sách hướng dẫn sử dụng phần mềm revit architecture

Mastering
Revit Architecture 2010
®



Mastering
Revit Architecture 2010
®

Greg Demchak
Tatjana Dzambazova
Eddy Krygiel


Senior Acquisitions Editor: Willem Knibbe
Development Editor: Laurene Sorensen
Technical Editor: Phil Read
Production Editor: Liz Britten
Copy Editors: Liz Welch, Linda Recktenwald
Editorial Manager: Pete Gaughan
Production Manager: Tim Tate
Vice President and Executive Group Publisher: Richard Swadley
Vice President and Publisher: Neil Edde
Book Designer: Maureen Forys, Happenstance Type-O-Rama; Judy Fung
Compositor: Craig W. Johnson, Happenstance Type-O-Rama
Proofreader: Word One, New York
Indexer: Ted Laux
Project Coordinator, Cover: Lynsey Stanford
Cover Designer: Ryan Sneed

Cover Image: © Pete Gardner/Digital Vision/Getty Images
Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
ISBN: 978-0-470-45649-1
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act,
without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright
Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission
should be addressed to the Permission Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201)
748-6008, or online at />Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy
or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a
particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may
not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or
other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither
the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Web site is referred to in this work
as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the
organization or Web site may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Web sites listed in
this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.
For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department
within the U.S. at (877) 762-2974, outside the U.S. at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.
Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Demchak, Greg.
Mastering Revit architecture 2010 / Greg Demchak, Tatjana Dzambazova, Eddy Krygiel. — 1st ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-470-45649-1 (paper/website)
1. Architectural drawing—Computer-aided design. 2. Architectural design—Data processing. 3. Autodesk Revit. I. Dzambazova,
Tatjana. II. Krygiel, Eddy, 1972- III. Title.
NA2728.D455 2009
720.28’40285536—dc22
20090191730

TRADEMARKS: Wiley, the Wiley logo, and the Sybex logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its
affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. Revit is a registered trademark of
Autodesk, Inc. Copyright © 2009 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1


Dear Reader,
Thank you for choosing Mastering Revit Architecture 2010. This book is part of a family of premiumquality Sybex books, all of which are written by outstanding authors who combine practical
experience with a gift for teaching.
Sybex was founded in 1976. More than 30 years later, we’re still committed to producing consistently exceptional books. With each of our titles, we’re working hard to set a new standard for
the industry. From the paper we print on, to the authors we work with, our goal is to bring you the
best books available.
I hope you see all that reflected in these pages. I’d be very interested to hear your comments and
get your feedback on how we’re doing. Feel free to let me know what you think about this or any
other Sybex book by sending me an email at If you think you’ve found a technical error in this book, please visit . Customer feedback is critical to
our efforts at Sybex.


Best regards,




Neil Edde
Vice President and Publisher
Sybex, an Imprint of Wiley

For Serene
—Greg
For all the fantastic friends that Revit brought to me,
from Norway to South Africa, I love and miss you all
— Tanja
For my family who puts up with me writing these
books evenings and weekends.
—Eddy


Acknowledgments
Hats off to the innovators who conceptualized, designed, and made Revit happen. You have
changed the world!
Huge thanks to all the faithful followers! Without you, Revit wouldn’t be what it is today.
Personal thanks to the Grand Master Philippe Drouant, without whose expertise, generous
help, and amazing illustrations we wouldn’t have been able to make this book. Many thanks to
Guillermo Melantoni and Erik Egbertson, whose participation was crucial in getting a prior version of this book out of the door; to the inspirational leaders Mario Guttman and Ken Sanders
for their contributions; to Matt Jezyk, Lira Nikolovska, Nathan Lockwood, Jaap van der Weide,
Heather Lech, Zach Kron, Cindy Wang, Tamas Badics, and so many other colleagues for their
heroic effort to create the fantastic new Conceptual Design tools in Revit 2010 that are paving a
path to a whole new working paradigm.
Sincere thanks to all the hardworking developers, product designers, and quality assurance
testers from the development team of Revit, for their dedication, passion, and love of Revit.
And finally, thanks are due to our friend and technical editor Phil Read and our excellent support team at Sybex, who helped us develop and focus the content. Thanks to Laurene Sorensen
for helping us form complete sentences; to Liz Welch and Linda Recktenwald for dotting the i’s
and crossing the t’s; to Liz Britten for keeping us honest; and a special thanks to Willem Knibbe,
whose constant support and willingness to put up with our “issues” made us the high-maintenance

authors we are today.
We would like to express our sincerest gratitude to our friends, the architects who generously
shared their work, allowing us to inspire you with it: Håvard Vasshaug; DARK Arkitekter AS; To
Pluss To arkitekter; Link Landskap; Dave Fano and Case Design; Mark Dietrich, James O’Toole,
Jim Summers, Robin Shaffer, Robert Manna, and Burt Hill; Mike Hnastchenko; Rolly Stevens
and Ellerbe Becket; Craig Barbieri, Richard Taylor, Kucarovik, Nemeth, Vlkovic, Polakova, and
Senteska; Gensler; Montealegre Beach Arquitectos Ltda; Miles Walker, Lee Miller, Luis Fernandez
de Ortega Barcenas, Julio Gonzalez, and HOK; Jim Balding and WATG; E. N. Raycroft; T. Castro;
A. Blood; D. Belcher; Krisztian Hegedues; and Josef Kendersky.


About the Authors
Greg Demchak is a designer, technology advocate, urban explorer,
and post-apocalyptic film producer. He holds architectural degrees
from the University of Oregon and Massachusetts Institute of
Technology and is a LEED Accredited Professional. He is a product
designer for Autodesk, and has been working with Revit since 2000.
His latest work on Revit was the design of a new conceptual modeling environment. He has been teaching at the Boston Architectural
College since 2003, and is currently the principal investigator for the
2009 Solar Decathlon competition. He resides in Massachusetts.

Tatjana Dzambazova became known to the AEC industry through
her passionate evangelizing of Revit in its pioneer days (2001–2005)
and for being the product manager for Revit Architecture (2005–
2007). After this, she moved on to research of Web 2.0, social
networking, and virtual worlds and later moved on to conceptual
design, design computation, and digital fabrication in AEC, advocating the broader Autodesk technology portfolio relating to those
trends. Before joining Autodesk in 2000, she practiced architecture
for 12 years in Vienna and London. At Autodesk, she focused on
advocating for technology and established herself as an internationally renowned, inspiring speaker who fosters relationships with

architects and industry leaders all around the globe. Powered by
seemingly unlimited sources of energy and passion, Tanja manages
to make three days out of one, and is always on the hunt for what’s
new and exciting in the world of architecture and technology. Tanja
is mad about wild animals, is a compulsive reader, and loves riding
her Ducati Monster and playing Scrabble and Texas Hold ’Em. She
currently lives in San Francisco.
Eddy Krygiel is a senior project architect, a LEED Accredited
Professional, and an Autodesk Authorized Author at HNTB
Architects headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. He has been
using Revit since version 5.1 to complete projects ranging from
single-family residences and historic remodels to 1.12-millionsquare-foot office buildings. Eddy is responsible for implementing
BIM at his firm and also consults for other architecture and contracting firms around the country looking to implement BIM. For
the last four years, he has been teaching Revit to practicing architects and architectural students in the Kansas City area and has
lectured around the nation on the use of BIM in the construction
industry. Eddy also coauthored Green BIM, a book on sustainability
and BIM, with Bradley Nies (Sybex, 2008).


Contents at a Glance
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxiii
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxix
Chapter  1  •  Understanding BIM: From the Basics to Advanced Realities . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Chapter  2  •  Revit Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Chapter  3  •  Know Your Editing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Chapter  4  •  Setting Up Your Templates and Office Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Chapter  5  •  Customizing System Families and Project Settings in Your Template . . . 147
Chapter  6  •  Modeling Principles in Revit I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Chapter  7  •  Modeling Principles in Revit II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Chapter  8  •  Concept Massing Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Chapter  9  •  From Conceptual Mass to a Real Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Chapter  10  •  Working with Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Chapter  11  •  Creating Custom 3D Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Chapter  12  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
Chapter  13  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Roofs and Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
Chapter  14  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Railings and Fences . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421
Chapter  15  •  Presentation Techniques for Plans, Sections, and Elevations . . . . . . . . 439
Chapter  16  •  Presenting Perspective Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
Chapter  17  •  Fine-Tuning Your Preliminary Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481
Chapter  18  •  Evaluating Your Preliminary Design: Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507
Chapter  19  •  Annotating Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
Chapter  20  •  Developing the Design with SmartWorkflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583


Chapter  21  •  Moving from Design to Detailed Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 611
Chapter  22  •  Advanced Detailing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 653
Chapter  23  •  Tracking Changes in Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 673
Chapter  24  •  Worksharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 689
Appendix  A •  The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 709
Appendix  B •  Tips and Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 731
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 745


Contents
Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxiii
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxix

Chapter  1  •  Understanding BIM: From the Basics to Advanced Realities . . . . . 1
Identifying the Advantages of BIM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
A Brief History of Design and Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Building Information Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
BIM and Process Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Revit Encourages Creativity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Every Element in Revit Has Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Elements Interact with Other Elements—All the Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Duplicating Views Takes Two Clicks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Revit Fosters Problem Solving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Revit Lets You Leverage Other Tools to Support Your Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Revit Allows You to Draft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Family Editor Is a Powerful Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Revit Does Away with Layers and X-References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
BIM Is More than a Technology Approach: It’s a Change in Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Revit Is the Most Advanced BIM Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Where Can You Go from Here? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Chapter  2  •  Revit Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Understanding Revit Parametric Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Model Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Annotation Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Subcategories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Imported Categories/Subcategories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Type and Instance Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Bidirectional Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revit Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Overriding the Representation of Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with the Revit User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Starting Revit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Start Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The View Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SteeringWheel and View Cube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Project Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

15
17
19
20
20
20
21
22
25
26
32
34
34
34
35
45
45
46


xii 

| Contents
Modifying and Personalizing the Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Using the Project Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customizing the Project Browser’s Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Navigating Views and View Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Floor Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Plan View Using View Range and a Plan Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Elevations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3D Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

47
49
49
51
52
54
54
55
55
55
62
66
68
71
74

Chapter  3  •  Know Your Editing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Selecting, Modifying, and Replacing Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copying and Pasting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Create Similar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing Elements Interactively . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Copy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rotating and Mirroring Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Arraying Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Scaling Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Aligning Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Trimming Lines and Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Extending Lines and Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Splitting Lines and Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Offsetting Lines and Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keeping Elements from Moving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exploring Other Editing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Join Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Split Face and Paint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keyboard Shortcuts (Accelerators) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

75
75
78
79
79
79

83
83
85
87
87
89
90
90
91
91
92
93
94
95
96

Chapter  4  •  Setting Up Your Templates and Office Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Starting a Project with a Custom Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Strategies for Making Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Settings for Graphic Consistency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Object Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Line Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Line Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103


|

Contents   xiii

Creating a New Line Pattern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Fill Patterns (Hatches) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dimension Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Custom Annotation Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
View Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customizing Element Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynotes and Textnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Custom Title Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Custom Title Block with the Family Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Best Practices and Workarounds: Positioning Views on a Sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

104
105
108
113
117
119
120
135
138
140
141
143
145
145

Chapter  5  •  Customizing System Families and Project Settings

in Your Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Creating New Types of System Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Wall Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Floor and Roof Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ceiling Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stair Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Door and Window Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Types and Type Catalogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Family Types in the Project Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Family Types in the Family Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Family Types with Type Catalogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading from a Type Catalog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Customizing Project Settings in Your Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Graphic Overrides of Host Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional Global Project Settings to Consider When Making Your Templates . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

