Technical Illustration

Work with both vector objects and raster graphics in the same document, with the same powerful enhancement tools, in a single, integrated design environment. Enjoy the ultimate in flexibility with the ability to import over a 100 different file formats, or to create your own graphics – freehand or numerically. Canvas 12 is all you need for everything you illustrate.

Technical Illustration and Enhancement with Greater Control

Accelerate your productivity

Stop wasting valuable time navigating between separate software programs. With Canvas 12, you can edit both vector objects and raster images in one environment, at the same time. Canvas also includes integrated capabilities with specialized applications and a complete set of professional publication tools to streamline your entire workflow.

Real Time Content

Create visuals from both raw and technical data. Choose from a variety of methods to input your exact coordinates, and Canvas 12 accurately turns your data into strong, real-time visual content that you can then enhance, review and publish.

Draw with Precision

Resize and scale objects, add fill and stroke inks, widths and other attributes, and draw shapes – all with measured precision and placement. Take advantage of specialized tools to draw rounded rectangles, complex polygons, cubes, spirals, grids and rectangular boxes in isometric views.

Edit Paths

You can also draw and edit paths and curve segments using the control points that define them. Add, delete and move anchor points to reshape an object's path segments and overall shape.

Add On-The-Fly Illustration Objects

Instantly add re-usable dynamic objects to drawings or as the basis for symbol pen strokes and inks. Access thousands of commonly used and specialized technical symbols from Canvas 12's pre-loaded Symbol Library collection, or create your own custom symbols using any vector, text or composite object. You can also create custom symbol links and pen strokes, and manage them all with flexibility. Move, add keywords, and re-categorize symbols to match your unique workflow needs.

Work flexibly with vector objects

Illustrate, edit and augment all forms of complex visual objects with Canvas 12's wide variety of professional tools and powerful Sprite technology. New features allow you to rejoin segment objects into one and fill the intersections of overlapping objects with a single click, while its proprietary SpriteLayers and SpriteEffects can be used to apply image and transparency effects without affecting the original object. Channel and vector masks, as well as gradient transparency tools are all on hand for stunning visuals.

Paste Into command

Paste almost anything into a selection within an image, including a selection of a raster image channel, or of a channel mask that's attached to an object.

Perspective command

Edit an illustration's vanishing point, and then apply custom perspective effects.

Blend commands

Creatively combine multiple objects with precise control over many variables. Blend dynamically, to a number of shapes, point to point, and more.

Advanced text object tools

Bind text to vector objects, wrap text within objects, apply vector effects to text including extrusion, and apply or write text to a specific vector object path.

Add comments and mark-up

Use Canvas 12's annotation tools to add labels or callouts to your diagrams and illustrations, complete with custom and automated options such as single and multiple diagram line connections. Simply click within the drawing area to instantly create an annotation label object shape with connector lines. Edit the inks, stroke widths, dash and arrow styles of your objects and lines, and easily format and edit notation text. And if you re-position the annotation label object, the Smart Lines connecting it to the illustration moves right along with it.

Edit geometry and position data

Completely control vector object coordinates to ensure the accuracy demanded in many engineering and scientific work environments. Create illustrations from geometric data alone, or blend these precise data controls with more traditional illustration techniques in one seamless work environment. At any time, you can view a vector object's exact width and height, position, reference point and other coordinates via the Properties Bar, and adjust its numerical position for true precision.

Save time with attribute styles

Attribute styles are saved sets of visual properties that you can instantly apply to any vector, text or group object. Quickly transform an illustration's appearance by controlling its fill inks, stroke widths or types, with just one click. Maintain consistency across documents and facilitate project workflow. Create new styles and edit saved styles with the Attribute Styles palette, and share them with other Canvas users.

Add format dimensions to illustrations

Canvas 12's Linear, Chain and Baseline Dimensioning tools precisely control horizontal, vertical, oblique and perpendicular distances; measure diameter, radius, angle, area and perimeter; and mark the centers of arcs and ovals. Plus, when using the Chain and Baseline Dimensioning tools, you can generate fully-editable dimension objects almost automatically.

Ensure the highest levels of precision

Work with very small units of measure with engineered accuracy and control. Canvas 12's drawing engine fully supports the IEEE floating point standard used throughout the scientific, engineering, medical and biotechnology industries. Canvas is indispensable to professionals who work with images that contain up to 32 bits of floating point data per channel.

Work within industry standards

Create dimension objects that fully conform to existing industry and government standards, including:

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer's) floating point standard;
ANSI (American National Standards Institute) U.S. Product and industry standards;
DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung/German Institute for Standardization) internationally adopted standards;
JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) standards.

Customize these standard settings by editing the size of lines, gaps, text and tolerances, modifying them for new and unique workflows, and saving them for ongoing use in similar work contexts.