `centres` |
| `names` | list of Text | Text field | — | a label per group, drawn beside it (in branch order; height bands: bottom up) |
| `angle` | Text | Dropdown | `SW` | isometric view from. One of `SW`, `SE`, `NE`, `NW` |
| `display` | Text | Text field | `Shaded` | display mode saved with the named view |
| `name` | Text | Text field | `Alien axo · Exploded` | named view name |
| `view` | Boolean | Button | — | create (or replace) a parallel isometric named view framing the result |

### Outputs

| Output | Type | What it gives you |
| - | - | - |
| `exploded` | Data | the parts moved apart, in the same tree structure as geometry |
| `lines` | list of Curve | dashed explosion lines |
| `labels` | list of Curve | group labels as curves, facing the view |
| `transforms` | list of Transform | the move of each group (branch order; a flat list: part order; height bands: bottom up) |
| `info` | Text | what happened: a summary, sources and notes |

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How it works">
    * Modes: vertical stack by group, height bands, along a vector, radial; spacing; keep the base group; beside the original.
    * Dashed explosion lines from outline corners or centres; labels facing the camera.
    * view saves (and replaces) a parallel isometric named view from SW/SE/NE/NW.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>


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