147
147
155
156
157
161
162
162
163
163
166
166
166

168
177

Chapter  6  •  Modeling Principles in Revit I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Grasping the Basics of Modeling with Revit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Sketch-Based Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Floors and Roofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sketching Rules of Thumb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Work Planes, Levels, Grids, Reference Planes, and Reference Lines .
Work Planes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reference Planes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reference Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Work Planes in a Nutshell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

179
180
181
183
183
183
185
185
186
187
189
197

xiv 

| Contents
Chapter  7  •  Modeling Principles in Revit II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Understanding the Principles of Modeling in Revit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Modeling with the Five Basic Sketch-Based Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Extrusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Revolve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sweeps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Blends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Swept Blends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Combining Solids and Voids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Examples Showing Use of Voids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

199
202
202
206
209
215
221
222
223
225

Chapter  8  •  Concept Massing Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Understanding Massing Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Massing Study Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Revit’s Massing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mass Creation and Visibility Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Visibility of Mass Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Starting a Conceptual Massing Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Mass—Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Direct Manipulation of Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Boolean Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Join Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a New Mass Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Form Making and Rationalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Parametric Extrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Revolve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Loft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rationalization of Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing 3D Conceptual Models Created in Other Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

227
229
234
236
236
237
237
239
240
241
242
243

244
249
252
256
259
262
263

Chapter  9  •  From Conceptual Mass to a Real Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Understanding Conceptual Design and Early Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Getting Site Data and Building the Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Positioning Imported Files Relative to the Revit Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Building the 3D Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Program Check and Feasibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Modeling by Face to Make a Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Technical Details You Should Be Aware of When Scheduling Mass Elements . . . .
Applying 3D Components to a Divided Surface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Imported Geometry from Other Applications for Massing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SketchUp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhinoceros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Autodesk Maya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

265
266
268
269
271
274
284
286

290
290
292
293


|

Contents   xv

Autodesk Inventor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
AutoCAD 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Smart Relationships between Building Mass and the Underlying Mass . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

294
296
297
298

Chapter  10  •  Working with Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Using Revit Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Design Option Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Design Option Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Elements to a Design Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing a Design Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Displaying Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deciding on a Design Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Putting Design Options into Practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Design Options with Parametric Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Showing Quantities and Cost Schedules for Multiple Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with Rooms and Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

299
300
300
301
304
306
307
308
313
313
314
317

Chapter  11  •  Creating Custom 3D Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Modeling Parametric 3D Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Choosing the Right Family Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Types of Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Family Categories and Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Nesting One Family into Another . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Scheduling Nested Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linking Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linking Parameters (Conditional Visibility) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Building Relationships between Parameters with Formulas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Parametric Array . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Encoding Design Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Building a Parametric 3D Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

319
320
322
333
335
337
337
338
339
340
341
345
350

Chapter  12  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
Using Advanced Modeling Techniques for Standard Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Wall Core . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Layer Join Cleanup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing Wall Joins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Disjoining Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Stacked Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Wall Articulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Wall Wrapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sweeps and Reveals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Custom In-Place Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

351
351

353
354
354
355
356
361
361
368


xvi 

| Contents
Using Advanced Modeling Design Techniques for Curtain Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Designing a Curtain Wall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Curtain Panels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Curtain Wall Doors and Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Complex Curtain Wall Panels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

369
370
373
374
375
376

Chapter  13  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Roofs and Floors . . . . . . . . . 377
Understanding the Various Roof Creation Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Roof by Footprint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Roof by Extrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Roof-in-Place . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating All Kinds of Roofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Flat Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gable Roof with Asymmetric Slopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Shed Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hipped Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hip Roof Following Recessed Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gable Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gable Roof with Extending Pergola . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hip and Gable Hybrid Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Gambrel Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dutch Gable with Glazed Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dutch Gable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hipped Roof with Sloped Arrow Dormer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hipped Roof with Two Dormers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Four-Sided Gable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hipped Roof with Extruded Roof Dormer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cone Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Barrel Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Multipitch Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Working with Advanced Roof and Floor Shape Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sloped Roofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Warped Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

377
378
383

385
393
393
394
395
396
397
398
399
400
401
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
416
417
419
420

Chapter 14  •  Extended Modeling Techniques—Railings and Fences . . . . . . . 421
Working with Railings and Fences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Railings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Subelements of the Railing Element and Principles of Railing Structure . . . . . . . .

