Component Axes

Component Axes

In dynamic component development, it is crucial to remain aware of component axes. Proper management of these axes ensures they work in your favor, rather than causing unintended issues. Before you create one attribute, review the following tips for keeping the axes on your side:

• Every component and subcomponent has its own axis origin point. If you use attributes to set the dimensions of, position, or move a dynamic component, the values you enter are relative to the component’s axis origin. If you position more than one subcomponent, each one will have a different axis origin. So know the whereabouts of each component’s axes origin, and reposition it if needed.
• The axes’ colors become letters. Everywhere in SketchUp, you see references to the red, green, and blue axes — except in the Component Attributes dialog box. Here, the red axis is X, the green axis is Y, and the blue axis is Z. For example, the LenX attribute defines the length of the X, or red, axis.
• Gluing and cutting planes can turn the axis origin sideways. When you create a component, you can set both gluing and cutting planes. When a component glues to only vertical surfaces, the blue (Z) and green (Y) axes are swapped: LenZ has a length value for the green axis, and LenY’s value is what’s typically the blue axis. For example, if you want to constrain a gluing component that glues to vertical surfaces, such as window, to a specific height, your formula needs to constrain LenY, not LenZ. If your component has a cutting plane, remember that to create that cutting plane on a vertical face, you had to move the axes, because the red/green plane determines the cutting plane.