# Introduction ## FormIt for Windows Documentation ![](/files/BAeZThUT999dUDrG559R) ## Learn about the power of FormIt for Windows FormIt is an intuitive conceptual modeling tool that allows you to sketch, collaborate, analyze, and iterate early-stage architectural design concepts via desktop, web browser, or tablet. * Design anywhere, any time in a simple but powerful 3D sketching and solid modeling environment. * Make informed design decisions with site context, solar impact, and energy analysis. * Harness the power of computational design with a native Dynamo integration. * Connect conceptual designs to BIM workflows with a native Revit integration. Running FormIt for Windows requires a subscription to **FormIt Pro**, which is part of the [Autodesk AEC Collection](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview). You can also download [FormIt for Windows](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download) and start a 30-day free trial of **FormIt** **Pro**. # FormIt Capabilities ![](/files/BAeZThUT999dUDrG559R) ## FormIt Capabilities Create conceptual building designs with a powerful built-in solid modeling system, incredible visualization options, and a native Dynamo integration, all while initiating a BIM workflow. Use Autodesk® FormIt® to capture building design concepts when ideas occur. Take advantage of accurate and easy solid modeling, organize your ideas in Groups and Layers, and get real-world site information, such as satellite images, to correctly orient and analyze your designs with shadows, Solar Analysis, and Energy Analysis. Move your preliminary designs to centralized data storage for access and refinement in Autodesk® Revit® software or other software. ![](/files/v6SMDXoquvGylVoVvcNa) # Multiple Clients Use FormIt to design anytime, anywhere. In addition to [Windows](https://formit.autodesk.com/download) and [Web](https://formit.autodesk.com/app) apps, FormIt runs on Apple iPad for intuitive and fast touch-based iteration, with support for Apple Pencil. Combine FormIt with other powerful mobile apps like Autodesk Sketchbook Pro and create entire presentations on the go! ![FormIt on Apple iPad](/files/XPDvdWhu4ONW0PF9HO6H) # Conceptual Solid Modeling Quickly and easily create conceptual geometry to work through design options. FormIt's solid modeling kernel enables incredible, time-saving workflows to make modeling easy and efficient. **Learn why solid modeling is advantageous, and how to ensure your model is solid so it can be used in downstream applications, like Revit:** {% embed url="" %} **Once your model is solid, you can take advantage of solid extrusion techniques to quickly clean up geometry and maintain organized models:** {% embed url="" %} **Additionally, use Smart Selection tools to quickly select similar geometry and save clicks:** {% embed url="" %} # Working with Data Formats Import a variety of image file formats and 3D file formats to add detail to your sketch. The following file formats can be imported: * Windows: OBJ, DWG, STL, SAT, SKP * Web: OBJ, STL * iOS: OBJ, STL, SAT See [Importing Models](/formit-primer/part-i/import-export-and-content-library) for more on importing data and working with the Content Library. # Languages FormIt for Windows supports 13 languages: English, Czech, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese. To change languages, select Settings in the toolbar or menu at the top of the screen, go to Languages, and select a language. The language change will take effect once you restart FormIt. ![](/files/rYFgRmd4F9OQzwnpGRYf) Additionally, when you launch FormIt from Revit via the 3D Sketch button, the FormIt interface will match the language from Revit, so you can enjoy a consistent experience across applications. ![](/files/0U3nU2NNGpaMD6ErNojl) # Collaboration FormIt allows multiple users (on any combination of Windows, iOS or Web clients) to collaboratively edit a FormIt model – while seeing all of their changes in real time. Work simultaneously with others on the same sketch or share your work later. **Note:** Collaboration is only available after you activate FormIt Pro. Clicking on the Collaboration icon will prompt you to log in with an Autodesk account entitled for FormIt Pro. [Click to Learn how to Start a Collaboration Session](/tool-library/collaboration) # Presentation Graphics Enjoy a suite of [Visual Styles](/tool-library/visual-styles) options to customize FormIt's graphics and create eye-popping presentations. ![](/files/-MlG7uOg0ClMt4lRAbQB) # FormIt + Autodesk Docs ![](/files/242CSgZ9Z50oSNJw4biu) ## Cloud Storage Powered by Autodesk Docs ### **A New Place in the Cloud** * Autodesk Docs is Autodesk's premier cloud storage solution, and brings new benefits to FormIt customers. * Send and receive FormIt models across Autodesk Docs accounts and projects, and access to the Autodesk Docs suite of collaboration and coordination tools. ### **Autodesk Docs Gallery** * Open, Save, Import, and Export FormIt data across multiple Autodesk Docs Accounts/Hubs and Projects. ![Open from Autodesk Docs](/files/VaBKH1F51N2l8o5Qniys) ### **Autodesk Docs Content Library** Use the FormIt Content Library to place content from Autodesk Docs on FormIt Web and Windows. ![Content Library](/files/XU2mERUcvcOK2vu46yIy) ### **Autodesk Docs in the AEC Collection** * Autodesk Docs is included as part of AEC Collection subscriptions * You can use third-party cloud storage services such as iCloud, Dropbox, Box, etc. to sync your files to a cloud location. * If you have an AEC Collection subscription, you can start saving and opening FormIt files on the cloud using Autodesk Docs, as well as locally. [Access your Autodesk Docs account here](https://acc.autodesk.com/logon). ## Autodesk Docs Desktop Connector ### **Connect Windows to Autodesk Docs** * With the [Autodesk Docs Desktop Connector](https://info.bim360.autodesk.com/desktop-connector), you can connect your desktop environment with your Autodesk Docs account: * View and open files * Upload and download documents * Edit and delete files * Create project folders * In FormIt for Windows and Web, enjoy the convenience of saving locally to folders inside the Autodesk Docs Desktop Connector. * Your local FormIt files will upload in the background to your cloud-based Autodesk Docs account. ![Autodesk Desktop Connector](/files/nhD38r4dtzD99Gq2cwb9) ## Important Notes ### **The FormIt Folder** * In FormIt v18.0 and newer, the FormIt folder is no longer automatically created and you can view your files in any directory. * You can safely move files out of the FormIt folder and delete it if you wish. ### **Get Support** * Need help with FormIt + Autodesk Docs? [Let us know on the forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142). # FormIt + Dynamo Computational Design in FormIt ![](/files/7Tj49zUzrshMaCxsjpG9) FormIt for Windows has Dynamo built-in for incredible computational design workflows. ## What's New With FormIt + Dynamo [FormIt 2024](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2024/) includes [Dynamo 2.17](https://dynamobim.org/dynamo-core-2-17-release/)! FormIt 2024.1 fixes a critical issue preventing Dynamo from running when Revit 2024 was also installed. ### **Data Graphs, Send Levels to Excel, and Faceting Control** [FormIt 2023](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2023/) enables running Dynamo graphs[ without a SendToFormIt node](#graph-types), adds the ability to [send FormIt levels to Excel](#send-formit-levels-to-excel), and adds control of [curve and surface faceting via new FormItGroupOptions nodes](/tool-library/curve-+-surface-faceting). ### **Dimension Inputs and Early JS API Access** [FormIt 2022.1](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2022-1) adds the ability to use [familiar FormIt dimensions as inputs](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-input-nodes), introduces [object-level options](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-options-nodes), and offers an early preview of [JavaScript API access](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-js-api-nodes). Get it [here](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download). ### **Multiple SendToFormIt Nodes** [FormIt 2021.3](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2021-3) adds the ability to use [multiple SendToFormIt nodes and nested Dynamo graphs](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-groups). ### **SelectFromFormIt Node** [FormIt 2021](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2021) adds the [SelectFromFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node, and enables always-connected sessions, multi-instance editing, and more. ## Getting Started Learn about the interface and link your Dynamo directories to FormIt. ### **First Time Setup** First time using FormIt + Dynamo? You may need to [configure your system](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-important-notes) first, in order to see the 3D canvas in Dynamo. ### **The Dynamo Panel** Use the Dynamo panel to launch Dynamo, place Dynamo Groups, and edit Dynamo graphs: ![Dynamo panel](/files/B1i8JEqhspKobSaFBfTZ) ### **Adding