Railing Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Setting Up Rail Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

421
422
423
425
425
437


|

Contents   xvii

Chapter  15  •  Presentation Techniques for Plans, Sections,
and Elevations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439
Using Shadows for Presentation Purposes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Analytical Drawings: Sun and Shadow Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Create Expressive Drawings with Shadows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Performance Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Color-Coded Plans and Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Presentation-Quality Plans and Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Coarse Scale Fill Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Graphic Overrides and View Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Elevations That Convey Depth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Drafting Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
True-Color Elevations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Elevations with Transparent Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Images in Elevation Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

439
441
444
445
445
451
451
452
453
454
455
455
456
457
459

Chapter  16  •  Presenting Perspective Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
Creating Perspective Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Showing the Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Silhouetted Edge Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Photorealistic Renderings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Rendering Dialog Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rendering Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Animated Walkthroughs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting the 3D Model for Use in Other Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

461
463
464
465
466
472
476
477
478
479

Chapter  17  •  Fine-Tuning Your Preliminary Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481
Quantifying Your Preliminary Designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Foundation Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Calculating Area Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rooms and Room Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Area Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Areas and Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Schedules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Simple Schedule (Rentable Area) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Placing the Schedule on a Sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Additional Schedule Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Schedules for Preliminary Cost Estimates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing the Graphic Appearance of a Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

481
481

483
483
483
491
492
495
499
501
502
503
506


xviii 

| Contents
Chapter  18  •  Evaluating Your Preliminary Design: Sustainability . . . . . . . . 507
Incorporating a Sustainable Approach from the Beginning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preliminary Design Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The LEED Rating System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Revit to Create Sun Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making a Solar Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Animated Sun Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tracking Recycled Materials and Other Sustainability Strategies Using Schedules . . .
Recycled Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Window Surface Percentage vs. Room Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Energy Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Daylighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Quality Control Measures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

507
508
508
509
511
515
519
519
521
522
527
527
530

Chapter  19  •  Annotating Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531
Annotating Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating and Annotating Rooms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Room Separation Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Selecting Rooms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rooms and Room Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rooms in Section Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Room Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Area and Volume Computations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Schedule Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Schedule Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Leveraging Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Placing Tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Changing a Tag Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Tagging Untagged Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Project and Shared Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Custom Project Parameter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Shared Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Text and Keynotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynotes and Textnotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynote Behavior and Editing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynote Filenaming Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynote Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Keynotes to a View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Keynote Legends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Keynote Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Predefining Keynotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

531
532
535
537
538
538
539
540
546
546
550
550
550
551

552
554
555
558
568
568
570
571
572
573
573
574
576
580
581


|

Contents   xix

Chapter  20  •  Developing the Design with SmartWorkflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583
Working with Repetitive Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding How to Use Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Groups for Repetitive Rooms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating and Managing Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating and Placing Repetitive Units Using Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Rooms to a Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Nesting a Group into Another Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Detail Elements to Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nesting a Group from a Previous Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making Variations to a Group Instance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Repeating Groups on Other Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Making the Group a Part of the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Editing a Group in a Separate File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Detail Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Best Practices for Grouping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding the Principles of Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Common Link Use Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linking Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Special Link Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Controlling the Visibility of Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Deciding Whether to Use Groups, Links, or Both . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Final Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

583
584
584
585
585
589
591
592
593
594
597
598
599
600

601
602
603
605
606
607
607
608
609

Chapter  21  •  Moving from Design to Detailed Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . 611
Advancing the Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Drafting Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing and Linking CAD Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linking vs. Importing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating 2D Detail Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Detail Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Detail Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Masking Regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Repeating Detail Element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Detail Component Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating Custom Line Types Using Repeating Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Miscellaneous Line Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Linework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Callouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Information to Your Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Embellishing the Wall Section: The SIM (Similar) Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Detail Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Embellishing the Wall Section: The Model Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

