Wiley Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011: No Experience Required
Contents
1. Use the ViewOubs to change the onemation of the wiew Pruss F1 fear mane help FIGURE 1 41 The 3D View icon will be heavily used 2 On the View Control bar click the Visual Style button and choose Shaded with Edges as illustrated in Figure 1 42 E Wireframe Hidden Line f Shaded E Consistent ma Realistic 1 8 1 0 ap x Ge FR EIP 9 FIGURE 1 42 The Visual Style button enables you to view your model in color This is typical for a 3D view 3 Again on the View Control bar select Shadows Off and turn the shad ows on as illustrated in Figure 1 43 and again in Figure 1 45 The Revit Architecture Interface 29 Graphic Display Options QeShadows OFF Shadows On 1 8 1 0 E ik Slee ED FIGURE 1 43 Shadows create a nice effect but at the expense of RAM Within the 3D view is the ViewCube It is the cube in the upper right corner of the view window You can switch to different perspectives of the model by clicking on the quadrants of the cube see Figure 1 44 C 4 be i On yor gt lt a FIGURE 1 44 The ViewCube lets you freely look at different sides of the building key on the keyboard As you holding the Shift key press and hold the wheel on your mouse Now move the mouse around You will be able to dynami cally view the model see Figure 1 45 9 TI P The best way to navigate a 3D view is to press and hold th2. jas Som local or networked libraries the web part to place ausces Than wae Mace a Compar family type in the drawing area Press FT for mory help FIGURE 1 53 Youcan load an rfa file during the placement of a hosted family Browse to the Doors directory Note that if you are on a network your directories may not be the same as in this book Contact your CAD BIM manager or whoever loaded Revit on your computer to find exactly where they may have mapped Revit Notice there is a list of doors Select Single Raised Panel with Sidelights rfa and click Open Inthe Properties dialog click the change element type menu as shown in Figure 1 54 Notice that not only did you bring in the raised panel door family but you also have seven different types of the same door These types are simply variations of the same door You no longer have to explode a block and modify it to fit in your wall Select Single Flush 36 x 84 as shown in Figure 1 54 9 Zoom in on the upper left corner of the building as illustrated in 10 Figure 1 55 To insert the door into the model you must place it in the wall Notice that before you hover your cursor over the actual wall Revit will not allow you to add it to the model as shown in Figure 1 55 Once your pointer is directly on top of the wall you will see the out line of the door Once you see this pick a point in the wall The door is inserted
3. Modiy Wall Door Window Component Column Roof Celing Floor Curtain Curtain Mullion Model Model Model Railing Ramp Stairs I gt 7 X System Grid Text Line Group Select Build Model Circulation FIGURE 1 6 The Ribbon is the backbone of Revit Architecture You will hear this throughout the book always remember to look at your options With no command prompt the Options bar will be one of your few guides Chapter 1 The Revit World 2EAG S O gt 8 7 0A 6 9 amp F Autodesk Revit Archit i a Raa A I in aja DA A is by Hey K ope amp z amp pig be pe x Z GO Aa l s E ol a a OFT Ale Modify e s 9 C2 C i Sa oe a I5 5 yam E taaxs Select Properties Clipboard Geometry Mod y View Dimension Creste Draw Modify Place wall Height unconnim 20 0 Location Line Finish Face StM X Chain offset 0 o C Radius 1 o Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud Mew Wals v F Edt Type FIGURE 1 7 The Options bar replaces the command prompt from AutoCAD Microstation users will be more familiar with this method 3 After you make your choices from the Ribbon and the Options bar you can place the object into the view window This is the large draw ing area that takes up two thirds of the Revit interface To place the wall simply pick a point in the window and move your pointer The wall starts to form You can press the E
4. Shafts Rooms Schedules quantity takeoffs Annotation items Views System families define your model As you can see the list pretty much cov ers most building elements There are however plenty more components not included within this list These items which can be loaded into your model are called hosted families Hosted Families All other families in Revit Architecture are hosted in some way by a system fam ily a level or a reference plane For example a wall sconce is a hosted family in that when you insert it it will be appended to a wall Hosted families carry a file extension of rfa To insert a hosted family into a model follow these steps 1 Open the NER 01 rvt file or your own file 2 Go to Level 1 3 On the Home tab select the Door button File Types and Families 4 On the Modify Place Door tab click the Load Family button as shown in Figure 1 53 This will open the Load Family dialog FA ERSEM PA 6 272 S Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 Alpha 3 Nnt Cor Resale me 2 m A oe 4h 9 ae WD h E Ker CU BAM aael aaa mor il rors fe oo ef 22 Hala A toad Noe Tag on Y Pm i faax s ESS pty impire eter ar e Cipboand Gorey wed ew Drmeracn Creste Dede 1 Modify Flece Deer norasta an Taca Leader fe o gt Losd Family Jrnqert ves x Loads a Restt famby Irto the current file ngleka Panel wath Saiedigtes i EET oy Doas Rean
5. 3 Go to the 3D view by selecting it from the Window menu by click ing the 3D icon at the top of the screen or by going to the 3D view in the Project Browser On the Windows panel click Close Hidden Windows In the Project Browser open Level 1 Go to the Windows panel and select Tile Windows y GD OF A With the windows tiled you can see the Level 1 floor plan along with the 3D view to the side Select one of the walls in the Level 1 floor plan Notice it is now selected in the 3D view to the side These views you have open are mere representations of the model from that perspective Each view of the model can have its own independent view settings But I USED TO TYPE My COMMANDS You can still type your commands In the Revit menus you may have noticed that many items have a two or three letter abbreviation to the right This is the keyboard shortcut associated with the command You can make your own shortcuts or you can modify existing keyboard shortcuts if you navigate to the View tab On the Windows panel click the User Interface button In the drop down menu click the Keyboard Shortcuts button Here you can add or modify your keyboard shortcuts Command Paths Modify Home gt Select Insert gt Select Annot Type Properties Home gt Properties Modify gt Properties Properties Home gt Properties View gt Windows Family Category end Para Home gt Properties Modify gt Properties Family Types Ho