and Managing Local Dynamo Directories** * The Dynamo panel works just like the [Content Library](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/building-the-farnsworth-house/import-export-and-content-library), allowing you to link and manage local directories containing Dynamo files. * Click the "Link Directory" button in the Dynamo panel, and then click (+) again in the Preferences dialog to select a directory to link to FormIt: * Switch between linked directories using the drop-down: ![](/files/hEGPzjJThCtEsU4CyTCW) * You'll only be able to view .dyn files and subfolders through the Dynamo panel. * Use the Filter bar to filter out Dynamo files and subfolders so you can easily find what you need: ![](/files/B7X12A3VJCFnLILQtalz) ## Different Ways to Dynamo Author and edit graphs in Dynamo, or flex parameters in FormIt without ever seeing the graph. Or both at once! ### **Graph Types** FormIt supports three types of Dynamo graphs: * Data graph: Data graphs have no *SendToFormIt* nodes and are used to surface or pass data through FormIt. For example, you can use data graphs to send data to Excel or calculate non-geometric data and display it in a Watch Node. * Geometry graph: These graphs produce geometry immediately and need to be placed into the canvas to see their parameters. After clicking the thumbnail, the geometry will appear on the cursor for placement into the 3D scene. This graph requires at least one *SendToFormIt* node to be present and receiving geometry at the end of the graph. * Selection graph: These graphs require FormIt selections before running. You'll see a prompt in the upper-left corner of FormIt to indicate what needs to be selected. After providing the selection, the graph will run and generate geometry relative to the selection. This graph requires at least one *SendToFormIt* node to be present and receiving geometry at the end of the graph. ![](/files/3f9s40oz1e27Xh4lFpxi) ### **Geometry Graph: Place Dynamo Group into FormIt** ![](/files/ZNOm5UICalFReNjQPkXc) * In the Dynamo panel, click the thumbnail of the Dynamo graph you want to run. * You can use the built-in samples, or [link a library](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-getting-started) of your own Dynamo files. * Placing the geometry into FormIt will embed a copy of the Dynamo graph into the FormIt file. * To generate geometry, a [SendToFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node needs to be attached to output geometry nodes in the graph. * The geometry from the SendToFormIt node will be available on your cursor for placement. * When the graph has [SelectFromFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) nodes marked as Is Input, FormIt will ask first for the selection (each selection node in vertical order), then generate the geometry in the correct place relative to the selection. * A copy of the original Dynamo file is now embedded into the FormIt Group and is independent of the source graph. * Upon placement, the Properties panel will automatically toggle to reveal the available parameters. ### **Geometry Graph: Modify Parameters** ![](/files/h43Cx2xPHjLmR1PcQ5md) * After placing a Dynamo Group, select it and switch to the Properties panel, or simply double-click the Group to automatically switch to Properties. * Any input nodes marked as "Is Input" in Dynamo will be listed here. * [**SelectFromFormIt**](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) input nodes will show up as buttons at the top, and can be used to update the selection that's used to drive the graph. * FormIt supports these input nodes: Number Sliders, Integer Sliders, Boolean Toggles, and Number/String fields. * Make changes to the inputs in FormIt, then click Run. The Run button will turn blue to indicate parameters have been modified, and the graph needs to be run. * Dynamo will run in the background to process the changes and return updated geometry in FormIt. * In FormIt 2022 and newer, the first run from the Properties panel spins up a dedicated Dynamo instance, making subsequent edits much faster. * You can continue using FormIt while Dynamo is running. * Note that all geometry inside each SendToFormIt Group will be deleted and replaced when the Dynamo graph runs. ### Data Graph: Send FormIt Levels to Excel In FormIt 2023 and newer, you can use Dynamo to send FormIt levels to Excel: * Download the [sample Dynamo graph here](https://formit-help.s3.amazonaws.com/Send+Levels+to+Excel.dyn). * Point the Dynamo palette to the local directory where the Dynamo graph was saved. * Right-click on the thumbnail, and click *Edit Embedded Graph.* * Create an empty Excel spreadsheet somewhere. * Edit the Spreadsheet Location field to use the path to the Excel spreadsheet. * Edit any other fields you'd like such as Sheet Name. * Close Dynamo and save the graph. Now you can simply click the example file in the palette, and it'll run in FormIt without needing to generate geometry. You'll see the Dynamo inputs appear in the Dynamo palette, and you'll see Excel open up to display the results from the graph. As you make changes to the model, you can click the graph thumbnail again, or the *Run* button, to update the spreadsheet with the level data from the latest version of the FormIt sketch. ![](/files/0IZpbcqbRHNhm1qwFepJ) ### Launch a New Dynamo Window ![](/files/KYWe6d2870VSVZiTLPGR) * In FormIt 2021 and newer, clicking the Launch Dynamo button in the Dynamo panel will start a connected session with FormIt automatically. * This opens a graph template in Dynamo, and will automatically generate the template geometry in FormIt. * The resulting geometry will appear in a new Group, at the origin of the current Group editing context. It's best to be in the desired Group context before starting Dynamo. * The template includes both FormIt nodes, and some example geometry. Adjusting the sliders will adjust the cube's size in both applications. * From here, you can open different Dynamo graphs, or build something new using these basic components in the template and Save As in Dynamo to a new location. ### **Edit Embedded + Source Graphs** Existing Dynamo graphs can be edited in two distinct ways: by editing Embedded Graphs that have already been placed in FormIt, or by editing the Source Graph that's saved on your computer. ### **Embedded Graphs** After placing a Dynamo object into FormIt, its underlying graph is copied and embedded into the current FormIt file. Editing this in Dynamo happens through the **Edit Embedded Graph** button. ![](/files/JGHNE65p4Br235gJlENH) ![](/files/PKo1x7HBl4akeLKfNuiW) * Select the Dynamo Group and switch to the Properties panel, or simply double-click the Group to automatically switch to Properties. * Click the **Edit Embedded Graph** button. * In Dynamo, you'll notice the file name at the top will now contain "(FormIt)", which means you're editing a graph that is embedded in this FormIt file, and not modifying the Source Graph. * Make sure one or more [SendToFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) nodes is connected to the geometry you want to send to FormIt. * FormIt will display updates to the geometry in realtime as you adjust the graph. * If you don't save changes in Dynamo, FormIt will roll back to the last-saved version of the Dynamo graph. * Note that all geometry inside each SendToFormIt Group will be deleted and replaced when the Dynamo graph runs. ### **Source Graphs** Source Graphs are displayed in the Dynamo panel after [linking local directories](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-getting-started). These graphs are stored on your computer, and can be edited in Dynamo by clicking the Edit Source Graph button. ![](/files/EXrfCrgy8haiSHJCXouc) ![](/files/7p2qec86vGAaCEFMWU6K) * [Link a directory](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-getting-started) containing Dynamo files to the Dynamo Panel, then navigate to that location in the panel. * Right click the thumbnail of the Dynamo graph you want to edit (or click the arrow), and select the **Edit Source Graph** button. * Dynamo will launch with the requested graph opened, and in FormIt, you'll see the geometry from the graph's final output appear. * For graphs that use one or more [SelectFromFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) nodes as an input, you may not see the resulting geometry until the SelectFromFormIt nodes are populated with selections. * The resulting geometry will appear in a new Group, at the origin of the current Group editing context. * It's best to be in the desired Group context before clicking Edit Source Graph. * When finished editing, save and close Dynamo. In FormIt, the source graph has been copied and embedded in the FormIt file. * If you need to make more edits to the **Source Graph**, delete the embedded copy and follow these steps again. ### **Control Curve + Surface Faceting** * Starting in FormIt 2023, you can control the faceting of curves and surfaces attached to SendToFormIt nodes by using the FormItGroupOptions nodes SetCurveFacetingCount and SetSurfaceFacetingCount. * These nodes will override the global curve and