BIMGrove Pixel Press is an AutoCAD icon maker and icon creator that turns normal AutoCAD drafting into a focused pixel-perfect icon workflow. Work inside tagged 32×32 or 16×16 canvases, map layers by visual role, preview the selected canvas live, then export PNG or BMP icons individually or in a batch for Revit, Menu Mason, app, menu, and software UI development.
PIXELPRESSopens the dockable paletteAuthor standard 32×32 and 16×16 icon canvases in the same drawing.
Inspect the selected canvas enlarged or at actual size before export.
Canvas, Icon, Accent, Background, Name, and Ignore keep intent explicit.
Export one selected icon or process multiple tagged canvases in a batch.
Pixel Press does not replace AutoCAD drafting. It adds a clear canvas, role, preview, and export contract around the geometry you already know how to draw.
Select an existing PP-CANVAS rectangle or use Apply Template to build the standard four-canvas drafting setup. Pixel Press tags canvas size explicitly so preview and export use the intended resolution.
Icon, Accent, and Background are output roles. Canvas defines the crop. Name supplies export naming. Ignore keeps construction information visible without sending it to the icon.
The drawing stays normal AutoCAD geometry. Pixel Press interprets it through six mapped roles and respects the active document's layer/Plot state during preview and export.
PP-CANVAS establishes the exact 32×32 or 16×16 work area. Geometry is evaluated against that selected boundary.
Separate the main symbol from accent geometry while keeping both part of the rendered icon.
Use a mapped Background layer when the icon needs a deliberate background instead of transparent space.
Mapped TEXT or MTEXT that is inside or crosses the canvas can become the export base name. The size suffix is retained automatically.
The Name role uses a consistent gray workflow color and stays out of the rendered icon.
Ignore uses TrueColor 111,111,111 for instructions or construction content that should never be exported.
The active PP-CANVAS drives the preview so a multi-canvas source drawing stays easy to reason about.
Switch between a large inspection view and native 32×32 or 16×16 scale before export.
Preview processing supports Polyline, Line, Arc, Circle, Ellipse, Spline, Hatch, TEXT, and MTEXT according to the mapped role, including fractional edge coverage.
Export the selected canvas in the format required by the downstream UI or deployment workflow.
Batch export turns a single AutoCAD source drawing into a repeatable icon-set authoring workspace.
Jump directly to the output folder after export instead of hunting through Explorer.
Pixel Press does not treat every AutoCAD entity the same. Stroke geometry is deliberately Icon-only, fills and text can participate in the three output roles, Name text becomes filename metadata, and the Canvas role accepts only a strict rectangular boundary. The live preview and exported PNG/BMP share the same processing rules.
| AutoCAD entity | Canvas | Icon | Accent | Background | Name | WYSIWYG behavior | How it is processed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polyline | Boundary* | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Native AutoCAD width | On Icon, preview/export uses the polyline's real stored width. New Icon polylines inherit Icon Stroke Width through PLINEWID. *Canvas eligibility requires a clean zero-width, closed, axis-aligned four-corner rectangle. |
| Line | — | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Pixel Press preview | Rasterized with Icon Stroke Width. The source LINE remains unchanged; open ends use butt caps so pixels do not extend beyond the true endpoint. |
| Arc | — | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Pixel Press preview | Adaptively sampled along the true curve, then rasterized with Icon Stroke Width. The original ARC is not converted or rewritten. |
| Circle | — | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Pixel Press preview | Closed curve processing uses Icon Stroke Width continuously around the circle while preserving the native CIRCLE entity. |
| Ellipse | — | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Pixel Press preview | Adaptively sampled and rasterized as a continuous Icon stroke using Icon Stroke Width; no polyline conversion is required. |
| Spline | — | ✓ Processed | — | — | — | Pixel Press preview | Samples the actual spline curve—not its control points—then applies Icon Stroke Width. Open splines use butt ends; closed splines join continuously. |
| Hatch / gradient | — | ✓ Processed | ✓ Processed | ✓ Processed | — | Preview/export match | Rendered as filled output geometry. Gradient hatches preserve AutoCAD-returned colors and participate in output draw order. |
| TEXT / MTEXT | — | ✓ Processed | ✓ Processed | ✓ Processed | Preview/export match | On output roles, text is rasterized as visible icon content. On Name, text that is inside, touches, or crosses the Canvas becomes export-name metadata and is not rendered as pixels. |
Place mapped Name text inside or across the selected canvas and Pixel Press uses that text as the base filename. The canvas size remains attached to the output name, so 32×32 and 16×16 variants stay distinct during single or batch export.
Name text is a workflow role, not rendered icon content. A Name entity can cross the canvas edge and still be processed when its text geometry intersects the selected canvas.
Pixel Press keeps its specialized drafting controls document-aware and restores prior drawing-environment values when you switch documents or close the palette.
Choose the active document's major grid color through AutoCAD's native color picker for clearer pixel-scale drafting.
Tune the minor grid independently. Previous document colors are captured and restored on switch or close.
Set 0–10 drawing units. New Icon polylines inherit it through PLINEWID; Line, Arc, Circle, Ellipse, and Spline use the same value in Pixel Press preview/export without rewriting the source entities.
When the mapped Icon layer is current, Pixel Press keeps AutoCAD PLINEWID synchronized for newly drawn polylines. Existing polylines retain their real stored width and remain authoritative.
Create the standard four-canvas starter layout, mapped role layers, naming labels, and drawing setup in one action.
Compact Properties-like rows, dark/light-aware dropdowns, and thin auto-hide scrolling stay at home inside AutoCAD.
Pixel Press is designed for people who want an icon maker without switching to a separate vector editor. Use AutoCAD geometry as the editable source, then turn the selected canvas into a controlled 16×16 or 32×32 pixel perfect icon for Revit, app menus, software tools, and Menu Mason ribbon buttons.
Yes. Pixel Press is an AutoCAD icon maker and AutoCAD icon creator that uses normal DWG geometry as the source. Draw and edit in AutoCAD, preview the processed pixels, then export PNG or BMP.
Yes. Use Pixel Press as a Revit icon maker or Revit icon creator to build 32×32 and 16×16 ribbon artwork, then assign the exported files to Revit add-ins or to Menu Mason custom buttons.
It can be both. Pixel Press works as an app icon maker, app icon creator, software icon maker, or software icon creator whenever the target UI needs controlled small raster assets produced from AutoCAD geometry.
The selected Canvas establishes a native pixel grid and the live preview exposes fractional coverage before export. That makes Pixel Press a pixel perfect icon maker and pixel perfect icon creator for producing a pixel perfect icon for app development or a pixel perfect icon for software development.
Yes. Pixel Press is a menu icon maker and menu icon creator for small UI graphics, and it is especially useful as a Menu Mason icon maker and Menu Mason companion when building custom Revit ribbon menus.
The geometry remains editable with familiar AutoCAD commands. You can revise the same source, compare the live pixel interpretation, regenerate both sizes, and keep icon creation repeatable across an app or software product family.
The complete working loop stays on one page: open the palette, establish canvases, map roles, draft, preview, name, and export.
PIXELPRESSOpen the dockable Pixel Press palette.PP-CANVASSelect/tag a 32×32 or 16×16 export boundary.Apply TemplateBuild the standard four-canvas authoring setup.ExportPNG/BMP, single canvas or batch workflow.pixel-perfect-32.png.Pixel Press adds a disciplined icon-authoring layer around standard AutoCAD drafting: canvas identity, role mapping, live preview, document-aware drawing controls, file naming, and predictable raster export. Your source stays a DWG that can be edited with familiar AutoCAD tools.