Creating a Lighting Instrument

Spotlight provides hundreds of lighting symbols; however, it is not necessary to use only these pre-defined symbols. Create a Spotlight instrument out of a currently selected symbol—once the symbol is converted to an instrument, the instrument functionality is present and the label legend is attached.

See Lighting Instrument Specifications for more information and restrictions on using custom symbols for lighting instruments, and information on attaching the Light Info Record.

To create a lighting instrument:

1.	Convert the object to a symbol by selecting Modify > Create Symbol.

For information on symbols, see Creating New Symbols.

2.	Select the symbol(s).

Symbols can have a separate 2D and 3D representation.The lighting instrument object automatically uses the appropriate portion of the symbol. At a minimum, the symbol must have at least a 2D component, though it may not display correctly in all the views. Correct this by editing the symbol definition and adding a 3D component.

3.	Select Modify > Convert > Convert to Instrument.

The selected symbol(s) is converted into a lighting instrument. The active label legend, if any, is applied to the instrument(s); see Using the Label Legend Manager for more information. The instrument properties can be changed through the Object Info palette; some of the instrument parameters may need to be entered.

If creating multi-circuit instruments, first create each instrument’s symbol (see Multi-circuit Instrument Specifications). Then insert the multi-circuit instruments as described in Inserting Multi-circuit Instruments.

4.	Once the instrument has been converted, it is saved as a symbol in the file. Select it as an active symbol definition and use the Inst Insertion tool to insert it again if required.