2d plot using distance between points only?

[Piglet]

Can anyone help me find some free software where I can specify lengths between points to establish their position and draw up a complex plan?

I want to use the measurements to establish the points then join them up as needed - it's for a rather complex shaped house and garden plot.

I do have manual technical drawing skills, and can do this by hand using compasses and ruler on paper, but that takes time and I'd prefer to do this electronically.

As an example, with measurements:

A to B
A to C
A to D
B to C
B to D
B to E
D to E

With the starting assumption that A to B is West to East, and that the other points are to the North of them, you can work out the positions of the other points:






Every software I can find uses length along a bearing....and I don't have a theoldolite to hand or the skills to use one!

[Miauz55555]

I actually don't understand 100% what you want.

You may want something like "Creo Elements", "FreeCad"? For that you would need to draw some helping circles first and force the respecting line on both. When your point is on a plateau, you would have to calculate the shadowed lenght first and than work with layers to make it 3D.

[Killer_XTREME!!!]

Can anyone help me find some free software where I can specify lengths between points to establish their position and draw up a complex plan?

I want to use the measurements to establish the points then join them up as needed - it's for a rather complex shaped house and garden plot.

I do have manual technical drawing skills, and can do this by hand using compasses and ruler on paper, but that takes time and I'd prefer to do this electronically.

As an example, with measurements:

A to B
A to C
A to D
B to C
B to D
B to E
D to E

With the starting assumption that A to B is West to East, and that the other points are to the North of them, you can work out the positions of the other points:






Every software I can find uses length along a bearing....and I don't have a theoldolite to hand or the skills to use one!

Try AutoCAD, its what civil engineers use for their detailed house line plans, i think they also have 3d ones

[holyspam]

Can anyone help me find some free software where I can specify lengths between points to establish their position and draw up a complex plan?

I want to use the measurements to establish the points then join them up as needed - it's for a rather complex shaped house and garden plot.

I do have manual technical drawing skills, and can do this by hand using compasses and ruler on paper, but that takes time and I'd prefer to do this electronically.

As an example, with measurements:

A to B
A to C
A to D
B to C
B to D
B to E
D to E

With the starting assumption that A to B is West to East, and that the other points are to the North of them, you can work out the positions of the other points:






Every software I can find uses length along a bearing....and I don't have a theoldolite to hand or the skills to use one!

Try AutoCAD, its what civil engineers use for their detailed house line plans, i think they also have 3d ones

I agree, you can design almost anything in 3D like gears,screws etc..
The "offset [distance x,y,z]" command will help you a lot
Civil engineers use it for city planning, trees, sidewalks, roads, bridges...you name it

[zeus]

I BELIEVE THESE LINKS MAY BE APPLICABLE

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True-range_multilateration - what you want to achieve

http://lnu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1460791/FULLTEXT01.pdf - random bachelor thesis comparing the methods

[zeus]

ALSO - consider writing it yourself. It basically comes to adding dots along the edge of a circle and comparing the locations of circle centrepoints in such a way that all conditions are met simultaneously. Doable in ~2-3 hours in worse case scenario

[Miauz55555]

Can anyone help me find some free software where I can specify lengths between points to establish their position and draw up a complex plan?

I want to use the measurements to establish the points then join them up as needed - it's for a rather complex shaped house and garden plot.

I do have manual technical drawing skills, and can do this by hand using compasses and ruler on paper, but that takes time and I'd prefer to do this electronically.

As an example, with measurements:

A to B
A to C
A to D
B to C
B to D
B to E
D to E

With the starting assumption that A to B is West to East, and that the other points are to the North of them, you can work out the positions of the other points:






Every software I can find uses length along a bearing....and I don't have a theoldolite to hand or the skills to use one!

Try AutoCAD, its what civil engineers use for their detailed house line plans, i think they also have 3d ones

I agree, you can design almost anything in 3D like gears,screws etc..
The "offset [distance x,y,z]" command will help you a lot
Civil engineers use it for city planning, trees, sidewalks, roads, bridges...you name it

But AutoCad is not legaly free. "FreeCad" .. well .. is. https://www.freecadweb.org/

[hagis]

usually when the problem looks unusual it's because it's being attempted in the wrong way

in this case, a roomba, fitted with suitable wheels and let it map the area for you,. there's some software kicking about that takes the roomba data and will draw an accurate plan

ok there are other ways too which don't require a roomba

[Stealer]

Looks like a load of triangles to me, pythagorus? Probably not what you want though...

[Piglet]

Yes - I want to plot those triangles; find where the points are and then join them up as I need to.

Sounds like a simple ask - but I can't find software to do it.

It would be possible to use maths to derive the position of each of the corners - but then I'd have to do that for every trangle and plot those points - but it would be really painful.

The other way is to do it as you would on paper:

1. draw the first line A-B
2. plot a circle, centre A with radius of the second length A->C
3. plot a circle, centre b with radius of the third length B->C
4. the intersection of the circles is point C

I'm not sure how to use the cad packages I've found to do that.

[Miauz55555]

Yes - I want to plot those triangles; find where the points are and then join them up as I need to.

Sounds like a simple ask - but I can't find software to do it.

It would be possible to use maths to derive the position of each of the corners - but then I'd have to do that for every trangle and plot those points - but it would be really painful.

The other way is to do it as you would on paper:

1. draw the first line A-B
2. plot a circle, centre A with radius of the second length A->C
3. plot a circle, centre b with radius of the third length B->C
4. the intersection of the circles is point C

I'm not sure how to use the cad packages I've found to do that.

That's CreoElements .. the student version is free .. but you can use FreeCad use https://wiki.freecadweb.org/Draft_Line for the circles. Out of that you than need to make a technical drawing .. the circles will not apear there than .. Using meassurements you can add the lengths you don't know .. when it's more than necessary Creo will use "Reference" for them.

[Piglet]

Thanks.

I'm giving qcad a go. That seems to be fairly intuitive. It's very quickly shown that my measurements need re-doing!

[Blub]

I cannot help with the task, but I'm curious what kind of a project you are planning here - adding more space to Pork Castle?

[Piglet]

Nothing that exciting.

We have an odd shaped plot, and want an accurate scale map of the house and garden.

Qcad seems pretty good. I can draw it out with that as I'd have done it on a drawing board....but I can always correct mistakes without using an eraser!