surface faceting settings, which are defined under Edit -> Preferences -> Units + Accuracy. * This is very useful if your Dynamo graph needs to generate curved objects using specific faceting values, alleviating the need to change the global setting for each Dynamo graph run in the current session. ![](/files/7jKZ26KH7opOWKba8sXW) * You can also globally set faceting settings in Edit -> Preferences -> Units + Precision * After adjusting the faceting quality in Preferences, rerun the graph to use the new global faceting settings. ![](/files/Moj4Pv1wG4pIiNTUMQad) [Learn more about curve and surface faceting settings in FormIt.](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/curve-+-surface-faceting) ## Using FormIt Groups with Dynamo Harness the power FormIt Groups for better Dynamo geometry organization and incredible workflows. ### **Groups and the SelectFromFormIt Node** * When selecting geometry for a [SelectFromFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node, it's useful to store the geometry in a FormIt Group, and select the Group instead. * Doing so gives you the flexibility to change the contents of the selected FormIt Group, then simply re-run the graph that is referencing the Group to see the updated result. * If you select ungrouped geometry, changes to that geometry may result in FormIt asking you to re-select the geometry the next time the graph is run. ### **Generating Geometry in Groups** * When a Dynamo graph is run in FormIt, its geometric results are contained in a FormIt Group. * Each [SendToFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node in the graph creates a sub-Group to contain the geometry from the node input port. * After generating a Dynamo object in FormIt, the entire graph and its parameters are embedded as a copy in the FormIt file. * When the graph runs, the geometry inside each sub-Group is deleted and regenerated. * Use caution when modifying geometry or painting surfaces inside sub-Groups, as those changes will be lost when the Dynamo graph runs next. * However, if you paint sub-Groups (not geometry inside them) with FormIt materials, those materials will persist between runs. See below. ### **Working with Groups and Materials** * When using multiple **SendToFormIt** nodes, you can organize the nodes by material, so you can paint different FormIt sub-Groups with different materials. * In this example, an entire building is generated from simple planes in FormIt. Each building component requiring unique materials gets its own **SendToFormIt** node: ![](/files/Ox0r3Why87kd2FLqTXgZ) * After applying materials to each of the sub-Groups, the materials persist between Dynamo runs: ![](/files/VorhzpACtGCydpygGA1b) ### **Nesting Dynamo Groups** * You can use the **SelectFromFormIt** node to select the sub-Group results from one Dynamo graph to drive the results of another graph. * Building on the example above, the glazing output of the building generator graph is used as the selection geometry for the built-in Storefront Curtainwall sample: ![](/files/EFRRE6Z1rYTwcLQVB24c) * When the building shape changes, you can simply select the mullion system Group, and click Run in the Properties panel. * Although the contents of the glazing Group changed, the Group itself didn't, so there's no need to re-select the glazing when re-running the graph. * The above model is available in FormIt 2022 and newer as the "Roof Planes Building" in the **Building Masses** subfolder of **Dynamo Samples**. * Combined with FormIt**'**s vast capabilities, you can use Dynamo to create and flex an entirely parametric design - complete with materials and nested logic - in the rich context of a powerful conceptual modeler: ![](/files/TlAmzC3Lqn2qU7wT6OjD) ### **Standard FormIt Group Behavior Still Applies** * Other than what's outlined above, Dynamo Groups in FormIt operate by the same rules as other Groups: * Placing a new Dynamo object from the Dynamo panel makes a Unique Group, and will not affect any instances of the same object already placed in the sketch. * Copying and pasting Dynamo Groups keeps them identical. Any changes made to one copy's Dynamo graph will also update the geometry in its identical instances, unless they are made Unique. * You can make Dynamo Groups Unique with shortcut MU or through the Context Menu: ![](/files/6Cbtm962fY9h4kQNDPI3) ## Essential FormIt Nodes The most powerful nodes to send data between FormIt and Dynamo. ### **The SendToFormIt Node** * To generate Dynamo objects in FormIt, attach the desired geometric node outputs to the *geometry* input of at least one SendToFormIt node: ![](/files/W5r2ly1PjXQMOTwYnco7) * FormItGroupOptions is a new (optional) port in FormIt 2022 and is detailed in the **FormItGroupOptions Nodes** section below. * In FormIt 2021.3 and newer, you can use multiple SendToFormIt nodes to organize your Dynamo results into tidy FormIt Groups and sub-Groups. * [See how Dynamo works with FormIt Groups](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-groups). ![](/files/D3l5zUSHoZJVmDVNQXaA) * The SendToFormIt node respects the Is Output flag, which is checked by default. You can right-click the node to verify: ![](/files/BpGR7CRyd4aR1kfSltVP) * When checked, the geometry attached to this SendToFormIt node will appear in FormIt, inside a sub-Group. * When unchecked, no geometry will be sent to FormIt, and the corresponding sub-Group (if there is one) will be deleted. ### **The SelectFromFormIt Node** * FormIt 2021 and newer offers the ability to select geometry from FormIt for use as inputs in Dynamo graphs: ![](/files/dF05jPHwcRhQup7qdEO3) * The name of the SelectFromFormIt node will be used for prompts in FormIt, so you should name it in a way that describes what type of FormIt geometry should be selected: ![](/files/q9K4URqdQQkLNEi0drVk) * When the Select From FormIt button is clicked from the Dynamo graph editor or the Properties panel, FormIt will start a selection wizard mode to walk you through selecting geometry: ![](/files/b3JKBHIe91Lua9xLsajK) * The SelectFromFormIt node respects the Is Input flag, which is checked by default. This needs to be checked for selection to work in FormIt. Right-click the node to verify. ![](/files/zTQ7FTp7HKylDjRkz1qY) * When Is Input is checked: * The Dynamo panel thumbnail of the graph will indicate that a selection is required: ![](/files/L22ok9PdKijj5ab5fMf9) * When running the graph, the FormIt selection wizard will walk you through setting selections for each SelectFromFormIt node, starting at the top of the graph. * After generating the first time, you'll see a button for each SelectFromFormIt node in the FormIt Properties panel. ![](/files/qMi43CLq3os4oMTjCOou) * Clicking these will start the selection wizard, so you can change the selection used to generate the final geometry. The graph will re-run automatically after re-selecting. ### **Tips, tricks, and notes** * Name the SelectFromFormIt node to indicate what type of geometry is expected. For example, "Select Site Boundary (Edges)" * You can select any type of FormIt geometry, but it's often best to contain the selection into a FormIt Group and [select that instead of the raw geometry](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-groups). * If you need to move the results of a selection-based Dynamo graph, it's best to move the selection geometry first, then re-run the graph, which will pick up on the updated selection geometry and reposition itself appropriately. * You can also Group the Dynamo results **and** the selection, then move the containing Group. * When FormIt geometry is sent to Dynamo, any attributes, Materials, or nested Groups will be lost when returning geometry back into FormIt. * If you're editing a selection-based graph in Dynamo, and the selected geometry in FormIt changes, you'll need to re-select the geometry by clicking the "Select From FormIt" button on the SelectFromFormIt node. * When selecting in FormIt, the active [Selection Filter](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/select-edge-face-or-object#selection-filtering) is applied. For example, if you want to select FormIt vertices, you'll have to enable that in the Selection Filter. ![](/files/FvfU0D5piKmcNLrgDThe) ## Other Input Nodes A wide array of input options for easy customization of Dynamo graphs in FormIt. ### **FormItLengthString Node** In FormIt 2022.1.0 or newer, you can use the **FormItLengthString** node to specify dimensions in any supported FormIt unit type (feet-inch, inch, m, cm, mm) regardless of FormIt's unit setting in the active sketch. ![](/files/H3qSpFNntPhwFBlPZojf) As with other supported input nodes, the *FormItLengthString* will show up in the FormIt Properties palette when marked as Is Input, and when renamed, its new name will show up in FormIt: ![](/files/GSKke7LTJEYpDGqMVoom) Each instance of the *FormItLengthString* node can be used in any unit type, so a single Dynamo graph could employ a mix of units, as shown above. ### **Switching from Raw Numbers to FormItLengthString** In FormIt 2022.1.1 and newer, switching a graph to use FormItLengthString nodes (by placing the first one in a graph) or switching