Features

Create hatch patterns, quickly AND EASILY.

Simply:

  1. Draw,  Edit,  Import or  Paste.
  2. Arrange
  3. Save

 New controls!


Draw a hatch pattern

HatchKit provides visual hatch pattern editing. Add or remove lines and dots to create a new hatch pattern. Optional grid snap. Object snap. Copy and paste, undo and redo as required. Position freehand with mouse or specify absolute or relative points exactly as cartesian or polar coordinates.

Edit an existing pattern

HatchKit is a visual hatch pattern editor, not simply a  generator. HatchKit has the unique ability to open any hatch pattern contained in any supported hatch pattern file format, edit and save that pattern to any of the supported hatch pattern file formats.

Open -> Edit -> Save.

HatchKit provides speed, confidence and accuracy unmatched by any other hatch pattern utility.

Paste Windows Clipboard

Paste your template directly from the Windows Clipboard. Most CAD systems can copy selected elements directly to the clipboard with a single command such as Control-C. Lines, arcs, splines, polylines - even text can be copied and pasted.

Import a hatch pattern

Import DXF pattern template definitions containing LINE, POINT, CIRCLE, ARC, ELLIPSE, LWPLINE and POLYLINE entities. Import HPGL plot files containing even more complex artwork such as TEXT or SOLIDS.

Arrange

A hatch pattern consists of the pattern template repeated in any two different directions. The repeat vectors need not be along the X or Y axes or even at right angles, any two different vectors can be used to specify the pattern repeat.

Nor are you confined to a 1x1 square or a rectangle.

Save

Save directly to your system's native hatch pattern file format (see table below). HatchKit stores the selected directory and filetype between editing sessions.

Individually add or replace patterns within files containing more than one pattern such as ACAD.PAT, ACADLT.PAT, REVIT.PAT or SLDWKS.PTN. Revit users can select pattern UNIT and TYPE.

HatchKit calculates each pattern to the highest decimal precision possible within the constraint of available hatch pattern line length ensuring the pattern will repeat properly over millions of repeats from the origin. No unnecessary duplicated pattern bloat occurs in the saved pattern.

Note: the Demonstration Version watermarks saved patterns.

Hatch Pattern File Formats

AutoCAD, AutoCAD LT *.PAT
Alibre *.TXT
AllyCAD *.PAT
ArchiCAD DXF import
Chief Architect *.PAT
DataCAD *.PAT, *.DHP
DesignCAD

*.DCH
FelixCAD *.PAT
General CADD PRO *.GXH,*.LST
IntelliCAD .PAT
MegaCAD .INI
MicroStation V8 *.PAT
PowerCAD *.PAT
Revit *.PAT
Rhino 4.0 *.TXT
Spirit *.PAT
TurboCAD *.TXT, *_XML.INI
Vdraft *.PAT
VectorWorks DXF import
VersaCAD *.HPT
Visual CADD *.HAT

 

Build your own library of hatch patterns

To build a library of hatch patterns:

  1. Create a drawing containing the pattern template for each hatch pattern as a separate BLOCK.
  2. Export the drawing as a DXF file
  3. Use HatchKit to convert each pattern templateblock to a hatch pattern

Multiple Pattern Layers

Hatch patterns layers handle portions of the overall pattern at different repeat spacings. HatchKit automatically groups elements sharing the same arrangement into seperate layers. Most simple patterns have only one arrangement.

Add new layers to a pattern to build up more complex patterns such as concrete and geologic hatches. Each item in a layer is arranged at that layer's spacing in the produced pattern.

Scale or Transform

Rescale a whole pattern or transform an individual hatch pattern layer: