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Editing Imported Rhino Mass

12 REPLIES 12
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Message 1 of 13
kyleboyd
7568 Views, 12 Replies

Editing Imported Rhino Mass

I have looked aIl over the place for a solution to this, and haven't found anything, although I am relatively new to revit.  

 

I have a relatively simple mass modeled in Rhino that I imported to a Revit Mass Family (via .sat file).  I then placed walls, roofs, structure on the face of this mass.  However I would like to be able adjust this mass, either in Rhino or Revit and the walls and structure adjust accordingly.  Now however, if I reload the mass into my Revit family, and then reload the family to my model, and then attempt to Update to Face, the error "Faces defining this Element cannot be reacquired." and my only option is to delete the offending wall/roof etc. 

 

Is this just a limitation in Revit/Rhino, or am I totally doing it wrong?  I am totally open to a totally different work flow or any other suggestions.  TIA!

12 REPLIES 12
Message 2 of 13
scott_d_davis
in reply to: kyleboyd

sounds like you did the correct steps.  did the surface in the new rhino form change entirely?  So much so that Revit doesn't recognize it as the same face?  Also, if its a "relatively simple mass" why not just model it in Revit?



Scott D Davis
Sr AEC Technical Specialist
Message 3 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

Thanks for the quick reply! Thus far, the form has changed very little, but revit is still having difficulty recognizing it as the same mass. Is there something specific I need I do to ensure that it sees it as the same?

I have not had much joy modeling masses in revit thus far, I was hoping to get this to work so I could move on to a bit more advanced forms.
Message 4 of 13
scott_d_davis
in reply to: kyleboyd

can you post the SAT file, and post some images of what your mass looks like?



Scott D Davis
Sr AEC Technical Specialist
Message 5 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

Yes, perhaps I should have done that from the get go.  Attached are two .sat files in a zip file (it would not let me post the raw .sat files).  There is a slight difference between the two (I trimmed off a bit in mass2.sat).   Just to be painfully clear, my workflow is:

 

1. New Conceptual Mass Family

2. Import .sat file from Rhino via Import Cad button (mass.sat)

3. Load Mass into project

4. Attach walls by face to mass

5. Go back to Rhino and change mass

6. Import .sat file again into Conceptual Mass family (mass2.sat) and delete old shape

7. Reload into project

8. Click update to face

9. Pull hair out when I see "Faces defining this Element cannot be reacquired" error message.

Message 6 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

...and a screenshot of my mass.

Message 7 of 13
Alfredo_Medina
in reply to: kyleboyd


@kyleboyd wrote:

...

9. Pull hair out when I see "Faces defining this Element cannot be reacquired" error message.


Or... do it in Revit, connecting points with lines and creating surfaces in the family, then using wall by face and roof by face in the project.

 

 

2-14-2013 8-31-44 PM.jpg


Alfredo Medina _________________________________________________________________ ______
Licensed Architect (Florida) | Freelance Instructor | Autodesk Expert Elite (on Revit) | Profile on Linkedin
Message 8 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

That is a helpful tip, I didn't know about the connecting points thing. 

 

However, perhaps because of my ignorance in Revit mass modeling, I am finding it incredibly difficult to make changes to the mass in Revit.   For instance what if my next move is to smooth out the faceted surface you see there, to one face.  Or even just trim off 5 feet. Perhaps it is a different conversation about me learning more Revit, but I still cannot make any useful changes to these surfaces (they all move totally independently of one another). 

 

In any case, this isn't a total answer to first question, of editing an imported mass (unless of course I am totally missing some easy mass modeling in Revit).  Getting back to the spirit of my question, is Revit designed to be able to make an update through an import like I described?  If not, I don't understand the point of importing a mass.  Thus far, I have never worked on a project where a form remained constant throughout the entire design process, from conceptual modeling to completion.  At this point, I basically have to totally rebuild my model everytime I want to make a change to the form of my exterior skin.

 

Am I totally missing the boat here?

 

 

Message 9 of 13
scott_d_davis
in reply to: kyleboyd

at this point, imported masses have to be edited in their native application.  They are static objects once brought into Revit, as you have found out. 

 

Thats why it makes more sense to model it in Native Revit massing geometry, and as Alfredo has shown, the form you have is pretty easy to create.  In fact you can use what you imported to place points, stitch them together with lines, and turn them into solids by using the Create Form button.  trimming off 5 feet would be done a couple of ways, but you could select the end profile and move it 5 feet in.  You could also use a void to "cut" 5 feet off the end.  There are many ways, and to detail them all would be tough here.  I think some more practice, and tips from us, might help you feel more comfortable with the massing tools.



Scott D Davis
Sr AEC Technical Specialist
Message 10 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

Yeah thats what I am thinking too.

 

My other post may be a bit naive, after thinking about it for awhile, I realized it would be basically impossible for Revit to understand the intentions of an change model from a different program.  

 

Thanks for everyone's help!

Message 11 of 13
scott_d_davis
in reply to: kyleboyd

think of the form you posted, or alfredo's image, as 4 profiles, sketched on a vertical plane, that are lofted together to make your form.  Start Profile, two in the middle at the "creases", and one at the end.  If I get a chance, i'll try and do it and post some images, but it's much like what alfredo did.  If you want to remove a "crease", you edit the profile and remocve the nodes that form the crease.



Scott D Davis
Sr AEC Technical Specialist
Message 12 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: scott_d_davis

Ok.  So I got that to work, sort of.

 

 

Thanks for the help.  I am going to try my hand at learning better Revit massing techniques.

 

So as not to hijack this thread in a different direction than its label, I will start some other posts as questions arise.  Once again, thanks for all of your quick replies.

Message 13 of 13
kyleboyd
in reply to: kyleboyd

Despite my previous statement, I am stuck.  

 

I am able to get the shape modeled as a series of planes.  When I select all of them and click Create Form, I get the Unable to Create Form Error.

Planes.PNG

 

If I leave them as a series of planes, but want to edit them (aka lift up one corner of the roof, the top plane) I select the corner vertex, and pull it up. This only affects one plane, and I cannot get the other vertex of the adjacent plane to snap.

 

Editing Planes.PNG

Editing Planes2.PNG

Editing Planes3.PNG

 

If I model it as a series of vertical profiles, I get a curved surface, that runs through the profiles, but is obviously different than the faceted surface I am looking for.

Shape From Profiles.PNG

 

What am I missing?

 

I am very proficient in Sketchup and pretty good with Rhino.  I am pretty handy with computers in general.  I have never been so frustrated with a modeling software. 

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