How To Use Map Canvas Pro
Learn how to use Map Canvas Pro, a free app built with Google AI Studio, to easily sketch and measure technical projects on scale without CAD skills. This video demonstrates importing images, drawing, adding measurements, text, and exporting professional-looking visuals for quotes or team communication.
Chapters
00:00
Intro
00:51
Importing an Image
Importing an image and zooming to a specific location.
04:29
Adding Contextual Elements
Adding context with a shed and rainwater storage.
05:54
Modifying and Measuring
Modifying drawings and adding measurements.
09:44
Exporting to Image
Exporting the drawing as an image for quotes or emails.
13:05
Finalizing and Pasting
Finalizing and pasting the image into a document.
Transcript
00:00
so in this video I'll demonstrate how to use the Map Canvas Pro, how you can import an image, how you can draw on it, add two scale lines to it, text to it, measurements to it, and then you can decide how to transport transport it after.
00:18
So you can paste image in your quote or your email to explain something.
00:24
And the good thing is it's all free.
00:27
So this is Map Canvas Pro.
00:30
In here you can see the model space which is similar to AutoCAD.
00:35
You can find the drawing features here on the left hand side, the properties on the right hand side.
00:42
And over here you can change the look of the model space.
00:45
There's a couple of options.
00:47
I will stick to dark with grid for now.
00:51
So the first thing to do is import an image.
00:54
Click on the globe.
00:57
And I'm based in the Netherlands, in Westland, so it will point to that.
01:01
Now you can either fill in an address of the place you want to zoom into, or you can just use the scroll feature on your mouse to scroll in on an area.
01:13
I don't have a particular place I want to zoom into, but for educational purposes, let's zoom into this greenhouse.
01:25
This grower is looking to get some work done on his greenhouse.
01:30
So to import a two scale image we just have to click on the lock and sketch feature and it brings it into your model space.
01:42
Now let's say this grower has two departments in his greenhouse.
01:48
So we'll start drawing his departments here.
02:05
So that's the department.
02:07
We'll keep that blue, but we'll add a fill to it.
02:13
And the handy thing is that you can here see the square meterage of the area.
02:18
So we'll add that soon to the drawing as well.
02:21
You can also toggle on the last measurement.
02:26
But let's add some text to this area.
02:36
So it was around 1170 square meters.
02:49
Let's give it a spot here.
02:56
Maybe we minimize the size.
03:05
And we tell it's.
03:18
Move it into place.
03:20
Yeah.
03:21
All right, so the next department, start there.
03:35
and we'll make that dark blue with the fill.
03:42
We can see here the square meterage again, Some new text.
04:28
Alright, looks good.
04:29
Now this grower also has a big shed in front of his green eyes.
04:34
So for context purposes we'll add that to the drawing as well.
04:50
And we'll make that gray.
04:54
But you can always change the color if you like.
04:57
He also has a rainwater storage by the looks of it.
05:04
Let's add that to the drawing too roughly.
05:12
We'll keep a fill but maybe make it a hedge this time.
05:16
Let's move it slightly, Add some text to it.
05:30
Silo.
05:38
Actually just let's add some text to the shed as well.
05:47
Slightly into place here.
05:50
14.
05:51
All right, this does look good.
05:54
And be aware that you can always modify what you've drawn.
05:59
So let's say we want to actually want this green and the fill we like green as well.
06:11
So we'll choose this.
06:14
So we can always modify it after.
06:17
And you can modify the corners too if you're not completely happy with it.
06:32
Like that.
06:34
And we also would like to know how large the departments are.
06:37
So let's add some measurements to it.
06:44
That distance, this distance.
06:48
But as you can see they're not really round.
06:51
Round number.
06:51
So I added a feature round to the nearest that just looks tidier.
06:58
Let's delete that one and we'll add it to the bottom.
07:03
Looks tidier.
07:08
Round and round.
07:15
And then we can see how long the shed is as well.
07:24
And just for practice purposes, let's say the grower is drilling a new well over here to fill his storage tank.
07:39
And a new pipeline has to be installed that has to go towards the silo from the well.
07:47
You can just simply.
07:52
Draw a line.
07:53
From here it will go.
07:58
The new pipeline will go from here to here, There and into the storage silo.
08:16
And let's make that one pinkish and let some add some text here.
08:28
New well make it.
08:41
I think I'll keep it there.
08:50
Let's move that here.
08:54
Rerun the number, Replace that.
09:01
Run number.
09:05
Run number.
09:26
Alright, so now made a drawing showing the growers departments with different colors, the silo, the shed and some measurements for context.
09:38
And of course now we also know how long that pipeline is towards the silo.
09:44
Now let's say we want to show this to the grower saying we have a route for this pipeline and we want to add it to a quote.
09:53
So we have several options how we can do that.
09:57
So I made it so that whatever is shown in this model space will become an image.
10:05
So we have to place our image well to make it appear nice in the end image, something like that.
10:20
And if I want to have an image of the things I've drawn, including the satellite map, I can just simply click on export to image and this is how the image will look like.
10:40
And of course you can copy it and add it to whatever or you save it in your project folder.
10:47
But we can also save different type of images more simplified.
10:52
So we can do that by clicking on the toggle map layer.
10:58
if we now save it export to image, the image will look exactly like this.
11:08
But let's simplify this a bit more because we have different text colors.
11:13
Let's say we just want to have a white background.
11:16
So we go to white.
11:21
We don't want the grid but we do want actually we just want the black, like.
12:12
So now made the text black and also the measurements around it black.
12:19
I think I like to simplify things a bit more.
12:23
Let's delete this one.
12:28
Maybe move this a little bit more to the left and the last few meters.
12:34
Let's delete that one too, just for tidiness.
12:38
So if we now create an image of it, this will be the image.
12:43
And of course we can cut it a little bit more, Place it in the middle and save.
13:05
And of course, after that, we can just paste the new image to, our Word doc.
13:10
For example, if we make a quotation in our word document, So that's how to use Map Canvas Pro.
13:17
If you want to find how to videos or you want to reach me for some reason, you can always click in the bottom right hand.
13:26
Cor, That will lead you to my knowledge base.
13:28
And if you want to find a link to this free tool, it's, below this video.
13:33
Yeah, have a play and let me know what you think.
Comments
No comments yet