Boundary Line (BNDLIN)

In most instances architectural components within the system have the concept of a 2D footprint or Boundary Line together with an associated volume that the architectural component encapsulates.

In practice the shape of the outline and volume will be the same, however, the way in which the volume is defined may be different. For certain elements the volume will be a simple extrusion of the outline, whereas, in some cases the volume is a non-regular shape based on the outline, as indicated in the image below.

The Boundary Line element defines the footprint or boundary of an architectural component; it is used for quick visualization in both 2D and 3D views to show the extents of the major architectural component.

Ideally the outline element should be directly owned by the major architectural component it relates too; in this way it can directly inherit any related information from its parent.

The element should always be mapped to the horizontal plane of the major architectural component, that means, the Z direction of the outline and its parent will be the same, as will be the Z positions of the element and it's parent.

The benefit of the outline will be that in both 2D and 3D views it will allow the extents of the major component and components within it, to be visualized without being obscured by the volume itself.

As the main purpose of the element is to aid in visualization, it should have relevant visualization properties that the user can set to help in the purpose, that means, line style and colour. This information can then be directly used when the element is added into the view.