How to extract thumbnail images from a Revit family?

[ysautodesklover]

Dear Revit users,

Is there a way to extract thumbnail images from Revit Family?
I would like to make "Family Library" connected with lists as a databased file.
So I want to extract all images of my families which will be more than 1000 without taking captures of them one by one.

Any advices will be appreciated!

Yuki

[Matt__W]

@ysautodesklover this post is fairly old and I don't know how much of it is still applicable but....

Have a look at this post from 2009.

http://thebuildingcoder.typepad.com/blog/2009/06/rvt-and-rfa-thumbnail-image.html

[Viveka_CD]

Hi @ysautodesklover alias Yuki

Welcome back:)

A more recent post HERE that discusses thumbnail image preview.

@barthbradley I remember you made a post on the thumbnail preview. Can you pls help out Yuki?

Regards,

[Viveka_CD · Accepted solution]

Also, here's a similar idea in the IDEAS forum

[barthbradley · Accepted solution]

The thumbnail image is associated with a view in the family. The only way I know of to "extract" that Thumbnail image out of Revit, is by saving the associated view as an image (Export).  Sounds like the author is aware of that method, but is looking more for a "batch processing" method (e.g. extracting multiple views from multiple families).  

[ToanDN]

Load all families in a project.  Create an Assembly for each one.  Generate a 3D view for each Assembly.  Batch plot or export all assemblies's 3D views to an image format.

[barthbradley]

@ToanDN: Why Assembly step? 

...never mind. Automatic view creation! got it. 

,,,smart

[ToanDN · Accepted solution]

It is just a preference.  It isolates the element without manual hiding other stuff...

[cbcarch · Accepted solution]

you can try add-ins as well.....

https://www.getavail.com/

http://unifilabs.com/

[ysautodesklover]

Thank you @ToanDN, 

I have been looking for more efficent way cos I have about 600 familes to extract images in lists.

At the last, one of my colleagues wrote code to extract jpg so this problem has been solved!

But this way might be able to use for something other.

Thank you for all comments!!

[ysautodesklover]

Thank you @Viveka_CD

I reckon my colleague used this process to make a program for this issue.

I wish that I am skillful to understand programming but not yet now 😜

Anyway, it helped me to understand how it work.

Yuki

[parleyburnett]

Preview Image Generator will batch process nice previews for your .rfa library.

The next update will also allow high res.png files to be generated also through the process.(1 or 2 months)

https://apps.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=951715850256335253&appLang=en&os=Win64 

[Anonymous]

Hi.

Im having same issue of yours, so I gonna try to make simple program like familly image generater.

I think if I get some examples or source code, it is really helpful, because I am noivce at C# programming, too...

May I get some sample codes of yours?

Thanks, 

Jin

[ysautodesklover]

Hi Jin,

I am afraid to say but due to the confidentiality policy in my company, I am not able to post code itself.

However, I think my colleague used this guy's code which I found later.

We haven't really use the application yet cos the quality of image isn't enough for our intranet web page.

http://thebuildingcoder.typepad.com/blog/2010/06/open-revit-ole-storage.html

Anyway, I hope it will help you 🙂

Yuki

[parleyburnett]

Preview Image Generator (PIG) now allows you to export high resolution .png images for your families, along with saving them to the .rfa. 

https://apps.autodesk.com/RVT/en/Detail/Index?id=951715850256335253&appLang=en&os=Win64 

[rubenvivancos]

I do not see any answer yet to the question