The Object Drawing group on the Object Operation tab allows you to draw point, line, surface, and other geometries in a layout, following similar principles as drawing geometries in a map. However, current layout drawing does not support coordinate input or parameter entry. It also supports adding text and image objects to layouts. During object drawing, snap functionality can be enabled to improve editing precision and efficiency.

The application provides 20 directly creatable geometry types through tools in the Object Drawing group, including various points, lines, and regions that can be directly created in layouts.

Point

The Object Drawing group on the Object Operation tab contains tools for creating point objects in layouts.

Point Object Drawing
Button	Description	Operation Method	Illustration
	Draw Point	Click the Point button to activate point cursor. Left-click positions in layout to create points. Each left-click creates a point object. Right-click to finish drawing.

Note

Two methods to end point drawing:

• Right-click any non-point area in layout
• Re-click the Point button in Object Drawing group

Line

The Object Drawing group provides tools for creating various line objects in layouts.

Line Object Drawing
Button	Description	Operation Method	Illustration
	Straight Line	Click Line button to activate line cursor . Left-click start and end positions sequentially.
	Polyline	Click Polyline button to activate cursor . Left-click nodes sequentially. Right-click to finish.
	Parallel Line	From Polyline dropdown, select Parallel Line. Define width then length through three clicks.
	Elliptical Arc	Click Arc button. Define bounding rectangle then start/end points on ellipse.
	3-Point Arc	From Arc dropdown, create arc through three consecutive points.
	B-spline	From Curve dropdown, place control points. Curve automatically fits through points.
	Bezier Curve	From Curve dropdown, requires at least 6 control points to form smooth curve.
	Cardinal Curve	From Curve dropdown, create smooth curve passing through all control points.
	Freehand Line	From Curve dropdown, draw freeform line by dragging mouse.

Notes

1. Use Ctrl+R during line drawing to reverse direction
2. Two methods to end line drawing:
   • Right-click non-line area
   • Re-click corresponding line tool

Polygon

The application provides 10 types of polygon drawing tools in layouts.

Polygon Object Drawing
Button	Description	Operation Method	Illustration
	Polygon	Click Polygon button. Place nodes sequentially. Right-click to auto-close shape.
	Center Circle	Define center and radius through two clicks.
	2-Point Circle	From Circle dropdown, define diameter endpoints.
	3-Point Circle	From Circle dropdown, define three circumference points.
	Rectangle	Drag diagonally to create rectangle.
	Rounded Rectangle	From Rectangle dropdown, create rectangle then adjust corner radius.
	Parallelogram	From Rectangle dropdown, define base edge then height.
	Ellipse	Define bounding rectangle through diagonal drag.
	Oblique Ellipse	From Ellipse dropdown, define major/minor axes separately.
	Sector	Similar to arc drawing, creates closed wedge shape.

Note

Two methods to end polygon drawing:

• Right-click non-polygon area
• Re-click corresponding polygon tool

Text

The Text tools allow annotation creation in layouts.

Text Object Drawing
Button	Description	Operation Method	Illustration
	Standard Text	Click text insertion point and type directly.
	Curved Text	From Text dropdown, first draw baseline path, then enter text.

Note

Two methods to end text editing:

• Right-click non-text area
• Re-click Text tool

Related Topics

Draw Point Object

Draw Straight Line

Draw Polyline

Draw Arc

Draw Curve

Draw Polygon

Draw Quadrilateral

Draw Circle

Draw Sector