How to Create Corridor Template Elements in BricsCAD

Last updated: July 20, 2026. Verified against Octave’s official V26 documentation.

Quick answer: A Corridor Template is the framework a corridor’s cross-section is built from, made up of one or more Corridor Template Elements, each built from points, the links between them, and shapes formed from those links. CORRIDORTEMPLATE, CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENT, and CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT create and edit these.

Core Concepts

• Corridor Template: the framework a collection of template elements gets appended to, created with CORRIDORTEMPLATE.
• Corridor Template Element: defines the geometry of one component in a corridor’s cross-section, created from a polyline with CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENT.
• Points, links, and shapes: a template element consists of points, links connecting them, and shapes formed from a single link or from multiple links forming a closed polygon. Materials get assigned to shapes for a realistic rendering of the finished corridor model.
• Targets: when part of a template element needs to follow a specific surface, horizontal object, or vertical object, a target is added to the relevant point. Three target types are available: Surface, Horizontal, and Vertical.

A Worked Example: Building a Road Cross-Section

This walks through building a template element representing an asphalt roadway layer with an embankment, start to finish.

Step 1: Convert a polyline into a template element. Either a simple 2-vertex polyline or a closed polyline with several vertices works here.

1. Draw a polyline representing a roadway asphalt layer, in cross-section view.
2. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENT.
3. Select the polyline.
4. Pick the template element’s base point.
5. Select its orientation: left, right, or none.

This creates a new element with two points connected by a link, P1 (the origin/start point) and P2 (the end point). By default, the second point uses the Delta X and Delta Y type, meaning its position is set as an offset from the origin. The grip sits at the specified base point, and the new element overlaps the original polyline, which can now be erased.

Step 2: Add two more points (P3 and P4).

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add point.
4. Specify positions for two new points.
5. Select the template element, open the Properties panel, click the Points field, and use the arrow button to navigate to P3.
6. Keep P3’s basepoint set to Origin (in this example, that overlaps P1).
7. Define P3’s offset from the origin, for example X=0, Y=-0.2.
8. Navigate to P4 in the Properties panel.
9. Set its basepoint to P2.
10. Define P4’s offset from P2, for example X=0, Y=-0.2.

Step 3: Change P2’s point type.

1. Select P2, either by holding Ctrl and clicking it directly, or by selecting the template element and navigating to it in the Properties panel.
2. Choose Slope and Delta X from the Type dropdown.
3. Type an offset distance in the X field and a slope percentage in the Slope (%) field.

P2’s position is now set by that X offset and slope, and since P4’s basepoint is P2, P4 moves automatically whenever P2’s position changes.

Step 4: Add links between the points.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add Link.
4. Link P1 to P3.
5. Link P3 to P4.
6. Link P4 to P2.
7. Press Enter to finish.

Step 5: Change the template element’s basepoint.

1. Select the template element.
2. Click its Basepoint.
3. Hold Ctrl and specify the new basepoint position.
4. Select the template element again to confirm the new basepoint.

Step 6: Add a shape.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add Shape.
4. Click links L1, L2, L3, and L4, in that order.
5. Press Enter to finish.

Step 7: Add an embankment line.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add Point.
4. Specify the new point’s (P5) position.
5. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT again.
6. Select the template element.
7. Choose Add Link.
8. Link P2 to P5, creating L5.
9. Select P5 and change its basepoint to P2.
10. Select P5 and change its Type to Angle to Surface.

Step 8: Add a shape to the embankment.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add Shape.
4. Select link L5.
5. Press Enter to finish.

Step 9: Add a Surface target to the embankment.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATEELEMENTEDIT.
2. Select the template element.
3. Choose Add Target.
4. Enter a target name, Surface-1.
5. Select the target type: Surface.
6. Enter a target default value, -1.
7. Select point P5 and choose Surface-1 in its Target Surface field.

Step 10: Append the finished template element to a corridor template.

1. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATE.
2. Pick a point in the drawing to create the corridor template.
3. Copy and paste the existing template element in the same drawing, creating a second copy.
4. Select the copy and change its Orientation to Left in the Properties panel (the original stays Right).
5. Launch CORRIDORTEMPLATE again.
6. Choose Add template element.
7. Select the right-oriented template element.
8. Select the corridor template to append it.
9. Repeat steps 5 through 8 for the left-oriented copy too.

Frequently Asked Questions

What’s the difference between a Corridor Template and a Corridor Template Element? A Corridor Template is the overall framework a cross-section is built from. A Corridor Template Element is one individual component within it, points, links, and shapes representing a single piece like an asphalt layer.

Why did point P4 move automatically when I changed P2’s type in the worked example? Because P4’s basepoint is set to P2, so any change to P2’s position carries through to P4 automatically.

What target types can be added to a template element point? Surface, Horizontal, and Vertical, the same three types used throughout corridor modelling in BricsCAD.

Can I reuse a template element for both sides of a road cross-section? Yes, copy and paste an existing template element and change its Orientation property (Left or Right) before appending both to the corridor template, as shown in the final step of the worked example.