a graph to use raw numbers only (by removing the last FormItLengthString) will change certain behaviors while editing a graph in Dynamo: * When using the [SelectFromFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node while editing a graph, switching between raw numbers and the *FormItLengthString* node as above will require re-selecting the geometry for each *SelectFromFormItNode*, so the results continue to be scaled correctly in FormIt. * After placing the first FormItLengthString node in a graph, all numbers in the graph intended as dimensions (including raw number inputs) will refer to meters (Dynamo's native unit under the hood). * The [SendToFormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes) node will account for the change and ensure generated geometry in FormIt remains the correct size. * Conversely, removing all FormItLengthString nodes from the graph will switch raw numbers to refer to whatever FormIt's unit settings are (old behavior). * The numeric output of *FormItLengthString* nodes will also be in meters, but that won't change the size of the geometric results in FormIt: ![](/files/erNCyTLm6FO3VBjHKqka) ### **Other Supported Input Nodes** Standard Dynamo input nodes will display in the FormIt Properties panel when marked as "Is Input" in Dynamo: * Number Slider * Integer Slider * Number * String * Boolean Toggle You can rename the input nodes (recommended for clarity), and their new name will appear in FormIt: ![](/files/q7TJ5CadbDfyOwsKR5nT) ![](/files/MsYLPu1EsGP9UHJKqgLD) ## Other Output Nodes Different methods to display non-geometric results from Dynamo to FormIt. ### **Watch Node** Watch nodes marked as "Is Output" will display in the "Watch Node Outputs" section of the Properties panel in FormIt 2022 and newer: ![](/files/UWdmWkRlSZbhQGdiX3Ri) ### **Show FormIt Notifications** In FormIt 2022.1 or newer, you can show FormIt-side notifications from a Dynamo graph using the **UI.ShowNotification** node: ![](/files/VmSSNun2pGDkwx3KIQR1) ### **Log to the FormIt Console** In FormIt 2022.1 or newer, you can log additional data directly to the FormIt application console (Script Output window) with the **FormIt.ConsoleLog** node: ![](/files/625zLzR5fgoVbvhWeHPX) ## FormIt Options Nodes Control how data is sent to FormIt, either at the individual geometry level or at the containing Group level. ### **FormItGeometryOptions** FormIt 2022.1 and newer offers the ability to customize how individual Dynamo geometries are sent to FormIt with **FormItGeometryOptions** nodes. * Specify the Layer for individual geometries inside the generated Dynamo group. * Specify a string attribute for the individual geometries inside the generated Dynamo Group. *FormItGeometryOptions* nodes can be used upstream from the *SendToFormIt* node: ![](/files/8IqRyovgGLaSLnxBSIz0) ### **FormItGroupOptions** FormIt 2022 and newer offers the ability to customize how the Dynamo group from the *SendToFormIt* node is generated in FormIt with **FormItGroupOptions** nodes. * Specify whether the SendToFormIt node sends geometry to FormIt as a Mesh or an Object. * Specify the Layer for the Group created by the SendToFormIt node. * Specify a string attribute for the Group created by the SendToFormIt node. You can use any combination of FormItGroupOptions nodes in any order by daisy-chaining them together: ![](/files/bfibzKOyOu80NEOdmdjl) ## JavaScript API Nodes FormIt 2022.1 and newer offers access to JavaScript APIs and custom functions from Dynamo via two new nodes: ### **CallJSAPI** The **CallJSAPI** node allows you to invoke FormIt JavaScript APIs directly from Dynamo. ![](/files/PDIL5xQldqK39X2oiYWk) For function names and parameters, take a look at our JavaScript documentation, which is divided into two parts: [FormIt API](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/FormItJSAPI/group__mod__jsapi__formit.html) and [WSM API](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/FormItJSAPI/group__mod__jsapi__wsm.html) (modeling kernel). **CallPluginJS** Conversely, the **CallPluginJS** node allows you to invoke custom functions from a loaded plugin, or a script snippet that's been executed from the Script Editor window. ![](/files/qI6crtiZFDpzwDBiyvi9) ## Important Notes ### **System Requirements** * To use Dynamo in FormIt, you'll need [FormIt for Windows](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download) v17.0 or later. * The FormIt + Dynamo integration receives new features and fixes regularly, so it's always best to download the latest update when available. * You'll also need Windows 10. For technical reasons, older versions of Windows are no longer supported. **Troubleshooting** * If you have a system with an [NVIDIA or AMD graphics card](https://www.howtogeek.com/414201/how-to-check-what-graphics-card-gpu-is-in-your-pc/), or multiple cards, you may need to set FormIt and Dynamo to use your high-powered GPU: * *C:/Program Files/Autodesk/FormIt/FormIt.exe* * *C:/Program Files/Autodesk/FormIt/DynamoSandbox/FormItDynamoSandbox.exe* * If you have an NVIDIA card, [ensure you have the NVIDIA Control Panel installed](https://whatsabyte.com/blog/find-nvidia-control-panel/) * Use the [NVIDIA](https://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2615/~/how-do-i-customize-optimus-profiles-and-settings%3F) or [AMD](https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/dh-017) control panels to set the following applications to use your discrete graphics card: * If you're in a non-English locale, you may need to set the Windows 10 region settings to English to avoid issues with certain Dynamo nodes: * Search Start for "language" and choose "Language settings" * At the top right of the Language dialog, click "Administrative language settings" * Click the "Change system locale..." button * Choose "English (United States)" * If you're experiencing graphs failing to generate results in FormIt when working with small geometry or numbers, try changing the Dynamo scaling setting to "Small": * Dynamo menu > Preferences > General > Geometry Scaling > Small ![](/files/OJXMSxrzlFKFKnM1GBQS) ### **Get Support** Need help with FormIt + Dynamo? [Let us know on the forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142). # Solar + Energy Analysis Start a BIM workflow by evaluating the performance of elements from the beginning of the design process. ![](/files/6lcpGGAGtBqZRDWPr6Am) ## Energy Analysis in FormIt Analyze your building model for energy efficiency early in the design process. [View Your Insight Projects](https://gbs.autodesk.com/OneEnergy/Insight) ## Energy Analysis with Insight With a **FormIt Pro** subscription through the [AEC Collection](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview), you have access to Energy Analysis with **Insight:** * Analyze early-stage design models with Green Building Studio's analysis engine * Connect to a dashboard view of the analysis results to compare options for your design * Adjust the Energy Analysis factor widgets, such as Window to Wall Ratio, Building Orientation, and others * Summarize your building's energy impact with a single number calculated as a bottom-line cost per area * Save your Energy Analysis results for future review with clients and other stakeholders ## What's New With FormIt + Insight ### **Improvements to Insight Reliability** * [FormIt 2021](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/introducing-formit-2021) now checks your model for common model issues before launching Insight runs, and fixes common Insight failures for a more reliable experience. * FormIt 2021 also generally improves reliability of the FormIt + Insight connection, addressing many known failures and improving run success rates. ## Getting Started ### **How It Works** * Insight Energy Analysis uploads your FormIt model data, and runs several hundred analyses in the cloud to determine various energy scores * Energy Analysis uses Revit to analyze your model, so just like when sending FormIt data to Revit, you'll need to [ensure your FormIt model is watertight and manifold](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/repairing-solid-models) ### **Preparing Your FormIt Model** * Insight will use any visible geometry in your FormIt sketch * Ensure the building shell you want to analyze is the only visible geometry * Put supporting geometry like entourage, furniture, and site elements on a separate [Layer](/tool-library/layers), and turn the Layer off * Insight works best with a simple, solid building model * Ensure your building mass is [solid and watertight](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/repairing-solid-models) * If your building design already has openings for windows and doors, it's best to create a new mass with no openings specifically for Energy Analysis, and hide the more detailed version using Layers * The simple building mass needs to have [Levels](/tool-library/levels-and-area) applied * The FormIt model needs to have a [Location](/tool-library/setting-location) set ![](/files/bwikgj7UVBQmpGlEMkz2) ### **Starting Energy Analysis** * Look for the Energy Analysis button in the toolbar ![](/files/tqIegf2HzKeBvxScQumM) * Click "Generate Insight" to start the process * This will upload the visible model data, and will run several hundred simulations in the cloud * When complete, a message will appear at the top of the screen, and the menu will update to indicate a new Insight is ready to view * Click "View Insight" to view the analysis in your web browser * You can also find all your Insights at [Autodesk Insight](https://gbs.autodesk.com/OneEnergy/Insight). ## Troubleshooting ### **Common Errors** * "Insight project could not be created. Please try again later." * Log in to the [Green Building Studio dashboard](https://gbs.autodesk.com/GBS/Project), then restart FormIt * If you're not able to log in, or if you see an "access denied" page, you may need to [purchase a subscription to Green Building Studio](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/search-result/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/ENU/BPA-Help/files/GUID-7FCFF904-F943-4020-BF7F-53AA7148673D-htm.html) * Check that your model is [solid and watertight](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/repairing-solid-models) * Check for any issues with FormIt services on the [Autodesk Health Dashboard](https://health.autodesk.com/) * To see if Green Building Studio successfully executed Energy Analysis runs for this project, take a look at the [Green Building Studio dashboard](https://gbs.autodesk.com/GBS/Project) * Your latest project should appear at the top of the list, and should display 248 runs * If it displays 0 runs, [let us know on the FormIt forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142), and we can help troubleshoot further ### **Detailed Logs** * FormIt Web provides additional details when Energy Analysis fails: * Go to [FormIt Web](https://formit.autodesk.com/app) * Open the model that's having issues with Energy Analysis * Run Energy Analysis * Open Developer Tools (hit F12 in either Google Chrome or Firefox) * Look at the Console tab * Copy or screenshot any errors, and [report them on the FormIt forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142) ## Solar Analysis With a **FormIt Pro** subscription through the [AEC Collection](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview), you can visualize the sun's impact on your building: * Specify relevant faces to be analyzed for solar impact * Visualize results in seconds within the app canvas * Hover your mouse over an input point to see specific calculated values of solar impact * Choose to view results as a monthly glazing study, or as a yearly solar panel feasibility study Learn more about [Solar Analysis](/tool-library/solar-analysis) in FormIt Pro. # FormIt + Revit ![](/files/dT71j9K3NI2aFH2x44IJ) ## The Ease of FormIt Meets the Power of Revit FormIt for Windows connects directly to Revit for seamless communication between early concept and detailed design. ## What's New With FormIt + Revit ### **FormIt 2023.1 Improvements** * Location set in Revit is now synced to FormIt when launched via the 3D Sketch button. * Improved sync of DWG linework when FormIt is launched via the 3D Sketch button. * Optional syncing of camera between FormIt and Revit when in 3D Sketch or editing a linked FormIt object. ### The Power of Linking for 2023 * Link a FormIt model (AXM format) to Revit by using the ***Link CAD*** button in Revit's Insert tab. * Select a linked FormIt element in Revit and use the new ***Edit in FormIt*** button to launch it in FormIt for immediate editing. * Use the new ***Send to Revit column*** in the Layers palette to control which layers are sent to Revit when the FormIt sketch is linked in Revit. * Preview geometry that will be sent to Revit with the new ***Preview Send to Revit Selections*** mode, available at the bottom of the Layers panel and next to the Send to Revit button. * Silhouette edges are now drawn for FormIt objects in Revit. ### **FormIt 2022.1 Improvements** Launch FormIt from Revit with the 3D Sketch button and include all or selected Revit level data in the FormIt Levels palette. ### **All New for 2022** * Launch FormIt directly from Revit with the new ***3D Sketch*** button on Revit's Massing & Site tab. * Design in FormIt and send your sketch back to Revit using the ***Send to Revit*** button in FormIt when launched from the *3D Sketch* button. * Import a FormIt model into Revit using the ***Import CAD*** button in Revit’s Insert tab (more reliable and up to **30x faster** than the former *Import FormIt to RVT* button). * No need to download a separate Add-In for FormIt capabilities. ### **Revit 2021.1 Improvements** * Improved edge visibility consistency: Smoothed/hidden edges in FormIt remain hidden in Revit. * Improved material orientation consistency: Materials with custom scale/rotation overrides on FormIt faces will maintain those overrides in Revit. * Fixed several cases where converting FormIt geometry from Revit would fail or cause Revit to hang. ## Getting Started with FormIt + Revit ### **Intuitive 3D Sketching Directly from Revit** If you're working in both early stage and detailed design, you can quickly iterate and explore designs smoothly between FormIt and Revit. * Push contextual geometry from Revit to FormIt with one click. * Design and model in FormIt and send your design back to the same Revit project while in the same session. * Reference a FormIt model in Revit using the *Link CAD* tool and continue with visualization and detailing in Revit. * Use *Edit in FormIt* to launch a FormIt link from Revit. ![](/files/bs3Co5usSSAq6zf1cJBl) ### **3D Sketch, Edit in FormIt, and Send to Revit for Design Iteration** ### **Suggested Workflows** * Define an interior portion of the Revit model using a Section Box, then click the ***3D Sketch*** button to open FormIt and explore interior layouts or bespoke design features. Send the new design to Revit with one click. * Start with an urban context already modeled in Revit and click the ***3D Sketch*** button to bring the surrounding context into FormIt as snappable references. Send the new design to Revit with one click. * Open an existing Revit building model and use the ***3D Sketch*** button to launch FormIt. Model a few designs for a new addition, putting each design on a different FormIt Layer. * Select a FormIt object in Revit and launch the model in FormIt by using the ***Edit in FormIt*** button. ![](/files/5Mh0rHZs5gyXCPRjTO6s) ![Using Edit in FormIt after selecting a FormIt object](/files/SRihS7h825AW08OmzTP9) * Use the ***Revit Preview mode*** to preview the geometry that will be sent to Revit to make sure you are sharing the right design to be used for detailed development. * Select the elements you want from your designs and send each design to Revit using the ***Send to Revit*** button or saving the linked model. ### **Using the Tools** * The ***3D Sketch*** button, ***Edit in FormIt*** button, and ***Send to Revit*** workflow is available to subscribers of the Autodesk Architecture, Engineering, & Construction (AEC) Collection and to customers with specific types of access. It is not available through Revit LT. [Learn more about the AEC Collection here.](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview) ### The 3D Sketch Button ![Launch a new instance with 3D sketch, and save and create a Revit link with Send to FormIt](/files/jFogPJ5YXoAe2Uu7CY8M) * When you launch Revit 2022.0 or a later version, there is a new button on the Massing & Site tab called **3D Sketch**. The button is available from 3D views only; it will appear disabled in 2D views in Revit. * Ensure that you are signed in to Revit with your Autodesk credentials. Launching the ***3D Sketch*** button may prompt you to sign into your Autodesk account again. This is to check that you have the correct entitlements. * If FormIt 2022.0 or a later version is not installed (or there is a pre-2022.0 FormIt version installed), FormIt will not launch and you will be prompted to download the correct version of FormIt. #### The 3D Sketch "Open FormIt" dialog * Click on the ***3D Sketch*** button to launch FormIt. Choose between bringing all visible objects or just selected objects into FormIt. * Choosing to bring only selected objects is helpful if the Revit model is large and the design will reference only a portion of the Revit model. * Additionally, use a Section Box in Revit to isolate an interior area of the Revit model to bring into FormIt. ![](/files/l0BO4A4VAKhbgpQcB5ei) #### 3D Sketch and levels * If "all visible Revit objects" is selected, any visible Revit levels will become FormIt levels, which can be [viewed in the Levels palette](/tool-library/levels-and-area#creating-and-configuring-levels) or [applied to objects via the Properties palette](/tool-library/levels-and-area#applying-levels). * if "selected Revit objects" is selected, only selected levels will become FormIt levels. #### After FormIt launches * When FormIt launches, the included Revit geometry will display on its own layer in FormIt. The layer is called “Revit Context” and is locked by default. * Model in FormIt by adding forms or applying materials, content, and more. * Apply levels to FormIt