6. Attach Detach t hayes atk Top Base Top Base Modify View Dimension Create Mode Modify Wall FIGURE 1 24 The Ribbon adds the appropriate commands The Revit Architecture Interface 3 Your cursor will change to a crosshair with the mirror icon illustrating that you are ready to draw a mirror plane as shown in Figure 1 25 ea B amp W D 3 e oo Fy ta On 58 0 4 POTS modiy ele Ba nenn AOA GO EE K H cope FIGURE 1 25 There are options you must choose for every command in Revit 4 Make sure the Copy checkbox is selected see Figure 1 25 5 Hover your cursor over the inside face of the 80 0 long vertical wall until you get reach the midpoint Revit will display a triangular icon indicating that you have found the midpoint of the wall see Figure 1 26 w Kom Tae AMM gt 4 O S A 8 SO A als S Modly wew Omoran Crests Wade Woy Wal FIGURE 1 26 Revit has snaps similar to most CAD applications In Revit you will only get snaps if you choose the draw icon from the Options bar during a command 6 When the triangular midpoint snap appears pick this point After you pick the point where the triangle appears you can move your cursor directly to the right of the wall You will see an alignment line appear 19 20 Chapter 1 The Revit World as illustrated in Figure 1 27 When the alignmen
7. End Points tool piy View Dimension Create FIGURE 1 30 Just because you started the command from the view window does not mean you do not have to look at your options With the wheel button on your mouse zoom into the upper corner of the building and select the top endpoint of the wall as shown in Figure 1 31 The point you are picking is the corner of the heavy lines The topmost thinner line represents a concrete belt course below If you are having trouble picking the correct point don t be afraid to zoom into the area by scrolling the mouse wheel FIGURE 1 31 Select the top corner of the wall to start your new radial wall Select the opposite outside corner of the bottom wall Again to be more accurate you will probably have to zoom into each point as you are making your picks Move your cursor to the right until you see the curved wall pause You will also see an alignment line and a tangent snap icon appear as The Revit Architecture Interface 23 well Revit understands that perhaps you want an arc tangent upon the two lines you have already placed in your model 11 When you see the tangent snap icon choose the third point Your walls should look like Figure 1 32 12 Press Esc to terminate the command FIGURE 1 32 The completed exterior walls should look like this illustration Just because you have placed a wall in the model does not mean the wall looks the
8. Figure 1 46 INER O1 rvt Project browser 5 Floor Plans Level Level 2 Ste Ceiing Plans Level 1 Level 2 30 Views Bevations Building Bevetior East North South Weet Legends E Schedules Quantities C Sheets all BF Groups Revi Links FIGURE 1 46 The Project Browser is your new Windows Explorer 2 The Project Browser is broken down into categories One category is Floor Plans In the Floor Plans category double click on Level 1 3 Next double click on Level 2 Notice that your display level is set to Coarse This is because any change you make on the View Control bar is for that view only When you went to Level 2 for the first time the change to the display level had not been made yet The Project Browser 1 4 In the view window you will see little icons that look like houses see Figure 1 47 These are elevation markers The elevation marker to the right might be in your building If this is the case you need to move it out of the way 4 FIGURE 1 47 Symbols for elevation markers in the plan If you need to move them you must do so by picking a window There are two actual items in an elevation marker 5 Pick a box around the elevation marker When both the small triangle and the small box are selected move your mouse over the selected objects 6 Your cursor will turn into a move icon Pick a point on the screen and move the elevation mark
9. Figure 1 52 Set this value to 1 Revit provides this option because when you click the save icon Revit duplicates the file It will simply add a suffix of 001 to the end of the filename Each time you click the save icon Revit will record this save and add another file called 002 leaving the 001 intact The default is to do this three times before it starts replacing the 001 002 and 003 with the three most current files File Types and Families 35 4 Under the Preview section you can specify which view this file will be previewed in I like to keep it as the active view That way I can get an idea if the file is up to date based on the state of the view Click OK 5 Create a folder somewhere and save this file into the folder The name of the file used as an example in the book is called NER rvt NER stands for No Experience Required Of course you can name the file anything you wish or you can even just do your own project using the steps and examples from the book as a guideline Maximum backups Worksharing Make this a Central File after save Dicompact Fie Open workset defaut N Preview Source Active view sheet x Regenerate if view sheet is not up to date FIGURE 1 52 The options in the File Save Options dialog box let you specify the number of backups and the view for the preview Now that you have experience adding components to the model it is time to investi
10. T gt N Element Draw Instance Properties PR n Offset o o Radius EX A NER OT rvt Project browse OPlays properties for the selected element 8 0 Views all Use this tool to view and edit existing properties that affect the S Floor na appearance and behavior of individual elements in a project Level 1 To change properties for all elements that belong to the same family Level 2 type use Type Properties Site Ceiling Plans i Press F1 for more help FIGURE 1 10 The Properties button gives you access to many variables associated with the item you are adding to the model The objective of the next exercise is to start placing walls into the model 1 Open Revit Architecture using the default template The Revit Architecture Interface 2 On the Home tab click the Wall button 3 Inthe Properties dialog select Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud Element Properties Hidden within the Options bar is a single button There are two different sets of properties you will deal with in Revit Instance Properties and Type Properties Instance Properties will be available immediately in the Properties dialog when you place or select an item If you make a change to an element property the only items that are affected in the model are the items you have selected The Properties Dialog The Properties dialog is new to Revit Architecture
11. We will cover this in depth in the next chapter 37 38 Chapter 1 The Revit World 5 sar lena Cayboard Geometry Mody Vow Grenson Creste Modify FieceDacr mcruoatal w Taca C Leader 2 FIGURE 1 54 Each family rfa file will contain multiple types associated with that family FIGURE 1 55 Inserting a hosted family rfa You will be using this method of inserting a hosted family into a model quite a bit in this book and on a daily basis when you use Revit Note that when a family is loaded into Revit Architecture there is no live path back to the file that was loaded Once it is added to the Revit model it becomes part of that model To view a list of the families within the Revit model go to the Project Browser and look for the Families category In the Families category you will see a list of the families and their types as Figure 1 56 shows The two main Revit files have been addressed Two others are still crucial to the development of a Revit model File Types and Families 39 C Sheets Gl E 8 Famites E Annotation Symbols Cefings Cohumns Curtain Panels Curtain Systems Curtain Wall Mulions Detat hems Doors M Single Alush E Single Raised Panel with Sdelights 30 x 80 Om RORCRORORG Wx 84 32 x 84 v4 x 80 3 xB 36 x 80 6 x 84 amp Floors Euit ira FIGURE 1 56 All of the families are listed in the Pro