611
612
612
613
619
619
619
620
621
623
623
624
628
628
630
632
634
639
651


xx 

| Contents
Chapter  22  •  Advanced Detailing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 653
Creating 3D Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3D Details: Enabling a Section Box in 3D View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3D Details: Orienting to View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Annotations to the 3D Detail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Adding Detail Components to Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding Details to a Window Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Visibility Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Adding More Information Using Symbolic Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Reusing Details from Other Revit Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting Details from Revit Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing Views into Revit Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

653
655
655
658
658
659
663
665
667
667
669
671

Chapter  23  •  Tracking Changes in Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 673
Adding Revisions to Your Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Placing Revision Clouds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tagging a Revision Cloud . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
BIM and Supplemental Drawings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Autodesk Design Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Design Review User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Exporting to Design Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Marking Up the Model Using Design Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Importing a Design Review Markup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

673
676
679
680
682
682
683
686
687
688

Chapter  24  •  Worksharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 689
Setting Up a Project with Worksets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Worksharing Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Workset Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moving Elements Between Worksets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Managing Workflow with Worksets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating a Central File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Creating the Local File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Saving Shared Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Loading Work from Other Team Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Understanding Element Ownership in Worksets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Borrowing Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Requesting Permission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Granting Permission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Closing Revit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

689
691
694
696
698
698
699
700
701
701
703
703
704
706
707


|

Contents   xxi

Appendix  A  •  The Bottom Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 709
Chapter 1: Understanding Basic BIM: From the Basics to Advanced Realities . . . . . . .
Chapter 2: Revit Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 3: Know Your Editing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 4: Setting Up Your Templates and Office Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 5: Customizing System Families and Project Settings in Your Template . . . .
Chapter 6: Modeling Principles in Revit I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Chapter 7: Modeling Principles in Revit II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 8: Concept Massing Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 9: From Conceptual Mass to a Real Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 10: Working with Design Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 11: Creating Custom 3D Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 12: Extended Modeling Techniques—Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 13: Extended Modeling Techniques—Roofs and Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 14: Extended Modeling Techniques—Railing and Fences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 15: Presentation Techniques for Plans, Sections, and Elevations . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 16: Presenting Perspective Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 17: Fine-Tuning Your Preliminary Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 18: Evaluating Your Preliminary Design: Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 19: Annotating Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 20: Developing the Design with Smart Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 21: Moving from Design to Detailed Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 22: Advanced Detailing Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 23: Tracking Changes in Your Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 24: Worksharing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

709
710
710
711
712
713
714
715
716
716
718

719
719
720
721
722
722
723
724
726
727
727
728
729

Appendix  B  •  Tips and Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 731
Optimizing Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Using Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dealing with File Corruption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Getting Started in Revit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Finding Additional Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

731
733
739
741
743
745

Foreword
Revit Architecture will turn 10 years old in the coming year, possibly while you are reading
this book. As such, it seems appropriate to reflect on the origins of this tool and describe a small
portion of the history of Revit from my personal perspective, as well as some of the factors that
influenced where we are now.

Change Was Coming
The basic tenets of building information modeling (BIM) and parametric building modeling
have been discussed for 30 years. So why did it take so long for the architecture, engineering,
and construction (AEC) industry to get there? I believe the software and AEC industries were
uniquely aligned over the past 10 years and, in the context of macroeconomic conditions like
booms and recessions, helped catalyze the changes we see today. Over that time, conditions
were right for the inception, formation, and strengthening of the ideas and technologies inside
Revit and for the development of the larger concept of BIM.
There were significant reasons why the AEC industry should have been primed for change
in the late 1990s. The United States had come out of the recession that plagued it earlier in
the decade. The construction industry was thriving, as were information technology and the
Internet. There had been dramatic increases in computational power and networking. Adoption
of CAD was increasing dramatically in architectural firms, and other solutions on the market
also offered 3D modeling and building-specific modeling capabilities. Despite these innovations, the typical construction documentation process was tedious and error-prone. The typical
design-bid-build construction process was inefficient and costly. Was that enough to cause the
architectural design industry to change? No. The industry was simply not ready for dramatic
process and technical change from a business, design process, or technology adoption standpoint.
(The AEC industry is not known for moving quickly.)
The factors I’ve listed did not change the AEC industry overnight, but they did start to sow
the seeds. A contributing factor in the evolution toward what we now understand as BIM can be
found in the early history of Revit, which tells a story of how small teams, a clear vision, a little
bit of venture capital money and a large amount of luck can contribute toward building an innovative software product.

