When working with area takeoffs (polygons), you often need to manipulate them to fit different orientations or to consolidate your data. Togal.AI provides tools to flip, rotate, and combine these shapes.
How to Rotate?
Rotating is used to change the orientation of a takeoff. This is common when you’ve copy-pasted a takeoff and need to rotate it to match the layout in another part of the plan..
1. Select the takeoff: Use the Select Tool (arrow) to click on the takeoff (the polygon, line, or shape) you want to rotate. A toolbar will appear at the bottom center of the Drawing Editor (it only appears when something is selected).
2. Activate Rotate Mode:
There are two rotate options:
Rotate in Place: Rotates the selected shape(s) around each item’s own center point. Use this when you want each polygon to stay in its current location but change orientation.
Rotate: Rotates the selected items together as a group, keeping their relative spacing and rotating them as one unit. Use this when you’re rotating a copied layout or multiple shapes that need to stay aligned.
3. Perform the Rotation:
Click and drag the rotation handle. The polygon will rotate around its corresponding center point.
Alternatively, holding the Shift key while dragging the rotation handle will snap the rotation to common angles (like 15°, 45°, 90°).
How to flip?
Similar to rotation, flipping creates a mirror image of the takeoff. This is perfect for “opposite-hand” unit layouts.
1. Select the takeoff: Click on the takeoff to select it.
2. Perform the Flip:
Select the Flip function from the toolbar at the bottom center of the Drawing Editor. There are two flip options:
“Flip Horizontally” flips the shape across a vertical axis (left-to-right).
“Flip Vertically” flips the shape across a horizontal axis (top-to-bottom).
Combining Polygons (Merging)
Combining works the same way as the Merge tool: it fuses two or more separate polygons into one larger polygon. This is especially useful when you want to join adjacent rooms or connected areas into a single takeoff.
1. Select the Polygons: Hold the Shift key and click on two or more adjacent area takeoffs that belong to the same classification.
2. Activate the Combine Tool: Select the Combine function from the toolbar at the bottom center of the Drawing Editor.
3. Result: The individual polygons will be combined into one continuous shape, using the external boundary of all selected polygons. Their areas will be recalculated as the net area of the combined shape. Any overlapping portions are merged and not double-counted.
Group and Ungroup Polygons
The Group function adds the selected polygons’ quantities together and displays them as a single line item in the Quantities Panel. You can use Group when you want multiple polygons to move together but remain separate shapes.
Select multiple polygons
Select two or more polygons.Choose an action
Group — allows you to move the polygons as one unit while keeping their original shapes
Ungroup — separates previously grouped polygons
These manipulation tools provide the flexibility needed to quickly adapt a single takeoff for multiple, slightly different uses, saving significant redraw time.