Balloon Settings

Use the Balloons screen of the Toolbox - Settings dialog box to configure balloons you insert into drawings to identify parts to list in a Bill of Materials.

To display balloon settings, do one of the following:

  • Click Mechanical Toolbox > Settings. In the Toolbox - Settings dialog box, in the left pane, click Annotations, and in the right pane, expand Balloons.
  • Click Mechanical Toolbox > Balloon > Insert or Insert Balloon (Mechanical Toolbox toolbar). In the Command window, type Settings and press Enter.

General

Auto increment Toolbox automatically calculates item numbers.

Toolbox automatically populates the balloon with the calculated number.

When cleared, when you insert a balloon in a drawing, a prompt in the Command window shows the default item number calculated by Toolbox. You can change the number or click Return to accept the default.
Count items Toolbox automatically calculates the number of Toolbox-generated items in the drawing that are identical to the item you select when you insert a balloon.

When selected, Toolbox automatically populates balloons and BOMs with the calculated number.

When cleared, when you insert a balloon in a drawing, a prompt in the Command window shows the default number of items calculated by Toolbox. You can change the number or click Return to accept the default.
Verify item data Opens the Toolbox - Edit Balloon dialog box when you insert a balloon so you can add or modify Bill of Materials item data.

Use the dialog box to provide the following information for the BOM:

ASSEMBLY

Specifies the assembly name. It appears in the text file that is created when you export a Bill of Materials.

ITEM

Displays the item number calculated by Toolbox. You can edit this field.

PART NO

Specifies a part number that appears in the BOM in drawings and exported BOMs.

DESCRIPTION

Describes the entity the balloon is attached to.

QTY

Specifies the number of instances of the component.
Layer Preferences Lets you modify the default layer, linecolor, linestyle, and lineweight settings.

Style

Style options control the size, shape, and other visual characteristics of balloons. Changes you make to the options in the Style section are shown in the Preview and applied to the next balloon you insert. Balloons that have already been inserted in the drawing are unchanged.

Shape Sets the shape of the inserted balloon.
None No style choices are available because only the item number is inserted; there is no surrounding shape.
Circular
Circular Split Line

Displays the item number of the block at the top and the number of identical blocks at the bottom.
Triangle
Hexagon
Box
Diamond
Pentagon
Flag (Five Sided)
Flag (Triangle)
Underline
Square
Square (Circle)
Inspection
Size Sets the balloon size based on how many characters can fit into the balloon or a size you specify.
The balloon size depends on the text size.
Stacked Creates stacked balloons that combine multiple balloons on a single leader.

Select No, to create a balloon for each block you select.

When you add a balloon to a Toolbox screw connection that was created as a block, it is appears as a stacked balloon by default. Each balloon is associated with a component of the screw connection.

If you stack balloons, you can stack them Up, Down, Right, or Left.

An additional balloon is stacked each time you select a block.
Leader Visually connects the balloon with the block it references.
Arrow Type Sets the shape of the arrow that attaches the leader to the block.
Arrow Size Sets the arrow size of the arrow that attaches the leader to the block.

Text

Style Sets the text style used in balloons and BOM headings.

The default text style is Standard.
Size Sets the size of the balloon text, in conjunction with the balloon shape dimensions.