12. launch Revit Architecture using the Windows Start menu this shows the Windows Vista operating system 3 If youare firing up Revit for the first time both of these rows will be blank At the bottom of each row you can choose to create a new model or open an existing one see Figure 1 4 Chapter 1 The Revit World 4 Inthe upper left corner of the Revit window you will see a big purple R Click the purple R and choose New gt Project 5 The New Project dialog shown in Figure 1 5 opens You can use the default template or no template or you can create a new template by clicking the Project Template radio button We will cover template creation later in the book For now just click OK to create a new project using the default template You do not need to alter anything in this dialog pa 4 45 O Revit Architecture Preview Alpha Recer Home Insert Annotate Modify Massing amp Site Collaborate Manege eo e N 4 N Families FIGURE 1 3 The Recent Files window lists any recent projects or families you have worked on Projects FIGURE 1 4 You can create a new model or browse for an existing one The Revit Architecture Interface New Project Template fle None C demos Templates Archttectural Temolate rt Browse Create new Project Project template Coox hoc tet FIGURE 1 5 The New Project dialog allows you to start a new project using a preexisting template file
13. way you would like In Revit Architecture you can do a lot with view control and how objects are displayed View Control and Object Display Although the earlier procedures are a nice way to add walls to a drawing they do not reflect the detail you will need to produce construction documents Well the great thing about Revit is that you have already done everything you need to do You can now tell Revit to display the graphics the way you want to see them The View Control Bar At the bottom of the view window you will see a skinny toolbar as illustrated in Figure 1 33 This is the View Control bar It contains the functions outlined in the following list 1 e 1 0 Ete Ge REI o K FIGURE 1 33 The View Control bar controls the graphical view of your model Scale The first item on the View Control bar is the scale function It gets small mention here but it is a huge deal In Revit you change the scale of a view by 24 Chapter 1 The Revit World selecting this menu Change the scale here and Revit will scale annotations and symbols accordingly see Figure 1 34 Custom 12 1 0 6 1 0 3 1 0 11 2 1 0 1 1 0 3 4 1 0 1 2 1 0 3 8 1 0 1 4 1 0 3 16 1 0 1 6 1 0 1 10 0 3 32 1 0 1 16 1 0 1 20 0 3 64 1 0 1 30 0 1 32 1 0 1 40 0 1 50 0 1 60 0 1 64 1 0 1 80 0 1 100 0 1 160 0 1 20
14. with the exercise If you have not been following along you can start by clicking the Wall button on the Home tab In the Properties dialog box select Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud Make sure that the wall is justified to the finish face exterior You may now proceed 1 3 With the Wall command still running and the correct wall type selected position your cursor in a similar location to the illustration in Figure 1 19 Now pick a point in the view window With the first point picked move your cursor to the left Notice that a two things happen the wall seems to snap in a horizontal plane and a blue dashed line apparently locks the horizontal position In Revit there is no Ortho Revit will align the typical compass increments to 0 90 180 270 and 45 degrees Also notice the blue dimension extending from the first point to the last point Although dimensions cannot be typed over this type of dimension is a temporary dimension for you to use as you place items Type 100 and press the Enter key Notice you did not need to type the foot mark Revit thinks in terms of feet The wall is now 100 long see Figure 1 19 The Revit Architecture Interface SA Eme Sep amp pk pig x E ele on a a EMH soa fT OTT ee on Py j pOT Modily View Dirneraion Create ewe Lorebent ire Finish Face Beija V Chein Ofa a 2 Radus 1 0 Bosc Wall Sitenice H
15. 0 0 1 300 0 1 400 0 ie R 2 FIGURE 1 34 The scale menu allows you to change the scale of your view Detail Level The detail level allows you to view your model at different qualities You have three levels to choose from Coarse Medium and Fine see Figure 1 35 E Coarse Medium FIGURE 1 35 The detail level control allows you to set different view levels for the current view If you want more graphical information with this view select Fine To see how the view is adjusted using this control follow these steps 1 Click the detail level icon and choose Fine 2 Zoom in ona wall corner Notice the wall components are now showing in the view The Revit Architecture Interface 25 A T1 P When you change the view control in a view it is not a temporary E display You are telling Revit how you want to plot this view The view you see on the screen is the view you will see when it comes out of the plotter There are other items on the View Control bar but we ll discuss them when they become applicable to the exercises The View Tab Since Revit is one big happy model you will quickly find that simply viewing the model is quite important Within Revit you can take advantage of some function ality in the Navigation bar To activate the Navigation bar first go to the View tab then click the User Interface button Make sure the Navigation bar is activat
16. 2011 As just mentioned the Properties dialog will display the Instance Properties of the item you have selected If no item is selected this dialog will display the View Properties In addition to accessing the Instance Properties you can click the Edit Type button to open a dialog displaying the Type Properties of the selected item see Figure 1 11 By making a modification here you will change every occurrence of that item in the entire model 8 ae on S Modify Place wal Height umom m 20 0 Location line Finish Face Eam Zan Offeeti o o Redus 1 FIGURE 1 11 The Type Properties dialog gives you access to the parameters associated with the element you have selected Let s take a closer look at the two categories of Element Properties in Revit 10 Chapter 1 The Revit World Instance Properties The items that you can edit immediately are called parameters or Instance Properties These parameters will change only the object being added to the model at this time Also if you select an item that has already been placed in the model the parameters you see immediately in the Instance Properties dialog will change only that item you have selected This makes sense not all items are built equally in the real world Figure 1 12 illustrates the Instance Properties of a typical wall Type Properties The Type Properties see Figure 1 13 when edited will alter every it
