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Make Ceiling Based Light Fixtures Snap to Grids

Make Ceiling Based Light Fixtures Snap to Grids

Please update ceiling based light fixture families so that they can snap to ceiling grid lines. Currently, face based families can align/snap to grids while being placed, but they do not automatically move with the ceiling grid when it is shifted. The ceiling based lighting fixture families do "stick" with the grid when it is shifted, which is great, but they do not align/snap to it (nor do they rotate) while being placed.

7 Comments
cmcraeZ6QXC
Observer

Great suggestion by @sdcartmell ! Aligning fixture and grid edges gets so tedious.  

vanderloo5
Collaborator

I want a hanging fixture, (from the ceiling), that hangs plumb from a sloped ceiling.

HVAC-Novice
Advisor

Please allow all this for face-based fixtures as well (aligning, AND moving with the ceiling grid)

michael.warwick
Contributor

They do. If created properly, i.e. don't use the OOTB or manufacturer families without some serious auditing.

 

The way to create lighting families is described in this document: Creating great Revit Lighting families (revitworks.com), it is not a beginner exercise, but then that is true of all MEP families.

 

When I insert families from my company library I hover over the grid, press space to rotate to align with the grid (even odd angles), and then snap into place in the centre of the grid. All my families have a 600 x 600mm reference line square to enable them to snap to standard grid ceilings. They were all created in accordance with that document.

sdcartmell
Enthusiast

@michael.warwickthe original post is asking Autodesk to make Ceiling Based families work similarly to Face Based families. Thank you for sharing the link, but face based families have a few downsides that ceiling based families do not (these may be upsides depending on your workflow). With Ceiling Based families, when you delete the ceiling, the hosted family is deleted as well. With face based families, the family model remains floating and unhosted after the ceiling is deleted. When the grid is moved/shifted, the ceiling based family moves with it automatically (without needing to lock the edges). This Revit Idea is to have the ceiling based family updated so that it can rotate and snap to ceiling grids the same way face based families can. Thanks again for sharing, it is very useful for anyone using face based families!

michael.warwick
Contributor

@sdcartmell, thanks, I leaned something new, I didn't know that ceiling based families moved with the grid. However, since ceiling based families can not be placed on a ceiling that is in the architects linked model I can't see myself ever benefiting from that, even when working on a small enough project for there to be a single model the fact that ceiling based fittings can't be placed on the underside of a skillion roof, floor, a bulkhead made from walls, or in casework means that I don't see the advantage of having two complete sets of lighting families. I'll have to agree with @HVAC-Novice, it would be nice if face based families moved with the ceiling grid, and as a note to AutoDesk, the assumption should be that the ceiling is usually in a linked model.

sdcartmell
Enthusiast

@michael.warwick, that's a good point! Maybe a new Revit Idea would be to have the Face Based families move with the grid like @HVAC-Novice suggested AND to just eliminate the Ceiling based families at that point. With pyRevit, someone could easily make a cleanup tool to "delete all unhosted light fixtures" or something to that effect if the face based families don't delete themselves when the host is deleted.

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