Autodesk® Revit® Building and 3ds Max®: A One-Two Punch · 2011. 8. 25. · in 3DS MAX a Revit model can be rendered and animated in 3DS MAX. The functionality presented requires

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Autodesk® Revit® Building and 3ds Max®: A One-Two Punch

The combination of Autodesk Revit Building and 3ds Max software creates a compelling one-two punch of architectural tools for the architectural rendering artist.

DV11-3

About the Speaker:

Roger Cusson - L'Atelier RK Studios

Roger is a technical evangelist for the integration of 3D into the architectural design process. Graduating with a Bachelor of Architecture degree from McGill University, in Montreal, Canada, Roger has worked with Autodesk and Discreet Products since 1985. His company won a "Caddie" award in 1991, and he went on to become an Elite Trainer with both Autodesk and Kinetix. Roger has recently returned to consulting work after working for 6 years as a learning tools manager at [email protected]

Autodesk Revit and 3DS MAX Integration Presented By: Roger Cusson

Autodesk University 2005

Revit and 3DS MAX AU 2005 2

Presented By: Roger Cusson [email protected] c. 2005

Revit and 3DS MAX

Introduction Autodesk Revit and Autodesk 3DS MAX are 2 products which have their own individual strengths. Individually these products have the following standout features:

• Revit o Sophisticated 3D

architectural modeler o Constraints based modeling o Sketch then model approach o Materials attached to object

types • 3DS MAX

o Unparalleled material editor o Sophisticated Rendering and

lighting options o Sophisticated Animation

tools Now that these products can work together they provide a powerful visualization tool for the AEC industry. Through the DWG file link in 3DS MAX a Revit model can be rendered and animated in 3DS MAX. The functionality presented requires that you have Revit 7.0 or higher and 3DS MAX 7.5 or AutoDesk VIZ 2006. (Any exceptions are noted)

Revit Revit allows the designer to quickly sketch a 3D model of an architectural space. Typically this is done in plan, but can be done in elevation and in a 3D view as well. Creating a simple architectural space like the following employs many of the basic building elements in Revit.

A typical workflow is as follows:

• Walls are drawn. Wall dimensions are adjusted after initial placement.

• A floor can be added at this point, or can be added later,



• Doors and Windows are added, and dimensions are adjusted to get the elements located in the proper positions.

• Finally a roof can be added to

complete the structure

At this point you have a functioning 3D model in Revit, but one which has been

done with unconstrained dimensions. This model allows you to edit your model parametrically but if you constrain your model it will have some degree of intelligence.

A fully constrained plan might look like this, permanent dimensions will appear. Some constraints can be equalities others fixed dimensions.

The Process of Linking to 3DS MAX In order to link a Revit Model to 3DS MAX you need to follow this process:

• Export an AutoCAD 2004 DWG file from Revit. When you export the model it is important to have a 3D View current, otherwise you will be creating a 2D AutoCAD drawing.

• In 3DS MAX you will use the File Link Manager to bring the model into a scene. In the File Link Manager there is a Preset you should use called Revit.

Your linked file should look like the following:



Updating Edits to the Revit Model As you work through a project, there will always be modifications. Some changes can be quite simple like size of the structure, or positioning of doors and windows, others more complex like number of floors. First let’s see how some simple edits work. The overall size of the structure was 30’ x 30’, we will change this to 25’ x 25’

After changing the overall dimensions of the structure note how the windows at the back maintain their equal spacing. The door and window on the side are still spaced at the original dimensions Adding more windows at the front of the structure, and changing the roof slopes can quickly change the model.

To update the model in 3DS MAX you must:

• First re-export the file as an AutoCAD DWG file, with the same name as the original DWG file.

• Return to 3DS MAX and in the File Link Manager, reload the linked file.

Revit Materials and 3DS MAX So far in this model we have not really talked about materials. Some of the Revit objects we have been using have had materials assigned to them, we have just not been paying much attention to it. If you use the Material Editor in 3DS MAX and select the material from the roof you will see that there is a material called Default Roof which has been transferred from Revit.



Fig. 12 If you examine the remainder of your model you will see there are materials applied to most objects. You could make changes to these materials in 3DS MAX, basic material changes you make will be maintained upon reloading the Revit file. For example change the window sash diffuse color to white. All the sashes turn white.

Fig. 13 Go back to the Revit model and make some changes to the window pattern that involves moving and adding windows. When you reload the file there are 2 options in the advanced tab that should be on.

Fig. 14

The reloaded file demonstrates that the modified material definition is propagated to new objects in the scene.

Fig. 15

Assigning Materials in Revit One of the advantages of working in Revit is that it allows you to make certain decisions more or less when you want to. For example, up till this point we have been working with rather generic building components, not much thought has been put into what type of material would be used for the outside of the walls and the surface of the roof. These material assignments are done at the component definition (ie. wall or roof definition) Through the wall editor we will create a wall definition which contains the materials for the inside and outside of the wall. Cedar Shakes on the outside and gypsum board on the inside.

Fig. 16



Rendering a view in Revit produces a view something similar to the following.

Fig. 17 Start a new file link as the new exterior wall will make the old wall reset itself. Materials are lost on the window frame.

Fig 18. Once you are in 3DS MAX bring the material of the new wall into the material editor and replace it with the wood shingle diffuse and bump bitmaps. (TUTSHNGL_Red.JPG, TUTSHNGL_Bump.JPG). These bitmaps will give you something like the following.

Fig 19 The advantage of editing the existing materials from Revit is that any new objects that come from Revit will pick up the modified material, the only thing missing will be to add mapping coordinates.

Fig. 20

Revit Wall Editor When you create a wall in Revit, you can define sweeps in a sectional view of the wall. The sweep profiles can contain material properties.

Fig 21



In this instance the wall is defined as brick and the profiles as precast concrete.

Fig 22. When you bring this wall profile into 3DS MAX some editing will be necessary. You may need to assign a new material to the wall profiles. But once rendered an excellent quality image is produced.

Modeling the Site in 3DS MAX Both 3DS MAX and Revit offer some tools in modeling terrain. One of the most fluid tools available in both products is the use of an editable poly’s paint deformation tools.

Fig. 24 This tool allows you to paint peaks and valleys in a flat plane, giving you a freeform tool for making a landscape. Using the Shapemerge tool in 3DS MAX allows you to add a path to the landscape, and with the Multiple sub-object materials, another material can be added to create a path.

Fig. 25 One of the nice things about the integration of these 2 products is that you can make changes in both programs. In fact you could have one individual working on the building in Revit, and the landscaping or other aspects of the presentation in 3DS MAX. Notice here that a sky sphere has been added and the roof overhang has been changed.



Fig. 26

Animation of the Presentation Some common presentation tools you can use in 3DS MAX include visibility and camera animation. To see a simple animation of this project playback AU_House_01.avi In addition to simple animation tools, you can add some object animation and a 3D Biped. In the sequence AU_House_Final.avi the front door of the building is animated to open while the Biped walks through the door.

Fig. 27 (N.B. Biped is a feature that only appears in 3DS MAX, and is not available in VIZ 2006) An update version of this handout is available on www.atelierrkstudios.com look under the heading AU2005. Video captures of this presentation may be available after AU as well.

Thank you Roger Cusson [email protected]

Documents

Autodesk® Revit® Building and 3ds Max®: A One-Two Punch · 2011. 8. 25. · in 3DS MAX a Revit model can be rendered and animated in 3DS MAX. The functionality presented requires