17. CHAPTER 1 The Revit World Before we get started I think we should set the record straight I m sure you have seen plenty of presentations on how wonderful and versatile this 3D Revit revolution thing is And I m sure you may be thinking This all seems way too complicated for what I do Why do I need 3D anyway The answer to that question is you don t What do you do to get a job out that is after the presentation has run its course and you are awarded the proj ect Your first step is to redraw the plans Next comes the detail round up game we have all come to love we pull the specs together and then we plot This is quite a simple process and guess what It works Well it has worked up until this 3D thing showed up Now the process seems to be this convoluted approach in which we have no real clue where things come from drawings don t look very good and getting a drawing out the door takes three times as long The Revit Architecture interface The Project Browser File types and families Chapter 1 The Revit World The Revit Architecture Interface Toto we are not in CAD anymore If you just bought this book then welcome to the Revit world In Revit you will find that the vast majority of the processes you encounter are in a flat 2D platform Instead of drafting you are placing components into the model Yes these compo nents have a so called third dimension to them but a logical methodology driv
18. ce the view to display only the thinnest lines possible to still see the objects EA gt OA GO Fie I D amp E Modify View Visibility Filters Thin Show Remove Templates Graphics Lines Hidden Lines Hidden Lines Profile View View Select FIGURE 1 40 Clicking the Thin Lines icon will allow you to operate on the finer items in a model To practice using the Thin Lines function follow along 1 Pick the Thin Lines icon 2 Zoom in on the upper right corner of the building 27 28 A word of caution if you do turn your shadows on do so with care This could be the single worst item in Revit in terms of performance deg radation Your model will slow down with shadows on Chapter 1 The Revit World 3 Pick the Thin Lines icon again This toggles the mode back and forth 4 Notice the lines are very heavy The line weight should concern you As mentioned earlier there is no such thing as layers in Revit Architecture This topic is addressed in Chapter 13 3D View The 3D View icon brings us to a new conversation Complete the following steps that will move us into the discussion on how a Revit model comes together 1 Click the 3D View icon as illustrated in Figure 1 41 rar m ye eget eR Se Modiji view Visbiity Fikes Thin Show we Ct empia Graha men Heien Lines Halden Linas Profik Graphs a Opens the defoul ortogreptic 30 wew
19. ck the Application menu button and select New gt Family to open the browse dialog shown in Figure 1 58 J Imperial Templates X amp ww Preview Name Date taken Tags E I Annotations L Titleblocks H in Baluster rft a Baluster Panel rft jin Baluster Post rft jin Casework rft lin Casework wall based rft GA Column rft fiz Curtain Wall Panel rit fa Detail Component rit fiat Detail Component line based rit GA Door rft li Door Curtain Wall rft iA Electrical Equipment rft GA Electrical Foture rft a Filename Files of type Famiy Template Fies rft x FIGURE 1 58 The creation of a family starts with templates 2 Browse through these templates You will most certainly use many of them 3 Click the Cancel button Tempting I know We will thoroughly cover creating families in Chapter 17 Families As mentioned earlier you will get to a certain point when you run out of Revit provided content If you are feeling brave go ahead and play around in one of the templates You have nothing to lose except time Are You Experienced 41 Are You Experienced Now you can WM navigate the Revit Architecture interface and actually start a model 4 find commands on the Design bar and understand how this controls your options v find where to change a keyboard shortcut to make it similar to CAD v navigate through the Project Browser v under
20. click the Wall button an entirely new set of commands appears This new set of commands combines your basic Modify commands with an additional tab specific to your immediate process In this case that process is adding a wall You will also notice that a Properties dialog appears to the left of the screen If you do not see the Properties dialog click the Properties icon that is displayed in Figure 1 9 In the Properties dialog is a picture of the wall you are about to place If you click on this picture Revit will display all the walls that are available within the model This display is called the Change Element Type menu see Figure 1 10 D xio S amp De 4 a Ja bbls on p a BETZ E Yawn i P oO EEN 7 Do e Properlags Clipboard Geometry Modify View Dimension Create Harai 1 Face Exte Chain Offset 0 o C Radid Displays or hides a palette where you can view and edit instance properties S Floor A The palette shows instance properties for the current view selected Le elements or the element you are placing Le git Press Fa for more help FIGURE 1 9 Click the Properties button to display the Properties dialog Typically the dialog is shown by default lhe ad ar aa Home Insert Annotate Modify Analyze Massing amp Site Structure Collaborate View Manage AA a hey m B25 Wall Zzeeoe w E tenor Brick and Mu on MTL 7 7 Ft e Properties Properties Son
21. e Shift FIGURE 1 45 The 3D model with shading and shadows Go back to the floor plan Wait How This brings us to quite an important topic in Revit the Project Browser 30 Chapter 1 The Revit World The Project Browser Revit is the frontrunner of BIM BIM is sweeping our industry for a reason One of the biggest reasons is the fact that you have a fully integrated model right in front of you What this means is that when you need to open a different floor plan eleva tion detail drawing sheet or 3D view you can find it all right here in the model Also this means our workflow is going to change In most cases it is going to change drastically When you think about all the external references and con voluted folder structures that comprise a typical job you can start to relate it to the way Revit uses the Project Browser Within Revit you are using the Project Browser instead of the folder structure previously used in CAD This approach changes the playing field The process of closing the file you are in and opening the files you need to work on is restructured in Revit to enable you to stay in the model You never have to leave one file to open another You also never need to rely on external referencing to complete a set of drawings Revit and the Project Browser will put it all right in front of you To start using the Project Browser follow along 1 To the far left of the Revit dialog is the Project Browser see
