Revit Export to Rhino

Introduction

Although there are several methods to export 3D models from Revit to Rhino. There is one that gives you the best editing options in Rhino:

• DWG ACIS solids

DWG ACIS solids

creates NURBS surfaces for most objects; you can create rules that specify how objects should be assigned to layers. The same editor also assigns shaders based on categories. Material properties from Revit are not preserved.

General preparations

The most important step when exporting your model from Revit is the preparation. It is paramount to optimize your model:

• Only export the part of the model you need
• Keep the level of detail as low as possible
• Optional: organize your model before exporting

Selecting which part to export

Exporting must be done from a 3D view. The configuration of the view also determines which parts of the model are exported.

1. Use the Visibility/Graphics Overrides to configure which types of objects are visible.
2. You can use a Section Box to cut your models to specify which part of the model should be exported

Level of detail

Especially furniture, fixtures, plants, trees and railings can cause your 3D model to become quite large and heavy. Only include those objects if you really need them.

When you use highly detailed families, the resulting model may become too heavy. The level of detail of your objects in Revit should be geared towards the intended use.

Export as DWG ACIS Solid

1. In Revit, activate the 3D view that you set up using the guidelines above.
2. Click the Application Button, under Export, click CAD Formats and choose DWG files.
3. In the DWG Export window, under Select Export Setup, click the ... button. The following dialog opens:

In the Layers tab you can set up which object types are arranged in which layers. The column Color ID determines which material is assigned to the object. This enables you to use color coding to structure the objects in your model.

In the Solids tab you can select how objects are exported.

DWG ACIS solids

1. In the Modify DWG/DXF Export Setup window, click the Solids tab and select ACIS solids.
2. Click OK
3. Back in the DWG Export Dialog, click Next.
4. Change the Files of Type to AutoCAD 2007 DWG Files.
5. Choose a path and a file name to store the DWG file.

Importing DWG in Rhino

DWG files can simply be opened in Rhino.

1. File » Open...
2. Set Files of Type to AutoCAD Drawing File - (*.dwg)
3. Browse to the location where you saved the DWG file. Select the file.
4. Click Open