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Smart Legends - Door/Window/Curtain Wall Schedules

Smart Legends - Door/Window/Curtain Wall Schedules

Door/Window/Curtain Wall Schedules

 

This has been a debate in our office and out with regards to office standards versus Revit's automation of setting up door, window and curtain wall schedules.  Revit does not have a dedicated method/function of doing this in my opinion.  I have come across other third party add-ins offering these automations but at a fee.  All great, but why does Revit not have such a built-in function?

 

So the idea is:

  1. When Revit's automated schedule is generated, Revit should allow for a new parameter field to allow a view of a component's Type (just like a Legend Component except directly in a schedule table), OR BETTER
  2. Revit should introduce what I would call a Smart Legend View.  When a new Smart Legend View is created, this type of Legend will have some pre-sets such as a built-in schedule table, with headings stacked vertically and a view window for the component's view.
    • A NEW Type of Legend should be introduced to handle this process.
    • One will need to associate a component type to this Smart Legend View, from the view's properties.
    • All Type and Instance properties are associated to this Smart Legend View's Family Type.
    • The parameters can be selected to automate the properties of that Family Type, exactly how a schedule table is done.
    • In this Smart Legend View, a view of that component may be selected (Plan, Front, Back, 3D View, etc) and can be locked to avoid the view position/scale being changed.
    • The scale option may also be selected for that view or scaled to fit.
    • The table must be adjustable to change the size of the table's columns or rows, or may have a fixed option to maintain all Smart Legend View tables to be consistent.
    • Dimensions may be allowed in the component's view window.
    • Smart Legend Views must have a browser organisation option to arrange to group these legends exactly like Views, Schedules and Sheets are.
    • Smart Legend Views may all be placed onto a single sheet, one view per sheet or onto multiple sheets.

If the Properties of any of these components change this Smart Legend View schedule is automatically updated as it is LIVE.

 

This would be a very helpful idea to assist in scheduling Doors, Windows, Curtain Walls and other components, whereas just placing an image parameter field sometimes is just not enough - Doors, Windows and Curtain Walls require dimensioning and notes sometimes on the component's view.

 

This is just my idea, which could be further built on to improved on its functionality and interactivity.

 

Worth looking into?

3 Comments
franckeblignautNJZKT
Community Visitor

I agree. 

I have come close, by inserting an image of a window or door into my schedules, but it is very time consuming and can not be easily edited.

Would love for Revit to do a "Smart Legend".

akesh
Enthusiast

@franckeblignautNJZKT It is frustrating that a BIM tool like Revit lacks this efficiency.

 

I mean this is some of the foundations that a BIM software needs.  Creating a feature, such as a Smart Legend, which is both automated and customizable, where it perhaps opens up a Smart Legend window with options etc., this allows the user to name this Smart Legend first, say you call it "Door Schedule D1", thereafter from a Smart Legend drop-down list you can select a family, then choose the view/s to display, then it will insert the selected family views to the Smart Legend (maybe limited to maybe 5 or 6 views).  Next it can pop-up a window which requests you to enter the "Fields" to populate for that family; by doing so, it populates all the selected fields of that family, plus allows you to create custom fields which could be either Type or Instance driven. There must also be an option to arrange the Legend's properties in the table that is generated in either horizontal or vertical style.

 

This can be placed on a sheet and this Smart Legend size can be adjusted, including columns, similar to that of a Schedule.

 

Although third-party add-ins out there are good, the issue with these is the waiting period to get updates for these add-ins, and all the good ones are paid add-ins - we already pay an arm and leg for Autodesk software.  With this feature added as part of the built-in Revit software features, it is updated when the new releases of the software or its' updates are released.

 

I feel this is a "Smart BIM" tool for Revit to implement, as it allows for seamless automation and efficient delivery of documentation.  Autodesk needs to REALLY start listening to our Ideas and implementing these important ones.

franckeblignautNJZKT
Community Visitor

@akesh Wow great ideas! Love them all. 

Well thought out.

You should work for Autodesk.

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