Creating PDF files using Microstation
 (See also Creating PDF files using AutoCAD)

The following is intended as a general guide to assist the user in creating PDF files that are appropriately sized and scaled. Specifically, it provides information based on Windows XP Pro and Microstation v8.5. For other operating systems and Microstation versions, it is only intended to provide the user with a general understanding of what is required to configure Microstation for plotting to PDF. Please refer to the appropriate software documentation.

With respect to the information here, there are three ways to go about setting up Microstation to generate PDF files.  A) Customize a copy of the Microstation plotter file PDF.PLT, or B) Download the zip file below and copy the extracted files to the appropriate directories, or C) For older versions of Microstation, you will need to purchase and install third-party PDF software such as Adobe Acrobat that installs as a Windows printer and develop your own Microstation plt file and procedures for generating the PDFs using that printer. Optionally, some CAD plotting utilities such as Bentley InterPlot has built-in capability for exporting DGN files to PDF.

PDF File Requirements
 The final PDF file generated must be a half-size page with 600dpi (dots per inch) resolution and zero margins. Any images within the Microstation file must also be plotted to the PDF at 600 dpi. The PDF file must be PDF version 1.5 (Acrobat 6.x) compatible and comply with all Tri-service standards that are required for similar paper copies. The standard drawing size for Mobile District is 22"x34", making the 1/2-size PDFs 11"x17". Submitted file shall contain only one page (sheet) per PDF file. An example file can be found here: 22x34b_ip_in.pdf.

Method A. Create the required PLT file

If you choose NOT to download the zip file, then you will need to set up a Microstation PLT file as follows.

    Create a Microstation PLT file

  1. Microstation v8.5 comes with a PDF.PLT file for creating PDFs. The default location is C:\Program Files\Bentley\Workspace\System\plotdrv.
  2. Copy this file to a new file name and/or location. You may wish to name it something like "PDF_CORPS.PLT"
  3. Open the new PLT file using a text editor such as NOTEPAD.EXE
  4. Locate the section "ENGLISH resolution and SIZE records"
    For clarity, you may want to delete all of the entries in this section and replace with the following

size=(11,17)/num=0/off=(0,0)/name="11x17corps"
size=(12,18)/num=0/off=(0,0)/name="12x18corps"
size=(15,21)/num=0/off=(0,0)/name="15x21corps"
resolution(IN)=(0.001666666666666666666667,0.001666666666666666666667) ;600DPI

  1. Next, locate the section "Specify the mapping of MicroStation line weights to line thickness on paper"
    For clarity, you may want to delete all of the entries in this section and replace with the following

;Tri-Service Lineweights
weight_strokes(mm)=(0.09, 0.125, 0.175, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35, 0.425, 0.50, \
0.567, 0.633, 0.70, 0.76, 0.82, 0.88, 0.94, 1.00, \
0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, \
0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1)

  1. Next, locate the section "The following options control raster plotting"
    For clarity, you may want to delete all of the entries in this section and replace with the following

isv_raster=1 ; Plots the raster image, 1=On 0=Off Default=1
pixel_resolution=600 ; Resolution of pixels on output (dpi) Default=300
contrast=50 ; Contrast in percent, between 0-100 Default=50
brightness=50 ; Brightness in percent, between 0-100 Default=50
raster_fence=1 ; Clip the raster to fence, 1=On 0=Off Default=1
grayscale=0 ; Plot in gray scale, 1=On 0=Off Default=0
no_dgnraster=0 ; MS plot of 87/88, 1=Don't plot 0=Plot Default=0
background = 0 ; 0=white,1=black,2=color Default=0
no_rasterref=0 ; MS plot of 90's, 1=Don't plot 0=Plot Default=0

  1. Locate the section "Construction/active points are plotted by default", and delete or comment-out the point_size entry.
  2. Locate the section "RGB Raster compression" and uncomment the line "CmdName /appname="pdf" /command="RGBRasterCompression" /qualifier="jpeg""
    Delete or comment-out the line "CmdName /appname="pdf" /command="RGBRasterCompression" /qualifier="zipped""
  3. Optional: Set the value for num_pens = 1 to make monochrome the only plot option
  4. Save the new PLT file.
  5. Go to PLOT section below.

Method B. Download the required files

  1. If you choose not to create the required files from scratch, follow these instructions.
  2. Download and unzip the zip file Ustn_Corps_pdf.zip which contains the required PLT plot file and sample file.
    The zip file contains the following:
     
    22x34b_ip_in.pdf Sample 11x17 PDF file
    PDF_CORPS.plt Microstation PLT plot driver file
    PDF_CORPS.joboptions Adobe Acrobat PDF Conversion Settings file (for Method C below)
    PDFwin_CORPS.plt Microstation PLT plot driver for use with Adobe PDF printer (for Method C below)

 

  1. Copy the plotter configuration file PDF_CORPS.plt to the Microstation Plotdrv folder
    (typically, C:\Program Files\Bentley\Workspace\System\plotdrv)
  2. The PDF_CORPS.joboptions and PDFwin_CORPS.plt files are for use with Method C only.
  3. Go to PLOT section below.

Method C. Older Microstation versions

Due to the vast variances in CAD applications, operating systems, and PDF writers, it is beyond the scope of this document to provide specific guidance on all the possible PDF creation methods. The following provides guidance for using Microstation v8.0 or earlier with Adobe Acrobat 6.0 that has installed a printer named "Adobe PDF".

  1. Download the zip file in Method B and copy the PDF_CORPS.joboptions file to the Adobe PDF Settings folder (typically, C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\Adobe PDF 6.0\Settings) or configure the Adobe PDF printer as follows
  1. Open the Windows' Printers and Faxes. Locate the Adobe PDF printer. Right-click and choose Properties. On the General tab, click the Printing Preferences... button.
  2. On the Adobe PDF Printing Preferences dialog, select the Adobe PDF Settings tab. Make note of the current settings for Page Size and Default Settings. Click the Add Custom Page... button. On the Add Custom Paper Size dialog, create a new Paper Name by entering a name (e.g. 11x17corps), and specifying 17.0 for Width and 11.0 for Height, and selecting Inch for Unit. Click Add/Modify.
  3. Repeat step 3 as needed for each additional custom paper sizes.
  4. On the Adobe PDF Settings tab, under the Adobe PDF Conversion Settings, select "Standard" and click the Edit button next to the Default Settings drop-down. Click the Save As... button and provide a new settings name (e.g. PDF_CORPS). Click Save.
  5. In the Adobe PDF Settings dialog, on the General tab, set the Resolution to 600 dpi, Compatibility to "Acrobat 5" or later, Binding to "Left", Auto-Rotate Pages to "Collectively by File", and Default Page Size to 17.0" Width and 11.0" Height. On the Images tab, for each of the Image type settings, set the Downsample to "Bicubic Downsampling to" 600 ppi for images above 600 ppi. For color and grayscale images, set the Compression to "Automatic (JPEG)" and set the Image Quality to "High". For Monochrome Images, set the Compression to "CCITT Group 4", and set the Anti-alias to gray to "Off".
  6. Using your note of the settings for Page Size and Default Settings from step 3 above, set the Set the Page Size and Default Settings back to the original settings suitable for other applications. The default is Letter page size and Standard settings. Click OK to close the Printing Preferences dialog.
  7. Click OK to close the Adobe PDF Properties dialog.
  1. Microstation comes with a PRINTER.PLT file for printing to the default Windows printer. The default location of this file is C:\Program Files\Bentley\Workspace\System\plotdrv.
  2. Copy this file to a new file name and/or location. You may wish to name the new file something like "PDFwin_CORPS.PLT"
  3. Open the new PLT file using a text editor such as NOTEPAD.EXE
  4. Next, locate the section "Specify the mapping of MicroStation line weights to line thickness on paper"
    For clarity, you may want to delete all of the entries in this section and replace with the following

    ;Tri-Service Lineweights
    weight_strokes(mm)=(0.09, 0.125, 0.175, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35, 0.425, 0.50, \
    0.567, 0.633, 0.70, 0.76, 0.82, 0.88, 0.94, 1.00, \
    0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, \
    0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1, 0.1)

  5. Locate the section "*** For Windows Platform Only ***"
    For clarity, you may want to locate and replace the following entries
        sysprinter /name="Adobe PDF"
        sysprinter /offset=(0,0)
        sysprinter /orientation="Landscape"
     
    6.
  6. Locate and delete or comment-out the point_size entry.
  7. Locate and set the following entries:
    hardware_raster/resolution=600
    PIXEL_RESOLUTION = 600
  8. Optionally, locate and set the entry num_pens = 1 to make monochrome the only plot option
  9. Go to PLOT section below.
    10.

PLOT

  1. From within Microstation, select File, Print.
  2. From the Print dialog box, in the section Printer and Paper Size, select the driver drop-down button and select Bentley Driver, then click the magnifying glass next to the drop-down button. Select the PLT file from Method A, B, or C. Select the Paper Size (e.g. 11x17corps), set the Print area, and Print Scale and Size. The X: value should be 11.000 in. and the Y: value should be 17.000 in.
    3.

VIEWING PDF FILES

    1.    A free viewer is available from the Adobe Corporation www.acrobat.com.

Special Notes:

  1. These procedures were developed and tested using Microstation 8.5 and Adobe Acrobat 6.0 Professional running under Windows XP Professional.
  2. The lineweights for the PLT files were developed based on the CADD GIS Technology Center CADD Standard lineweights.
  3. To perform batch plotting of multiple files, refer to the Microstation documentation on batch plotting.

Page Updated: September 2006