There Are People Who Do
In 1999 I was happily working as a design architect who also happened to be interested in technology. Over time, I started reading WIRED and FastCompany more than Architectural Record.
In Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, venture capital money was flowing. A change
was also happening on the East Coast: friends of mine had started to take jobs at software startups. I noticed they seemed to spend a good deal of time playing foosball.
I joined a small startup software company called Charles River Software in October of 1999
and was one of the first architects hired to work on a new parametric building modeler, codenamed Perspective. At that point the software could do little more than draw walls and place
windows. The roof tool was still a rough sketch on a whiteboard and the column tool had just


xxiv 

| Foreword
come online. It crashed when you clicked the button. There were a lot of crashes in those days.
We had no shipping product, no customers, and did not even have a name for the company or
the product. (The name Revit came later.) My expectations of playing foosball in a fun startup
environment had vanished. There was a lot of work to do.
In retrospect, the most important things we had were a product vision and a small group of
people who knew how to get things done. The software development team was literally a group
of physicists and rocket scientists. They had experience building parametric modeling applications and maintaining a high level of bidirectional associativity, and they were comfortable
solving hard math and logic problems. The marketing team proved to be quite adept as well.
The quality assurance, product design, and technical support teams were from the AEC industry. The management team believed in the power of small teams and in accountability. They also
knew how to ruthlessly prioritize and force a level of critical thinking. The team learned how to
get things done and deliver results because it had to. Our survival depended on it.
As an impressionable novice in the realm of software development, I learned a great deal
from the early Revit management team. Two books that informed their thinking were Crossing
the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore (HarperBusiness, 1999) and Rules for Revolutionaries by Guy
Kawasaki (Collins, 1999). They were popular in the late 1990s and are still good entry points
into the field today. I dug them out of my basement to help write this foreword.
Great teams are usually small—under fifty in total head count…
Guy Kawasaki, Rules for Revolutionaries

In April 2000, I helped ship a crappy product (to paraphrase Guy Kawasaki). Revit 1.0 was
launched at the AIA Convention in Philadelphia. It could only draw walls, roofs, floors and ceilings. There were only 14 creation commands and they all fit on the screen at one time. It was
insanely hard to build your own windows and doors. Performance was horrible. Our baby was
not perfect, far from it, but the fundamental concepts of the parametric building model were all
there. The hardest part was convincing ourselves we were ready to ship. We had to learn it was
okay not to be perfect.
Revolutionary products don’t fail because they are shipped too early; they fail because they are not
revised fast enough.
Guy Kawasaki, Rules for Revolutionaries

Iterating and Innovating in a Recession
It turns out our attitude toward technology adoption becomes significant any time we are introducing products that require us to change our current mode of behavior or to modify other products
and services we rely on. In academic terms, such products are called discontinuous innovations.
The contrasting term, continuous innovations, refers to the normal upgrading of products that
does not require us to change behavior.
Geoffrey Moore, Crossing the Chasm

Geoffrey Moore’s book Crossing the Chasm is one of the must-reads for anyone attempting to
deliver innovative products and services to a market. He introduces the Technology Adoption
Life Cycle, which divides customers into segments like Innovators, Early Adopters, Early
Majority, and Late Majority, following a traditional bell curve.