AutoPadds is an extension, created by Prokon, for AutoCAD® that turns it into a full featured reinforced concrete detailing system. AutoPadds offers almost identical functionality to Prokon’s Padds, but in the AutoCAD® environment. (Padds is a CAD and detailing module that forms part of the PROKON Structural Analysis and Design package).

AutoPadds allows you to detail reinforcement directly in Au-toCAD®. Drawings that were created in Padds can also be opened in AutoPadds in order to work with bending sched-ules generated by the Prokon concrete design module.

The new AutoPadds ribbon offers quick and easy acces-sibility to all of the AutoPadds commands. With shape codes for a number of codes of practice already included by default, as well as an easy to use edit mode, to cre-ate your own libraries of reinforcement shape codes, you can choose to add multiple types of rebar, i.e. single bars, bar groups, ABR (alternate reversed bars, staggered bars, stepped bars as well as fanned bars.

11 Wizards are offered in AutoPadds that were developed to assist in detailing common structural parts that require repetitive actions by the user. These Visual Basic scripts make use of the Rebar object that AutoPadds adds to the AutoCAD® environment.

The script starts with an interface where the user can enter parameters and variables. The code in the script reworks this data and populates the property fields of the rebar ob-ject it adds to the model space.

All objects generated with scripts can be edited as if they were drawn in manually.

7 Component based Wizards are contained in AutoPadds which include Base, Circular Column, Rectangular Col-umn, Beam, Retaining Wall, Foundation and Stairs. Each of these wizards can open the associated Prokon Design module file and read dimension and rebar information from the design file.

There are 4 sub-component based wizards, which comprises of the Corner, Opening, Splice and Area Zone Wizards. The sub-component based wizards create bars with reference to existing geometry. The Prokon Tools Wizard allows you to generate input files from the AutoCAD® model space to other Prokon modules.

You can also easily detail slabs created in Prokon’s Sumo with the Sumo wizard in AutoPadds. This wizard allows you to import a slab from a Sumo file that has already been analysed. You can select the slab number that you would like to import or alternatively import all slabs. Select the analysis results to import, i.e. load cases or combinations, as well as the reinforcement direction and position.

AutoPadds has a properties palette for rebar objects (similar to other Auto-CAD® object such as lines and circles) for easy editing of rebar properties such as diameter, shape code and dimensions. And like other objects, rebar objects can be filtered out of a multiple object selection by selecting type “Rebar” from the type dropdown at the top of the properties palette.

AutoPadds has a scheduling calculator is contained in an AutoCAD® docking palette, making it easy to access. The palette’s purpose is to read all the rebar objects in the drawing, help you sort the information, and output it in tables on the AutoCAD® drawing.

On the Schedule Palette execution, the program automatically reads all the bars in the drawing and sorts them first by member name and then by bar mark. Bars with the same mark and the same dimensions will automatically be added together.

The Multizone Wizard lets you add more than one reinforcement zones to a slab.

In Autopadds 2017 the Multizone has extra features allowing you to Remove and explode

Multizones that were previously added.