objects from the [Levels palette](/tool-library/levels-and-area#applying-levels). ### The Send to Revit Workflow * Use the ***Send to Revit column*** in the Layers palette to include or exclude geometry to be sent to Revit. ![Send to Revit column in the Layers palette](/files/rJZsLW2ugcSAU8yZyqXF) * With the ***Revit Preview Mode***, you can optionally preview the geometry to be sent to Revit. Activate the Revit Preview Mode by using checkbox at the bottom of the Layers palette or next to the Send to Revit button. ![Revit Preview Mode](/files/OnNXwFWO1on2URU3Mok3) * Transfer the FormIt geometry into Revit using the ***Send to Revit*** button on FormIt’s toolbar. * This will prompt you to save the file, which links the model to Revit. * **Note:** We recommend saving the file locally, as saving to Autodesk Docs will break the connection between FormIt and Revit. Instead, use [Autodesk Desktop Connector](https://help.autodesk.com/view/CONNECT/ENU/) to share models to the cloud. * Once the link has been created, any time you want to transfer changes to Revit, you can resave the model or click the Send to Revit button. ![](/files/sryuAT06EaWb7twgYIMe) * FormIt layers and materials will transfer to Revit along with the geometry. * You can view the FormIt materials in Revit's Materials dialog box by filtering the list by “FormIt.” * You can find FormIt layers in a Revit view through the import tab of Visibility Graphics. This is a great way to show different FormIt design options in Revit. * In order to send levels to Revit, you'll need to import the AXM via the Import CAD dialog, and check "Import levels" at the bottom. ### The Edit in FormIt Button * After linking a FormIt model in Revit, or after creating a new FormIt model using ***3D Sketch*** and saving the model, the FormIt element is saved to Revit and can be edited again later. * Select a FormIt element in Revit, then click the ***Edit in FormIt*** button in the Modify tab to launch the model in FormIt. ![](/files/KYNUGC7X0QRgubsXIrsM) * See the FormIt Primer for a [FormIt-Revit workflow tutorial.](/formit-primer/part-ii/2.8-advanced-revit-workflows) ### **Importing and Linking FormIt Models: Design Collaboration between FormIt and Revit** #### **Suggested Workflows** * Share the FormIt model with a colleague, who can then import the FormIt model into their Revit project for reference, visualization, and detailing. * Import the FormIt model directly into a Revit Design Option to further explore and compare designs. Since FormIt layers come into Revit through the import workflow, the Revit user can control which FormIt layers are visible in which Revit Design Option. * Import the FormIt model into a Mass-category family (then load it into a Revit project) to take advantage of Levels, Mass Floors, and By Face tools and apply Revit system families to FormIt geometry. ![Import CAD in Revit](/files/dHI9aBsZOz7YRiJaWWdD) * Link an existing FormIt model into Revit to send changes back and forth, update geometries and material appearance during reload, and use FormIt layers to control geometry visibility. ![Link CAD in Revit](/files/bElqVHeIpNJtC9h3Sl20) #### **Using the Tools** * Specify a FormIt file to import into the current Revit project. Open Revit’s ***Import CAD*** tool. Choose .AXM from the list of available file types. Browse to an .AXM file and click *Open*. * FormIt materials transfer to Revit and display in Revit’s materials dialog box. Filter the list for FormIt materials. * Materials that were scaled or rotated in FormIt retain the correct scale and rotation in Revit. * Levels from FormIt transfer to Revit. * Click the “Import FormIt Levels” button in the Import CAD dialog box. * Hidden edges of curved/faceted geometry in FormIt come into Revit with hidden edges. * Known Issue: the silhouette edges also appear hidden in Hidden Line view in Revit. * The FormIt origin point and the Revit base point are used for reliable placement of imported FormIt objects. * FormIt geometry imported into Revit will come in with all FormIt Layers. * The FormIt Layers are accessible from the Visibility Graphics > Imported Categories tab. Here the user will see a list of FormIt layers and can turn them on and off with the checkboxes. * Revit's "By Face” tools (also known as Building Maker tools) can generate Revit elements from FormIt geometry * This requires the FormIt geometry to be imported into a Mass Family or Generic Model family first, then loaded into the project environment. * FormIt geometry comes in as one import instance. * To import a FormIt model as separate imports, isolate parts of the model in FormIt, and import each part as a separate .AXM file. * Learn more in [Revit's documentation.](https://help.autodesk.com/view/RVT/2023/ENU/?guid=GUID-A5F4B6C1-94CD-4433-A4E2-6B39B4BA8E6D) #### **Working with Revit Levels and FormIt Imports** * When importing FormIt geometry into Revit, the resulting objects may be at an unexpected elevation due to Revit levels. * In elevation/plan views, imported FormIt geometry will appear in Revit at the current level. * In 3D views, imported FormIt geometry will default to the lowest level, which may be below grade. * If your geometry appears at an unexpected height in Revit, select the imported object, and adjust the Base Level to the appropriate level in Revit. #### **Converting Revit Families** * Revit families convert to FormIt content using the ***Convert RFA to FormIt*** button on Revit's Add-Ins tab, making it efficient to reuse existing Revit content in the context of FormIt. * Specify a folder of RFA files which will be converted to FormIt files and output to a folder of your choice. * This is a great way to reuse all of the Revit content you already have. Just convert the content to FormIt and point FormIt’s content library to the folder containing the converted files. Then from the Content Library Palette, click a thumbnail preview and place it in the model. ![](/files/KabYStr9Hyw7aNLOe0IQ) #### **Preparing SketchUp files for Revit** * Use FormIt for Windows to open or import SketchUp content * Optionally use the [built-in diagnostics and repair tools to fix geometry](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/using-formit-to-get-sketchup-data-into-revit) so it's solid better for downstream operations * Save the FormIt file and import it using **Import CAD** or **Send to Revit** workflows outlined above ## Transitioning from the FormIt Converter Add-In FormIt + Revit 2022 and newer offer built-in synergy with no extra download required. With these changes, the Add-In begins a transition. Learn how previous workflows have changed. ### **A New Way to Import AXM Files** Replacing the *Import FormIt to RVT* button in the Add-In is the ability to import FormIt (.AXM) files via the Import CAD tool in Revit's Insert tab. In addition to being up to **30x faster**, you'll find this workflow is generally **more reliable**, too. Along with this, some behaviors have changed: ### **Geometry on Import** * FormIt geometry imports as one import instance. FormIt categories no longer become Revit categories. We're working to address this in a future update. * FormIt categories are currently used only for Energy Analysis. * You no longer have to break up the model into smaller pieces - try sending an entire FormIt model at once! * To import a FormIt model as separate imports, isolate parts of the model in FormIt and import each part as a separate .AXM file. ![](/files/7yRaQwtSpK6QYdCel8Dm) ### **Materials on Import** * FormIt materials transfer better than ever to Revit and can be sorted in the Materials dialog. ![](/files/8RPxx19emsRohB8sgp5R) ### **Post-Import Workflows** * For workflows involving Mass Floors and By Face (Building Maker) tools, first import the FormIt model into a Revit Mass or Generic Model family, then load it into the project environment. * Additionally, take advantage of a more fluid working by accessing the new 3D sketching environment for early stage design directly from Revit! ### **Changes to Revit Families** Continue to use Revit family content in FormIt by using the *Convert RFA to FormIt* button on Revit’s Add-Ins tab; there is no change to this workflow. The *Reload Families* button has been removed as we work to provide a better experience. ![](/files/a5ipgBl6W5UV9Atl47HF) ## Important Notes ### **Get Support** Need help with FormIt + Revit? [Let us know on the forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142). Download the Old Revit Add-In\ (2021 or older) ------------------------------------------------------------------ If you're using FormIt and Revit 2022 or newer, there's no need to download a separate Add-In. For Revit 2021 or previous releases, you can find old versions of the Add-In at the link below: [See Old Revit Add-In Downloads](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download#download-revit-add-in) # FormIt Introduction ![](/files/BAeZThUT999dUDrG559R) ## Introduction to FormIt Learn some of the basics about FormIt - what it can do, where you can get it, and how you can customize it. If you're done with the initial setup and ready to learn how to use it, check out the [FormIt Primer](/formit-primer). # Frequently Asked Questions ## About FormIt **What is FormIt and FormIt Pro?