22. eck and CMU on RTL Sad m e FIGURE 1 19 The procedure for drawing a wall in Revit Architecture 4 With the Wall command still running move your cursor straight up from the endpoint of your 100 long wall Look at Figure 1 20 5 Type 80 and hit Enter You now have two walls 6 Move your cursor to the right until you run into another blue alignment line Notice that your temporary dimension says 100 0 Revit understands symmetry After you see this alignment line and the temporary dimension says 100 0 pick this point 7 Move your cursor straight down and type 16 and hit Enter 8 Move your cursor to the right and type 16 and hit Enter 9 Press the Esc key Do your walls look like Figure 1 21 If not try it again You need to be com fortable with this procedure as much as possible 15 16 Chapter 1 The Revit World FIGURE 1 20 How Revit Architecture works is evident in this procedure FIGURE 1 21 Working with Revit starts with the ability to work with the view window and learning the quirks and feel of the interface To get used to the Revit flow always remember these three steps 1 Start a command 2 Focus on your options 3 Move to the view window and add the elements to the model The Revit Architecture Interface 17 If you start a command then focus immediately on the view you will be sit ting there wondering what to do next Do not forget to chec
23. ed as shown in Figure 1 36 One item we need to look at on the Navigation bar is the steering wheel B C Replicate Switch T aie User Windows Tile Interface Windows _ E 0 Dx Project Browse Status Bar a Recent Files E TE Browser Organization ss Gj Keyboard Shortcuts oe a J Q The Navigation bar FIGURE 1 36 The View tab allows you to turn on and off the Navigation bar The Steering Wheel The steering wheel allows you to zoom rewind and pan When you click the steer ing wheel icon a larger control panel will appear in the view window To choose one of the options you simply pick left click one of the options and hold the mouse button as you execute the maneuver To use the steering wheel follow along 1 Pick the steering wheel icon from the Navigation bar as shown in Figure 1 37 2 Once the steering wheel is in the view window as illustrated in Figure 1 37 left click and hold Zoom You can now zoom in and out 26 Chapter 1 The Revit World FIGURE 1 37 You can use the steering wheel to navigate through a view 3 Now click and hold Rewind in the steering wheel You can now find an older view as shown in Figure 1 38 E q E j L Jd Rewind Tool FIGURE 1 38 Because Revit does not include zoom commands in the Undo function you can rewind to find previous views 4 Do the sa
24. em of that type in the entire model To access the Type Properties click the Edit Type but ton in the Properties dialog as Figure 1 14 shows Properties ac REE Basic Wall a Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud New Walls v OB Edt Type Constraints 2 Location ine Base Corstraint Level 1 Base Offset oo Bose Extension Distance 0 0 o i Unconnected Lnconmected Height 20 0 Le Structural a Dimensions a Tdertity Data Comments FIGURE 1 12 The Instance Properties will change only the currently placed item or the currently selected item At this point you have two choices You can either make a new wall type leaving this specific wall unmodified by clicking the Duplicate button or you can start editing the wall s Type Properties as shown in Figure 1 15 4 yp WARNING cannot stress enough that if you start modifying Type N A Properties without duplicating the type you need to do so in a very deliberate manner You can easily affect the model in unintended ways We will discuss the specifics of all the wall s Type Properties in Chapter 16 Advanced Wall Topics The Revit Architecture Interface Family a Type Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud x Do not wrap None i 17 6 Exterior FIGURE 1 13 The Type Properties when modified will alter every occurrence of this specific wall in the entire model Base Constraint Base Offset oo Base Is A
25. er out of the way 7 In the Project Browser find the Elevations Building Elevation cat egory Double click on South 8 Also in the Project Browser notice there is a 3D Views category Expand the 3D Views category and double click on the 3D choice This will bring you back to the 3D view you were looking at before this exercise WARNING Hey What happened to my elevation You are in Revit now Items such as elevation markers section markers and callouts are no longer just dumb blocks They are linked to the actual view they are calling out If you delete one of these markers you will delete the view asso ciated with it If you and your design team have been working on that view then you lost that view Also you must move any item deliberately and with caution This elevation marker you moved has two parts The little triangle is actually the elevation The little box is the part of the marker that records the sheet number the elevation will wind up on If you do not move both items by placing a window around them the elevation s origin will remain in its original position When this happens your elevation will look like a sec tion and it will be hard to determine how the section occurred 32 Chapter 1 The Revit World Now that you can navigate through the Project Browser adding other compo nents to the model will be much easier We can now begin to add some windows Windows By clicking on all of these vi
26. es the process If you need to see the model in 3D it is simply a click away That being said remember this there is a big difference between 3D drafting and modeling N OTE The preceding paragraph will be the longest one of the book This S book is designed to cut to the chase and show you how to use Revit Architecture in a step by step fashion without having to read through paragraph after para graph just to find the answer you are looking for Datasets are provided at the book s accompanying website www sybex com go revit2011ner but you can also use your own model as you go through the book If you do not wish to read this book cover to cover don t Although recommend going from front to back you can use the book as a desk reference by jumping to a desired topic The datasets will be added in phases to accommodate this type of usage Either way get ready to learn Revit Architecture With that preamble behind us let s get on with it First of all Revit has no command prompt and no crosshairs Stop Don t go away just yet You will get used to it I promise Unlike most CAD applications Revit Architecture is heavily pared down so to speak It s this way for a reason Revit was designed for architects and architectural designers You do not need every command that a mechanical engineer would need An electrical engineer would not need the functionality that an architect would require What you will find as you start gettin
