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Civil 3D CogoPoint Commands

These commands are available in Civil 3D only and operate on Civil 3D CogoPoints.

Dump — Export CogoPoints to file

Command: Dump

Exports all CogoPoints in the drawing to a CSV file at %TEMP%\Dump.txt. Use this to back up points before a destructive operation, or to transfer points between drawings.

What is exported

Each row contains the following columns (comma-separated):

Column Field
0 FB (Fieldbook number, from FB or Fieldbook Number UDP)
1 Easting
2 Northing
3 Elevation
4 Code (raw description)
5–12 A1–A8 (survey attributes)
13 Point style name
14 Label style name
15–17 Label location X, Y, Z
18 Label rotation (radians)
19 IsLabelPinned (1/0)
20 Marker rotation (radians)
21 IsLabelVisible (1/0)

Note

If no R3 or MLS UDP classification is found in the drawing, the export proceeds but A1–A8 and FB columns will be empty.

DumpIn — Import CogoPoints from file

Command: DumpIn

Imports CogoPoints from %TEMP%\Dump.txt (produced by Dump) into the current drawing. Prompts for import options before processing.

Import options

Option Effect
All Apply everything: coordinates, attributes, styles, label position/rotation, marker rotation, label visibility
PointsOnly Coordinates and attributes only — no styles, no label transforms
NoLabelMove Apply everything except label location and rotation
NoStyles Apply coordinates, attributes, and label transforms, but not point or label styles
Custom Prompts yes/no for each option individually

The typical workflow is Dump in the source drawing, then DumpIn in the target drawing.

RENUM — Renumber points to match fieldbook

Command: RENUM

Renumbers CogoPoints on the current layer to match their FB (Fieldbook Number) UDP value. Useful after importing raw points to assign their original field point numbers.

  • Only points on the current layer are processed
  • If a target number is already in use by another point, that point is temporarily bumped to a spare number to avoid conflicts
  • Reports counts of processed, renumbered, and bumped points

MP — Mean duplicate points

Command: MP

Finds duplicate CogoPoints on the current layer that fall within a specified tolerance, moves the first point to the mean position, and deletes the duplicates.

Usage

  1. Type MP
  2. Enter tolerance in metres (default 0.01)

Points are compared by dX, dY, and dZ. If all three differences are within the tolerance, the points are treated as duplicates. The surviving point is moved to the average E, N, H of the group.

CGD — Delete CogoPoints

Command: CGD

Deletes CogoPoints from the drawing with confirmation. Options:

Option Effect
Yes Delete all CogoPoints in the drawing
No Cancel — no deletion
Exclude Delete all points except those on selected layers. Pick one or more CogoPoints to identify layers to keep, then press Enter.
Include Delete only points on selected layers. Pick one or more CogoPoints to identify layers to delete, then press Enter.

Warning

This command permanently erases CogoPoints. Run Dump first if you need a backup.

Dh — Apply delta height

Command: Dh

Shifts the Z elevation of all objects in model space by a specified delta. Useful for correcting datum offsets after import.

Usage

Enter a delta height directly (e.g. 1.234) or type R for Reference mode:

Reference mode — computes the delta from two known elevations:

  1. Enter or pick (P) a reference elevation (the current, incorrect value)
  2. Enter or pick (P) the new target elevation

The delta is computed as new − reference and applied to all objects.

Options during apply

  • SkipFlat / Include — whether to shift objects that lie entirely at Z=0 (objects that were drawn flat and have no meaningful elevation)
  • SkipLocked / Unlock / Cancel — how to handle objects on locked layers

CogoPoints are shifted via their Elevation property. All other entity types are shifted using a 3D displacement transform.

ScaleCogo — Scale CogoPoints by CSF

Command: ScaleCogo

Scales all CogoPoints XY coordinates around a base point using a Combined Scale Factor (CSF). Elevation (Z) is not changed.