** FormIt is a 3D modeling, visualization, analysis, and computation environment for architectural design. FormIt features: * A robust solid modeling engine, with powerful tools and workflows optimized for building design * Enhanced environmental visualization to illustrate design options, including saved model states using Scenes * Location, satellite imagery, and 3D terrain using Bing Maps * Materials from the Autodesk Material Library * Model organization and visibility tools like Groups, Layers, and Scenes * Analysis tools, including: * Watertight and Back Faces validation for solid model diagnostics and repair * Sun and Shadows * Solar Analysis * Energy Analysis * Autodesk product integrations: * BIM 360 Docs * Insight (Energy Analysis) * [Dynamo](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo) * [Revit](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit) * File format support: * Open/Import * AXM, DWG, FBX, SAT, STL, OBJ, WSM, SketchUp, Image * Export * AXM, FBX, OBJ, STL, SAT, DAE, DXF FormIt is available for free on [iOS](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/autodesk-formit-360/id575282599?mt=8) and [in your browser](https://app.formit.autodesk.com). A **FormIt Pro** subscription is required to use [FormIt for Windows](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download), the most powerful and feature-rich version of FormIt. The **FormIt Pro** subscription also enables additional features on iOS and Web, like Solar and Energy Analysis. **FormIt Pro** is included in the [Autodesk AEC Collection](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview). **What happened to FormIt for Android?** In an effort to streamline the FormIt product offering, we had to make the hard decision to discontinue the Android app. If you have it installed, it will continue to run, but it is no longer available from the Play Store. **How do I get FormIt?** To run the Windows version, you must have access to **FormIt Pro**, which is part of our [AEC Industry Collection](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview) subscription. So, if your office has Revit, there is a good chance you have access to FormIt already! You can [download FormIt for Windows directly from our website](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download) or from the Autodesk Desktop App. Additionally, the Web version can be run directly for free from our website: The iOS version can be downloaded for free from the Apple App Store (iPad only). **If I am a student or educator, can I get access to FormIt Pro for no cost?** Yes! You can access the FormIt Pro subscription through the [Autodesk Education Portal](https://www.autodesk.com/education/free-software/formit-pro). **How do I learn FormIt?** The best place to start is the [FormIt Primer tutorial](/formit-primer). There are multiple sections of the Primer, ranging from beginner (creating an entire modern house) to more advanced (working with Revit and Dynamo in more advanced ways). We also have over 20 videos in our FormIt Friday webinar series. These can be found on our [YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdZJr6Bo4pwBu3lQqcxlDsw). ## Working with Revit **How does FormIt work with Revit?** FormIt is a separate 3D sketching and design application, but it creates data that can be converted easily to Revit [using the FormIt Add-In for Revit](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit). **What happens when you import into Revit?** Starting in 2016, Revit ships with an add-in for working with FormIt data. When you import a FormIt AXM file into Revit, this add-in looks at each object in the file and re-creates it in Revit using the API. By default, everything in FormIt is categorized as Mass. The FormIt Converter takes each Mass object and creates a Mass family in Revit using the [Direct Shape API](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/search-result/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2016/ENU/Revit-API/files/GUID-DF7B9D4A-5A8A-4E39-8721-B7782CBD7730-htm.html). Direct Shape is a non-editable object used in IFC workflows. Although it is not editable, it has the distinct advantage of transferring full material textures between FormIt and Revit. [Here is a tutorial](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/Building-the-Farnsworth-House/Revit-Interop.html) that explains the FormIt to Revit workflow in more detail. **Can FormIt create walls, floors and other Revit system families?** Not directly. As stated above, each object defaults to Mass category. To create walls, floors, etc. you should import the model into Revit using the converter add-in and use native Revit tools to create system families from the underlying mass model. **Can Revit send data back to FormIt?** Yes. To import data back into FormIt, export all or, preferably, *part* of your Revit file to the SAT file format. There is usually no need to send ALL of your Revit data to FormIt. Instead, create a filtered view in Revit that only includes the minimal data (for instance, floors and walls) before saving to SAT. ## Working with other apps **Why is the default file format ".AXM"?** The internal codename before FormIt was officially named was XModeler - so the file format we created was Autodesk X Modeler, or AXM for short. **What kind of 3D formats can FormIt import?** * Windows: AXM, DWG, FBX, OBJ, SAT, SKP, STL * Web: OBJ, STL * iOS: OBJ, STL, SAT **What kind of formats can FormIt export?** * Windows: FBX, OBJ, SAT, STL, DAE, DXF * Web: OBJ, SAT, STL * iOS: OBJ **How does FormIt work with Dynamo?** [Learn how FormIt and Dynamo work together](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo) to create computational design workflows. **How does FormIt compare to SketchUp?** * Better [**interop with Revit**](/tool-library/revit) * [**Dynamo integration**](/tool-library/dynamo) for computational design * Native tools for [**solar analysis**](/tool-library/solar-analysis) and [**energy analysis powered**](/tool-library/energy-analysis) by Autodesk Insight * A more robust solid modeling kernel that enables advanced modeling operations * Native advanced modeling tools like [**Sweep, Cover, Loft**](/tool-library/cover-sweep-loft), Offset/Shell Solid, and 3D Blend/Fillet and [**Flatten Faces**](/tool-library/flatten-face) * Multiple visible [**section planes**](/tool-library/section-planes) * Diagnostic tools like [**Display Watertight issues and Display Back Faces**](/tool-library/visual-styles) * [**Export pieces of the model**](/tool-library/export-data) based on what is selected and/or visible * Native OBJ, SAT, and STL export **Can I use my SketchUp keyboard shortcuts?** Yes! FormIt for Windows has a completely editable keyboard map. Many common SketchUp shortcuts are already there by default, but you can edit them in the Edit > Preferences menu. **Can I use my DWG files?** Yes! FormIt imports 2D and 3D DWG files. ## Common support questions **How do I get support?** You can start with your Autodesk reseller, or find us on the [FormIt forum](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142). It's best to search for the question you have first, and if it hasn't been answered, post a new topic and the FormIt team will respond. **What to do if I cannot log in?** * This [forum post](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/having-trouble-logging-into-formit-for-windows-try-these-steps/td-p/7179572) covers common login issues * If you have a PC with a switchable graphics processor (GPU) it is important to ensure that FormIt always uses the higher performance GPU. Here are instructions for [AMD](https://community.amd.com/docs/DOC-1581#jive_content_id_Assigning_Applications_to_GPUs) and [NVIDIA](http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2615/kw/manage%203d%20settings/related/1) **What ports are needed for Real Time Collaboration to work?** Make sure outbound port 443 is open for [collaboration-server.formit.autodesk.com](http://collaboration-server.formit.autodesk.com/). **What to do if Insight Energy Analysis fails?** If the Insight Energy Analysis reports an error or fails to return any results, [take a look at our Insight Energy Analysis page](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-insight) for common troubleshooting tips. # Prerequisites and Installation ## Download and Installation * Download the latest [FormIt for Windows](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/download). * Use your Autodesk account to sign in, or [create a free Autodesk account here](https://accounts.autodesk.com). * The FormIt Add-In for Revit is included with Revit 2017 and newer. You can also download and manually install the add-in [from our website](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit). Application-level settings for FormIt are located at Computer\HKEY\_CURRENT\_USER\SOFTWARE\Autodesk\FormIt 360\\ ## Recommended System Configuration | Requirement | Details | | ------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Operating System** |