27. ews you are simply opening a view of the building not another file that is stored somewhere For some users this can be confusing It was for me When you click around and open all these views they stay open You can quickly open many views There is a way to manage these views before they get out of hand In the upper right corner of the Revit dialog you will see the traditional close and minimize maximize buttons for the application Just below them are the traditional buttons for the files that are open as shown in Figure 1 48 Click the X for the current view Type a keyword or phrase User Interface FIGURE 1 48 You can close a view by clicking the X for the view This does not close Revit or an actual file for that matter it simply closes that view In this case you have multiple views open This situation which is quite com mon is best managed on the View tab To utilize the Window menu perform the following steps 1 On the Window panel of the View tab click the Switch Windows but ton as shown in Figure 1 49 2 After the menu is expanded look at the open views PS Ta Replicate Ga zy Cascade New core ME Le Sheet 5 Windows Hidden B Tile Interface Sheet Composition a Z 1NER OLrt 3D View 3D 2 NER OLrvt Floor Plan Level 2 FIGURE 1 49 The Switch Windows menu lists all the current views that are open The Project Browser 33
28. g comfortable with Revit is that there are many many choices and options behind each command Let s start at the beginning 1 To open Revit Architecture click the icon on your desktop see Figure 1 1 or choose Start gt All Programs gt Autodesk gt Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 gt Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 see Figure 1 2 The Revit Architecture Interface 2 After you start Revit you see the Recent Files window shown in Figure 1 3 The top row lists any projects you have been working on the bottom row lists any families you have been working on P FIGURE 1 1 You can launch Revit Architecture from the desktop icon Bed atc zo gt g aroan oa oas E ets errer sli neoon axo gt D sek totes gt fuk ed Raced MED AC gt 2 Morote PE Pet anatre 2028 GY oct yee Roto 205 gt EM Rew FEF 2005 AoA Suze gt D rie si etsimen B awto Hp Atacak De an Rev ow 1C D atg sE outoced Revk fecrkectne IC F Senertsc rrdeork Fremeston i Putaceck Rev truch re 200 A fotki yak ed Race Aesth a L g ok Cop take Pestemer 1 0 Aroco Ret MEA 2012 FJ adore Reeder 9 CECE ETHER E ikre Expose Do akk Epes E orots Aezetancoe Bl CRM Pabasa iws Mover FR verdes eve Heber P aiw sent w Ma soit Update a R DD aet rose gt saurem Wnty inecroctusd PY Ra Ateabeh tert ania Ciput srlmmeine Zamora lobe Hamait tad FIGURE 1 2 You can also
29. gate exactly what we are adding here Each component is a member of what Revit calls a family UNDERSTANDING THE REVIT ARCHITECTURE FILE rvt The extension for a Revit Architecture file is rvt There are three separate Revit applications Revit Architecture Revit Structure and Revit MEP All three Revits share the same rvt file extension You can open a Revit file produced in any of these three applications directly You do not need object enablers to read items that do not pertain to that discipline System and Hosted Families rfa As mentioned earlier a Revit model is based on a compilation of items called families There are two types of families system families and hosted families A 36 Chapter 1 The Revit World system family can be found only within a Revit model and cannot be stored in a separate location A hosted family is inserted similar to a block or cell and is stored in an external directory The file extension for a hosted family is rfa System Families System families are inherent to the current model and are not inserted in the traditional sense You can only modify a system family through its Element Properties within the model The walls you ve put in up to this point are system families for example You did not have to insert a separate file in order to find the wall type The system families in a Revit Architecture model are as follows Walls Floors Roofs Ceilings Stairs Ramps
30. help you in the current command as shown in Figure 1 8 Again the focus here is to keep your eyes in one place In this book I will throw a few new terms at you but you will get familiar with them quickly We just discussed the Ribbon but mostly you will be directed to choose a tab and to find a panel on that tab To keep the example familiar when you selected the Wall button your instruc tions will read On the Build panel of the Home tab click the Wall button Tabs Panels Icons FIGURE 1 8 The Ribbon breakdown WHAT S THAT TOOLBAR ABOVE THE RIBBON This toolbar is called the Quick Access toolbar It is filled with some popular commands One special function of this toolbar is the cursor icon You use this icon when you wish to terminate a command If you want to add to this toolbar simply right click any icon and select Add To Quick Access Toolbar To the left of this toolbar is the Revit Home button Clicking this button gives you access to more Revit functions that will be covered later in the book SAGA o gt OA 8 0 Gh TOUR FESwE t Column Roof Ceiling Floor Curtain Curta e P System Grid Select Build Chapter 1 The Revit World Now that you can see how the ribbons and the tabs flow together let s take a look at another feature within the Ribbon panels that allows you to reach beyond the immediate Revit interface The Properties Interface When you
31. ject Browser Using Revit Template File rte The rte extension pertains to a Revit template file Your company surely has developed a template for your own standards or will soon An rte file is simply the default template that has all of your companies standards built into it When you start a project you will use this file To see how an rte file is used follow these steps 1 Click the Application menu button and select New gt Project 2 In the resulting dialog shown in Figure 1 57 click the Browse button 3 Browsing will throw you into a category with several other templates You can now choose a different template 4 Click Cancel twice Project Template fle None eck RAC 2009 Impenal Templates defauit rte Browse Create new Project 5 Project template OK Cancel Help FIGURE 1 57 A new Revit model is based on an rte template file 40 Chapter 1 The Revit World Whenever you start a project you will use the rte template When you start a new family however you will want to use an rft file Using Revit Family Files rft The rft extension is another type of template only this one pertains to a fam ily template It would be nice if Revit had every family fully developed to suit your needs Alas it does not You will have to develop your own families You will start with a family template To see how to access a family template per form these steps 1 Cli
32. k your Options bar and the appropriate ribbon tab Let s keep going and close this building by using a few familiar commands If you have never drafted on a computer before don t worry These commands are simple The easiest but most important topic is simply how to select an object Object Selection Revit has a few similarities to AutoCAD and MicroStation One of those similarities is the ability to perform simple object selection and to execute common modify commands For this example we will mirror the two 16 0 L shaped walls to the bottom of the building 1 Type ZA zoom all 2 Near the two 16 0 L shaped walls pick left click and hold down the left mouse button when the cursor is at a point to the left of the walls but above the long 100 0 horizontal wall 3 You will see a window start to form Run that selection window past the two walls After you highlight the walls as illustrated in Figure 1 22 let go of the mouse button and you have selected the walls X FIGURE 1 22 Using a crossing window to select two walls There are two ways to select an object by using a crossing window or by using a box Each approach plays an important role in how you select items in a model Crossing Windows A crossing window describes an object selection method in which the window being placed only needs to cross through the objects in order to select them A crossing window will always start from the right a
