Referencing Wall Thickness in Door Family

[Anonymous]

I have created a parametric door family that includes a hollow metal frame.

The frame depth adjusts with the wall type thickness. I have accomplished this by locking the exterior wall faces to reference planes. The frame projection from the face of the wall on either side is called out by "Jamb Projection".

I would like to be able to track and schedule the frame depth. Revit will not allow me to dimension the wall thickness with a parameter, dimensioning either to the actual wall faces or to the reference planes that they are locked to, as this will overconstrain the drawing. Rather than telling the wall what dimension it is to be through the family, I need to be able to extract that information from somewhere else (the wall type), calculate what the frame depth is, and then be able to track that information in the door schedule.

Anyone have any thoughts on how to do this?

I've really pulled out my hair over this one. I can just call it out in details, but this is a big performing arts center project and we have a bunch of varying wall thicknesses due to acoustics, and I would really like to be able to have this scheduled by the program.

[Scott_Womack]

I tried without success to do this a while back. I ended up divorcing one side of the frame from its side of the wall, setting a default frame thickness, and then "editing" the frame thickness as an instance paramter. That is the only way I've gotten an adjustable frame thickness, that can be scheduled.

[Anonymous]

Shared parameters is the answer. You will have to dimension and label the jamb width or thickness, etc. The labeled parameters can be instance or type based.

Mel Persin, AIA
AEC Technology Consultant
Technology to Visualize and Realize Solutions
MasterGraphics, Inc.

[Anonymous]

So, with this method, you end up with a door frame that does not automatically adjust to the wall width/type, correct?

If so, it looks like the whole process cannot be automated, and to schedule the frame depth, I still need to manually make sure that I have the correct frame depth at each wall thickness.

[Anonymous]

This is actually the root of my problem and why I am pulling out my hair.

I have set up my door family so that the frame depth adjusts with the wall type thickness. I have accomplished this by locking the exterior wall faces to reference planes. The frame projection from the face of the wall on either side is called out by "Jamb Projection".

Revit will not allow me to dimension the wall thickness or the overall jamb thickness with a parameter (shared or otherwise), dimensioning either to the actual wall faces or to the reference planes that they are locked to, as this will overconstrain the drawing.

Do you know of any other way to try to extract this information for scheduling (before I lose all of my hair)?

[sbrown]

As I said in AUGI, it can't be automatic, but you can make the shared parameter(NOT part of a dimension) just add it to the list in you family types. Then you will input the value of the wall thickness and revit will calculate the rest.

[Anonymous]

Ahh! Now I get what you are saying about the shared parameter vs. the dimension. That makes sense.

But there is still one thing that I am completely confused about. If the depth of the frame is variable and dependent on the wall thickness, is that number for the parameter then entered once the door is actually placed into the project?

[sbrown]

I'm just suggesting a workaround, nothing will fill out automatically, you have to enter the value. the easiest way to fill it in is from the plan, pikc on the wall next to the door, read its width, then select all the doors in that wall and enter that value(yes you can select them all at once, if you make the parameter instance based).

[Anonymous]

just thinking here.... can you set the wall thickness with a parameter (say block or stud depth) and use that parameter in the door family plus a standard depth for facing materials? maybe with a check box for no facing, or thick or thin surface finishes?

[SamuelAB]

The answer is located here:

http://revitclinic.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/09/example-uses-for-doors-and-reporting-parameters.htm...