How to Draw Exact Measurements in SketchUp

To draw with exact measurements in Sketchup, type the measurement you want at the keyboard, either during object creation or immediately afterward. Sketchup recognizes notation for dimensions entered in meters, inches, feet, and other common units. Besides drawing to specific dimensions, you can move, rotate and scale existing designs to precise amounts. To do so, type the dimensions you need at the keyboard, just as you do when drawing objects. To enter two and three dimensional coordinates, separate each number by a comma. For example, for the point (3, 2, 1), type "3, 2, 1."

Instructions

1. Click the "Tools" panel icon shaped like a straight line segment to run the "Line" tool, then click anywhere on the ground to plot the line's first point. Drag a short distance in the direction in which you want the line to extend, then type any number, such as "20." Press "Enter" to give the line the length you specified. Although you didn't specify units such as inches or meters, Sketchup uses the default units specified in the "Windows" dialog box "Model info" to complete the line.

2. Click the ground to start another line, and then drag a short distance to indicate the line's direction. Type any number, and then type either single quotes to indicate feet, double quotes to indicate inches, or "m" to indicate meters. Press "Enter" to create the line at the length and units you specified.

3. Click the "Tools" panel icon shaped like a rectangle to run the "Rectangle" tool, then click any point on the ground to plot the rectangle's first point. Type a number, such as "20," then press "," to indicate you want to specify the other dimension of the rectangle. Type another number, then press "Enter" to create a rectangle at the dimensions you specified.

4. Click the "Tools" panel icon shaped like a circle to run the tool for drawing circles, and then click any point on the ground to specify the circle's center.

5. Drag the mouse, and then click again to complete the circle. Type a number at the keyboard, then press "Enter" to size the circle to the diameter you specified. Although you already finished the circle, entering a diameter at the keyboard allowed you to resize the shape. This behavior holds for all other drawing tools in Sketchup. You can enter dimensions immediately after creating an object.

References

• Google SketchUp: The Missing Manual; Chris Grover