33. me for Pan which is also found on the outer ring of the steering wheel After you press and hold Pan you can navigate to other parts of the model Although you can do all of this with your wheel button some users still prefer the icon method of panning and zooming For those of you who prefer the icons you will also want to use the icons for the traditional zooms as well Traditional Zooms The next items on the Navigation bar are the good old zoom controls The abili ties to zoom in zoom out and pan are all included in this function as shown in Figure 1 39 Of course if you have a mouse with a wheel you can zoom and pan by either holding down the wheel to pan or by wheeling the button to scroll in and out The Revit Architecture Interface vV Zoom in Region Zoom Out 2x Zoom to Fit Zoom All to Fit Zoom Sheet Size Previous Pan Zoom Next Pan Zoom FIGURE 1 39 The standard zoom commands Thin Lines Back on the View tab you will see an icon called Thin Lines as shown in Figure 1 40 Let s talk about what this icon does In Revit Architecture there is no such thing as layers Line weights are con trolled by the actual objects they represent In the view window you see these line weights As mentioned before what you see is what you get Sometimes however these line weights may be too thick for smaller scale views By clicking the Thin Lines icon as shown in Figure 1 40 you can for
34. me gt Properties Modi y gt Properties Solid Extrusion Home gt Forms Solid Blend Home gt Forms Solid Revolve Home gt Forms Solid Sweep Home gt Forms Solid Swept Blend Home gt Forms Void Forms Void Extrusion Home gt Forms Void Forms Void Blend Home gt Forms Home gt Forms 34 Chapter 1 The Revit World You are at a good point now to save the file And this brings the book to a good point to discuss the different file types and their associations with the BIM model File Types and Families Revit Architecture has a unique way in which it saves files and utilizes different file types to build a BIM model To learn how and why Revit has chosen these methods follow along with these steps 1 Click the save icon see Figure 1 50 B S GS 2 5 20 A 8 OE BE View gt GRED B i p e g amp E D B Ad Modify View Visibility Filters Thin Show Remove Render 3D Templates Graphics Lines Hidden Lines Hidden Lines View Select Graphics E FIGURE 1 50 The traditional save icon will bring up the Save As dialog if the file has never been saved 2 In the Save As dialog click the Options button in the lower right cor ner see Figure 1 51 options a FIGURE 1 51 The Options button in the Save As dialog lets you choose how the file is saved 3 Inthe File Save Options dialog you will see at the top a place where you can specify the number of backups as shown in
35. nd end to the left The cross ing window when being placed is represented by a dashed line composition see Figure 1 22 18 Chapter 1 The Revit World Boxes A box is an object selection method that will only select the items that are 100 percent inside the window being placed This method is useful when you want to select only specific items while passing through larger objects that you may not want in the selection set A box always starts from the left and works to the right The line type for a selection window is a continuous line see Figure 1 23 R FIGURE 1 23 To select only objects that are surrounded by the window select a box This will leave out any item that may only be partially within the box Now that you have experience selecting items you can execute some basic modify commands Let s begin with mirroring one of the most popular modify commands Modifying and Mirroring You will find that Revit Architecture requires that you select items first and then execute a command This is true for most action items and is certainly true for every command on the Modify toolbar 1 Make sure only the two 16 0 walls are selected 2 Once the walls are selected you will see the Modify Walls tab appear On the Modify panel click the Mirror Draw Axis button as shown in Figure 1 24 0 Ai S79 Fins Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 Alphal Em a cp a O O53 e e A 7 a
36. or you can create a new template file Now that the task of physically opening the application is out of the way we can delve into Revit At first you will notice many differences between Revit and CAD Some of these differences may be off putting while others will make you say I wish AutoCAD did that Either way you will have to adjust to a new workflow The Revit Workflow Revit has a certain feel that you AutoCAD converts will need to get a grasp on This new workflow may be easy for some to adapt to whereas others will find it excruciatingly foreign To be honest I found the latter to be the case at first Either way it is a simple concept You just need to slow down a bit from your AutoCAD habits Executing a command in Revit is a three step process 1 At the top of the Revit window is the Ribbon and built into the Ribbon is a series of tabs Each tab contains a panel This Ribbon will be your Revit launch pad Speaking of launch pad click the Wall button on the Home tab as shown in Figure 1 6 2 After you click the Wall button notice that Revit adds an additional tab to the Ribbon with options specific to the command you are running as shown in Figure 1 7 This tab allows you to make different choices based on the placement of a wall You may also notice that Revit places an additional Options bar below the Ribbon for more choices ee 2 BG So OA GB 0 355 ih Autodesk Revit Archit CUES PESUALZALR BOS
37. pe Properties dialog it is time to go back and study the Options bar as it pertains to placing a wall 1 Since we are only exploring the Element Properties click the Cancel button to return to the model 2 Back in the Options bar find the Location Line menu Through this menu you can set the wall justification Select Finish Face Exterior see Figure 1 16 3 On the Options bar be sure the Chain checkbox is selected as Figure 1 16 shows This will allow you to draw the walls continuously 4 Inthe Draw panel there is a series of sketch options Because this specific wall is straight make sure the Line button is selected as shown in Figure 1 17 Get used to studying the Ribbon and the Options bars they will be your crutch as you start using Revit Architecture Of course at some point you need to physically start placing items in the model This is where the view window comes into play The Revit Architecture Interface my 2 7 oe g y N Hay F cope G vE amp pg geen es Asoa6e ne Dia le on p a ETa w COT AB u e ts yaw 99S OP aaa 7 Modify Place Wall Height Unconn mi 20 o Location Line Finish Face Ext V Chain Offset 0 0 C Radius 0 rone A Basic Wall Exterior Brick and CMU on MTL Stud Finish Face Interior Core Face Exterior Core Face Interior New Walls x PR Edt Type 2 Location Lne irish Face Ex
