Typical Design Process

Creating a Curve

At start-up, a window labeled Ceiling Space Dimension will appear. Fill in the Length and Height of the planned ceiling in feet (1-foot increments). Click OK to close the window and continue. The specified dimensions will be displayed in the lower right of the screen under Ceiling System Dimensions and expressed in the grid in the editing area.

In the lower right of the screen, enter the width of the suspension system in 2 foot increments.

To position the first tee in the Curvatura suspension system, click on the desired tee segment in the toolbox at the bottom of the screen. (Click on the Valley or Vault radio button if the desired segment is not displayed.) The first tee will be positioned at the left side of the main display area, in the middle of the vertical axis. Repeat to add more tees from left to right until the profile is complete.

NOTE: You will notice that the system cuts one foot off the left end of the first tee and the right end of the last tee (displayed as white). This will be reflected in the delivered components and the finished system and is done to facilitate the installation of connecting hardware. For a more detailed explanation of this truncation, see the Curvatura FAQs.

Use the Delete key to remove the last segment placed.

Shortcuts:

• If you are entering a repeating pattern, you may use the Repeat function from the Edit menu to expedite entry. Enter the first set of segments that form your pattern, then choose Repeat. The Curvatura Design Tool will automatically add that same pattern of segments to the end of your design. You may repeat the use of the Repeat function as many times as necessary.
• Select a segment by clicking on it. The segment will be highlighted in red. In the Edit menu, select Cut to delete the segment, or Copy and Paste to add the same segment to the right of the curve.
• Hitting Control+V will repeat the last segment placed.
• Hitting Shift/Insert will repeat the last two segments placed.

You can also create a suspension system design by entering genetic code information manually.

To raise or lower the suspension system, position the cursor anywhere on the curve until it is highlighted in green. Then click and drag the suspension system to the desired height.

Once the first tee segment is positioned, you can rotate the entire system by moving the cursor to the right end of the last tee segment until you see a red dot. Then click on the dot and drag the system to the desired angle. The exact degree of rotation will be displayed above your design.

Point B should be at least 1" to the right of Point A.

If you attempt to place a tee segment or rotate the design in such a way that the end of the last segment is to the left of the beginning of that segment, an error message will appear stating Illegal Tee Position. Click OK, then choose another segment and continue.

If rotating the design places a part of the curve beyond the left edge of the grid, an error message will appear and the “illegal” segment will be highlighted in orange. Click OK and rotate the design to eliminate the problem.

The Design Tool will not permit rotating the design so that any part of the middle of the curve extends beyond the upper or lower edges of the grid. However, the far right end of the last segment can be made to extend beyond the upper, lower or far right edge of the grid. It will be highlighted in blue to indicate that this component will need to be cut to fit into the defined ceiling dimensions.

Once the suspension system design is complete, click on the Options button to select options for the ceiling such as infill panel, color, edge trim, etc.