How to manipulate the Point Cloud imported in Revit using API

[Anonymous]

Hope you're doing great! 

I'd like to manipulate the point cloud imported into Revit using API. For example, I want to find access to the coordinate of points or change their colors. I know how to work with C# and OOP and have already started using SDK to learn the API following the PointCloudEngine sample.  But, in that example, a point cloud is created using generating points along the edges of some cells. 

I don't want to create a new point cloud, I just want to have the coordinate of a point cloud that has already been imported into the Revit.  

Is there any example that can help me in this regard. Unfortunately, in the Revit API Docs, only the name of classes, methods, and enums have been mentioned and I couldn't find any example on how to use them in my own case. 

I would be grateful if somebody could help me a little bit 

Kind Regards, 

Saeed

[bhprest]

Hi there. The Revit API doesn't contain any classes that manipulate point cloud data. However, you should be able to use any .NET-compliant libraries in your addin.

I hope this helps.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, But how can I at least read the coordinate of points in a Point Cloud after Importing into the Revit? As you know any PC contains coordinate of points. I just want to have access to those coordinates using API. 

[bhprest]

For just iterating through the data, you should be able to use the GetPoints() method on any PointCloudInstance instance.

Check out the example shown here: GetPoints() Method 

[jeremytammik · Accepted solution]

Revit includes a Point Cloud Engine API.

The Revit SDK includes a PointCloudEngine sample.

You should definitely take a look at that first of all to understand better how Revit handles point clouds.

Also, of course, as always, it will help a lot to understand the way Revit handles point clouds from an end user point of view before starting to plan any programming task manipulating them.

Here is a pretty old post on the topic:

https://thebuildingcoder.typepad.com/blog/2014/10/point-cloud-indexing-update.html

However, things have evolved quite a bit since then:

https://thebuildingcoder.typepad.com/blog/2017/07/dockable-pane-point-cloud-ai-bim360-forge-and-au.h...

Maybe this more recent post will provide some more productive starting points:

https://thebuildingcoder.typepad.com/blog/2018/09/reality-solutions-sdk-enables-rcp-file-read-write....

Cheers,

Jeremy

[jeremytammik]

By the way, someone elsewhere just pointed out this open source point cloud engine that looks rather impressive at first glance:

https://github.com/potree/potree

Are you aware of that?

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot for suggesting Potree. 

I wasn't; but when you mentioned, I checked it out, and completely know how to implement it now. 

Best regards, 

Saeed. 

[jeremytammik]

Great! Glad it helped. Thank you for your appreciation.