Mechanical EntitySnap Modes

Use EntitySnaps (ESnaps) to detect and snap to points on drawing entities, for example, end points, intersections, and center points. Snapping to a point provides an exact position for drawing and editing commands.

Geometry EntitySnaps

EntitySnap Mode	Abbreviation	Icon	Description
Nearest	nea		Snaps to the next situated point of an entity when at least one point of the entity lies within the borders of the GravityBox. If you select a point without using Nearest mode, the selected point might not be on the required entity. This mode ensures that the entities share a point with the specified entity.
End	end		Snaps to the end point of a Line, Arc, or other entity. Planes or edges of solids are also interpreted as lines, and end points of planes and solids are recognized by Endpoint mode. The mode does not differentiate between an entity’s start or end point.
Midpoint	mid		Snaps to the mid point of a Line or Arc. Interprets planes or edges of solids as lines and snaps with the Midpoint mode.
Center	cen		Snaps to the center of a Circle, Arc, Ellipse, or elliptical arc.
Geometric center	gce		Snaps to the centroid of a closed Polyline, planar 3D Polyline, Spline, Region, or planar face of a 3D Solid object.
Quadrant	qua		Snaps to the nearest quadrant of a Circle, Arc, Ellipse, or elliptical arc. Quadrants refer to the points of a Circle, Arc, or Ellipse on the circumference at 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°. These are the intersecting points of the axes of a coordinate system whose origin lies at the center of the Circle or Arc with the circumference of the Circle or Arc. You can snap only the next visible quadrant of an Arc or elliptical.
Node	nod		Snaps to a point entity, dimension definition point, or dimension text origin.
Insert	ins		Snaps to the insertion point of a Block insertion, BlockAttribute, or Text entity.

Reference EntitySnaps

EntitySnap Mode	Abbreviation	Icon	Description
Extension	ext		Snaps to the extension of an entity or to the intersection of the extension of two entities. A temporary extension line or arc displays as a dotted line when you hover over the end point of entities and lets you specify a point for the extension. To snap to the extension of the two entities, first hover over the entity’s end point. The entity is marked for extension. Then hover over another entity’s end point. This entity is marked, too. Finally, move the pointer near the intersection of the extensions. An X indicates the intersection. Click to accept the snap.
Intersection	int		Snaps to the intersection points of Lines, Arcs, and Circles, or any combination of them.
Parallel	par		Constrains a linear entity as parallel to another linear entity. When prompted to specify a second or next point when drawing a vector, hover over an existing linear entity until you see the Parallel EntitySnap marker. Move the pointer close to a parallel position. A dotted line appears, indicating the parallel ESnap. Click the second point of the line on the parallel.
Perpendicular	per		The ESnap requires that you select a start point for a function. Activating the EntitySnap mode relates this point to the snapped point. For instance, select the end point for the perpendicular, and Perpendicular mode is activated. The result is a perpendicular Line from the end point to the selected entity.
Tangent	tan		This ESnap requires that you select a start point for a function. Activating the EntitySnap mode relates this point to the snapped point. For instance, to create a Line tangent to a Circle, select the end point for the tangent Line, and Tangent mode is activated. The result is a tangent Line from the end point to the selected entity.
Visual Intersection	appint		Snaps to the location in the plan view of the current coordinate system where two entities would intersect if they were projected onto the plan view. In 3D space, Visual Intersection mode (also called Apparent Intersection mode) snaps to two entities that might or might not actually intersect, whereas, in 2D drafting, it snaps to the projected intersection of two Line entities. If the GravityBox covers only one drawing entity when snapping, you must select the second entity.
Arc Radial Lines	arcr		Snaps to a point on the phantom line that passes through an arc center point and one of the arc end points.
Arc Tangent Lines	arct		Snaps to a point on the phantom line that passes tangentially through an arc end point.
Symmetry	symp		Snaps symmetrically to a specified line.

To select or clear all EntitySnaps:

• Click Select All .
• Click Clear All .