38. s in the model it does not matter which one 2 3 4 5 Right click on the wall Select Create Similar as shown in Figure 1 29 choose to repeat the last command You can now also select all items that S NOTE New to Revit 2011 when you right click on an item you can are only in the current view 6 7 On the Modify Place Wall tab click the Start End Radius Arc but ton as shown in Figure 1 30 Repeat Draw Mirror Axis Recent Commands Change wal s orientation Select Joined Elements Hide in view Override Graphics in View gt Create Similar l Select Previous Select Al Irstances gt Delete Find Referring Views Zoom In Region Zoom Out 2x Zoom To Fit Previous PanjZoom View Properties Element Properties FIGURE 1 29 You can select any item in Revit and create a similar object by right clicking and selecting Create Similar Again with the Options Yes Make sure your Location Line is set to Finish Face Exterior 22 Chapter 1 The Revit World 10 ic 4 hand Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 Alpha 3 Not For Resale Version Modify Place Wall cm op ty Boe a be E h Bo oy A 7 Ar CR it 3 x B a zl Start End Radius Arc Creates a curve by specifying the start point endpoint and arc radius ph Face Ext chain Offset 0 0 Radiu If you want to specify the radius first use the Arc from Centerand
39. sc key to exit the command Using Revit is not generally as easy as this but keep in mind this basic three step process 1 Start a command 2 Choose an option from the temporary tab that appears 3 Place the item in the view window Revit appears to offer a fraction of the choices and functionality that AutoCAD or any drafting program offers This is true in a way Revit does offer fewer choices to start a command but how many choices does an architect or architectural designer need Revit keeps its functionality focused on architecture and construction Revit gets its robust performance from the dynamic capabilities of the application during the placement of the items and the functionality of the objects after you place them in the model Never judge a book by its cover unless of course it is the book you are reading right now Let s keep going with the main focus of the Revit interface the Ribbon You will be using the Ribbon exclusively within Revit Using the Ribbon You will use the Ribbon for the majority of the commands you execute in Revit As you can see you don t have much choice to do otherwise However this is good because it narrows your attention to what is right in front of you When you click The Revit Architecture Interface an icon on the Ribbon Revit will react to that icon with a new tab giving you the specific additional commands and options you need Revit also keeps the existing tabs that can
40. stand how the Revit interface is broken down into views tell the difference between the two different types of families and understand how to build a model using them
41. t line appears you can pick another point along the path When you pick the second point the walls are mirrored and joined with the south wall see Figure 1 27 FIGURE 1 27 Mirroring these walls will involve first picking the midpoint of the vertical wall then second picking a horizontal point along the plane Now that you have some experience mirroring items it is time to start adding components to your model by utilizing the items that you placed earlier If you having trouble following the process retry these first few procedures Rome was not built in a day Well perhaps if they had Revit it would have sped things up You want your first few walls to look like Figure 1 28 FIGURE 1 28 Your building should look like this illustration Building on Existing Geometry Now that you have some geometry to work with and you have some objects placed in your model Revit starts to come alive The benefits of using building information The Revit Architecture Interface 21 modeling BIM will become apparent quickly as explained later in this chapter For example because Revit knows that walls are walls you can add identical geometry to the model by simply selecting an item and telling Revit to create a similar item Suppose you want a radial wall of the same exact type as the other walls in the model Perform the following steps 1 Type ZA to zoom the entire screen Press the Esc key Select one of the wall
42. terior Base Constraint Level FIGURE 1 16 By selecting Finish Face Exterior you know the wall will be dimensioned from the outside finish Autodesk Revit Architecture 2011 i S ag 5 arch SO baa xal Anl Sy eS N Modify Wiew Dimanaion Greats Crestes a straight line or a chain of connected line segments hi Line Finish Face Ext Z Chain Offset 0 0 CIRadi You can specify an offset for the sketched ines If you wart Ine segments to be connected by arcs specify a radius for the fillet FIGURE 1 17 You can draw any shape you need The View Window To put it simply the big white area where the objects go is the view window As a result of your actions this area will become populated with your model Notice the background is white this is because the sheets you plot on are white In Revit what you see is what you get literally In Revit you aren t counting on color 5 which is blue for example to be a specific line width when you plot You can immediately see the thickness that all your lines will be before you plot see Figure 1 18 What a novel idea 13 14 Chapter 1 e The Revit World Quantities wir EIS SRF GF A Chek ho sida l TAB for aliradi CTR ahh SHIFT aadis Ea FIGURE 1 18 The view window collects the results of your actions To continue placing some walls in the model keep going
43. ttached H Base Extension Distance O 0 Top Constraint Unconnected Unconmected Height 20 0 To change properties Displays properties for the family type to which the selected element belongs Type properties affect all instances individual elements of that family in the project and any future instances that you place in the project belong to the family type use Instance properties for a single element or a subset of elements that Properties Press F1 for more help structur Structural Usage FIGURE 1 14 The Edit Type button allows you to access the Type Properties 11 12 Chapter 1 The Revit World Family System Family Basic Wal mj toad Tye Exterior Brickend uon MT Stud _ Cupicate _ Type Parameters Poems e Structure E Edit Wrapping at Inserts Do not wrap Wrapping at Ends g None Se Width iT 2 Wall Function i Exterior Coarse Scale Fill Pattern j pE Coarse Scale Fill Color E Block Model Manufacturer Type Comments URL i Description Assembly Description Exterior Walls hd Assembly Code B2010 w Type Mark FA vev aaria z Caen J nem Geom Air FIGURE 1 15 The Type Properties are used to modify the wall system s global settings Click the Preview button at the bottom of the dialog to see the image that is displayed Now that you have gained experience with the Ty
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