Clipping Dimensions

In this task, you will learn how to clip dimensions, and how to remove this clipping.
This command is useful in two cases:

In a Generative context: in a clipping view, to suppress the part of a dimension line going out of the clipping zone.
In an Interactive context: to create a fake half-dimension, for example to see better a part of the geometry.

Dimension clippings and half-dimensions are quite similar in appearance, but a half-dimension is a dimension type, whereas a dimension clipping is a view mode.

This scenario spread out in an Interactive Drafting context .

Open the Clipping_Dimension.CATDrawing document.

Select the dimension.
Click Create/Modify Clipping in the Dimensioning toolbar.
On the dimension, select the dimension side you want to keep. For this example click on the left of the value.

Now select the point where the dimension line will be cut (the clipping point). For this example, click the intersection between the dimension line and the geometry.

To keep one of the dimension sides with the value but nothing else, i.e. to cut the dimension line immediately after the value, select a point anywhere on the dimension side you want to keep.

The dimension is clipped. Its color will now remain orange.

To modify the dimension line length, drag and drop the dimension value text.

For the purpose of this scenario, you will restore the full dimension.
Select the dimension.
Click Remove Clipping in the Dimensioning toolbar.

More About Clipping Dimension

In a clipped dimension, the value is always underlined.
Create/Modify Clipping and Remove Clipping are also available from the Dimension contextual menu.

By default, the dimension clipping color is a light orange. To customize this color, select Tools > Option> Mechanical Design > Drafting > Dimension tab > Analysis Display Mode section > Types and colors... button.

Note that the dimension clipping color has no priority. For example, if you select the Drive Dimension option in the Dimension Value dialog box, the color of the clipped dimension will change and become blue, the color of a driving dimension.

Note that either modifying the Measure direction, for example from vertical to horizontal, or Dimension type, for example swapping from Radius to Diameter dimension, will automatically deactivate any active dimension clipping.

About cumulated/stacked dimensions system and multi-selection of dimensions

When clipping a cumulated/stacked dimensions system, or a multi-selection of dimensions, all dimensions are not clipped on the same side. The clipping keeps always the extension line which is the closest to the clipping point (i.e. the selected point where the dimension line will be cut).
See the illustrations below:

	Clipping on a stacked dimensions system (the extension lines represented in blue are the closest to the selected clipping point)
	Clipping point	Clipping result
Case 1
Case 2