Usage

  1. Specify the base point for scaling
  2. Enter the Combined Scale Factor (e.g. 1.00045)
  3. Choose direction:
  4. GridToGround — XY is multiplied by 1 / CSF
  5. GroundToGrid — XY is multiplied by CSF

Used to convert CogoPoints between MGA grid coordinates and ground (local) coordinates.

PTINFO — Display point information

Command: PTINFO

Displays full diagnostic information for a selected CogoPoint in the command line, including:

  • Point number, Northing, Easting, Elevation
  • Raw and full description
  • All UDP classification values (string, boolean, integer, double, enumeration)
  • Label properties: IsLabelPinned, IsLabelVisible, label location, label rotation
  • Label component IDs

Useful for inspecting UDP values and label state when troubleshooting point imports or style issues.

R3LO — Toggle label style override

Command: R3LO

Toggles the label style override flag for all point groups in the drawing simultaneously.

The toggle reads the current state of the _All Points group:

  • If _All Points override is OFF → turns override ON for all groups
  • If _All Points override is ON → turns override OFF for all groups

This is useful for quickly switching all point groups between their overridden label style and their individual group label styles.

R3LR — Match label rotation to line

Command: R3LR

Aligns CogoPoint label rotation to match the angle of a selected line. After selecting the line, pick one or more CogoPoints:

  • Normal click — rotates the label to match the line angle (accounting for current view twist)
  • Ctrl+click — moves the label location; prompts for a new position
  • Click same point twice — flips the label 180°
  • Escape — exits the command

Continues picking points until you press Esc.

AT — Add text from CogoPoint attributes

Command: AT

Adds text labels to the drawing based on CogoPoint attribute values and the active point label rules. Requires an active R3 configuration to be set (run R3SETCONFIG).

Usage

  1. Type AT
  2. Select a CogoPoint

The command looks up the point's code against the active Point Label Rules, resolves the label text from the point's attributes (A1–A8), and draws the result as AutoCAD text at 2.5 mm plotted size. Continue selecting points; press Esc to finish.

R3HIDEPOINTS — Toggle point marker visibility

Command: R3HIDEPOINTS

Hides or shows CogoPoint markers for all points whose label style matches a configured name. Useful for temporarily hiding survey string points (line shots, wall shots, etc.) while reviewing or finalising linework, without deleting the points or touching layers.

How it works

The command identifies target points by their label style name — any point whose label style matches the configured target is included, regardless of how it was created (R3String, DumpIn, manual entry, etc.).

First run (hide):

  • Finds all CogoPoints whose label style == the target label style name
  • Saves each point's current point style name into XData on the point
  • Sets the point style to the configured hidden style

Second run (show):

  • Finds all CogoPoints that have the saved XData from a previous hide
  • Restores each point's original style from the XData
  • Clears the saved XData

The toggle detects its own state automatically — no manual tracking required. Run the command again to reverse whatever was last done.

Configuration

Use R3HIDEPOINTSOPTIONS to set the style names before first use. Settings are saved to %APPDATA%\R3Survey\HidePointsSettings.json and persist between sessions.

Default values:

Setting Default
Target label style name HIDE
Hidden point style name HIDE

Note

The hidden point style must already exist in the drawing. If it is not found, the command reports an error and prompts you to run R3HIDEPOINTSOPTIONS.

R3HIDEPOINTSOPTIONS — Configure hide point settings

Command: R3HIDEPOINTSOPTIONS

Sets the label style name and hidden point style name used by R3HIDEPOINTS. Prompts on the command line with current values as defaults — press Enter to keep an existing value.

Label style name that identifies points to hide <HIDE>:
Point style to use when hidden <HIDE>:

Settings are saved to %APPDATA%\R3Survey\HidePointsSettings.json.

When to use

Run this once when setting up R3Survey for a new company or drawing template whose style names differ from the defaults. For example, if your hidden label style is called No Display and your hidden point style is called Blank:

Label style name that identifies points to hide <HIDE>: No Display
Point style to use when hidden <HIDE>: Blank

See also