Microsoft® Windows® 8, 8.1, 10, or 11.

Note: Parallels Desktop is not officially supported due to degraded performance and graphics issues in OpenGL drivers.

| | **CPU** |

Intel® Pentium®, Xeon®, or i-Series processor or AMD® equivalent with SSE2 technology.

Highest affordable CPU speed rating recommended.

| | **Memory** | 4 GB RAM minimum, 8GB or higher recommended. | | **Video Card (GPU)** |

A discrete NVIDIA or AMD video card that supports OpenGL 3.3 is required. OpenGL 4.2 support is strongly recommended.

For systems with switchable video cards, follow manufacturer instructions to ensure FormIt always uses the dedicated GPU for best performance. See instructions for AMD and NVIDIA.

For best performance and reliability, ensure your video card drivers are up-to-date from the manufacturer's website or Windows Update.

FormIt will show a message at startup if it's unable to use your video card due to outdated drivers or other issues. If FormIt fails to start after updating drivers, please reach out on the forums.

| | **Disk Space** | 1 GB free disk space. | | **Connectivity and Licensing** |

An internet connection is required when launching FormIt for the first time, in order to sign in to your Autodesk account.

An internet connection is also required to load plugins when launching FormIt. If an internet connection is not detected at startup, the application will launch without plugins.

An Autodesk account with a FormIt Pro cloud subscription is required to run FormIt Pro on Windows. FormIt Pro is available as part of the Autodesk AEC Collection.

| ## Offline Access When you first run FormIt for Windows, you need to be connected to the internet so your license can be validated. After the first sign-in, you can use the app offline for 30 days. After this, you’ll need to go online to validate your license again. When using FormIt for Windows offline, some functionality will be limited: * The Set Location tool will not function, as it requires an internet connection to retrieve satellite and terrain data from Bing Maps. * However, any existing satellite and terrain already in the model from a previous online session will remain. * Any plugins, including the Plugin Manager, will not load, as they get the latest code from GitHub on every application launch. * Workaround: If you load up all your plugins while online and keep the FormIt session running when going offline, the plugins that were previously loaded will remain and function normally. * Sample materials will not load, since they come from a cloud-hosted server. * Workaround: Navigate into the sample materials category folders while connected to the internet. The folders are downloaded and stored on your machine and can be accessed later when offline. * You will not be able to save to or open from Autodesk Docs, including from within the Content Library. ## Recommended Windows DPI Settings FormIt for Windows works best when the display screen is set to 125% or less DPI scaling in Windows. You can change this in Windows 10 by doing the following: * Search "Display" in the Start Menu, and choose "Change Display Settings" * Select the rectangle representing the monitor you'll be using with FormIt * Under "Scale and Layout" section, open the "Size of text, apps, and other items" dropdown and select a value of 125% or less ## Troubleshooting ### Windows 10 Pro N system error If you're running FormIt on Windows 10 Pro N version 1909 or newer, you may see this error message: ![FormIt.exe System Error on Windows 10](/files/YaKVx2sQiV8d2CMkgGCM) This is due to a known issue with certain versions of Windows 10 Pro N. To avoid this error, download the Media Feature Pack for your version of Windows 10 here: [Media Feature Pack List for Windows N Editions](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/media-feature-pack-list-for-windows-n-editions-c1c6fffa-d052-8338-7a79-a4bb980a700a). ### Unable to sign in When attempting to sign in to your account in FormIt, the login dialog may hang, preventing you from proceeding. If this happens, you may need to unblock \*.autodesk.com in your network firewall. Contact your IT department for support. # Setting Up the Project ## Starting Off When you start FormIt, you'll be in a 3D environment. Take some time to learn how to [navigate around the 3D space](/formit-introduction/navigating-the-scene), then start building a project ([here's how](/formit-primer)), use the File menu to open an existing FormIt project, or import a variety of other file types. FormIt allows opening, saving, and exporting to files both locally and on Autodesk Docs. [Using Autodesk Docs in FormIt](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-autodesk-docs/) is a great way to share models in the cloud. In addition to using the File menu, you can open any importable 3D model in FormIt by dragging and dropping the file into the canvas. To import a file into the current sketch, hold Ctrl while dragging and dropping. FormIt will [AutoSave your work](/tool-library/autosave) once you start making changes to the model. Saving often is still recommended because it will clean up the backup file and save space. ## App Settings * Units: * Setting this will affect the units in all tools and imported geometry, like Dynamo and unitless file types like STL. * Snap to Grid: * Forces tools with placement points to snap to the grid intersection points. Note that you can turn the grid off in [Visual Styles](/formit-primer/part-i/visual-settings); if the grid is off, snapping to it will be disabled as well. * Display Editable Dimensions: * Choose whether to keep the dimension boxes visible (we recommend keeping this on if you want to draw with accuracy). * Hide Context/Show Edited Group Only: * This affects whether editing a Group will show its surroundings or not. You can easily change this setting using the shortcut (H). Toggling H while modeling in and out of Groups allows you to view Groups both in isolation and in context as needed. * Preselection Highlight: * By default, FormIt will "preselect" objects when you hover over them. This is useful to ensure the object you want to select is the object you get, but can be distracting when presenting a design. Use this option or the shortcut to quickly toggle back and forth between showing and hiding preselection highlight as necessary. Note that this option needs to be enabled to use features like [Smart Selection](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akLeB1FADt4). ## Touch Mode ![](/files/-MlG7v5xagF9qEaAid66) If your computer has a touchscreen, use Touch Mode to easily navigate your model and create geometry. If you're using FormIt for iOS too, this will feel familiar. When Touch Mode is on, FormIt's interaction becomes more like FormIt on iPad, calibrating navigation and modification tools to work with a touch interface. Because of this, using FormIt with a mouse and keyboard while Touch Mode is on is not recommended. When Touch Mode is on, you'll see it highlighted in the toolbar, as well as a "Touch Mode" banner in the lower-left corner of the screen. ![](/files/-MlG7v5ySUXRZBtj9Kl6) ![](/files/-MlG7v5zYCAh62UvCuVP) # Toolbars and Palettes ## Toolbars The standard toolbar is enabled by default, but is split into the following sections. You can optionally enable, disable, and rearrange individual sections using the Windows menu. ### File ![](/files/-MlG7vDVX8EGXmY63551) 1. **File menu** with file operations like Open, Save, and Export 2. **Undo** your last change 3. **Redo** a change you undid ### Geometry ![](/files/-MlG7vDY8E1o2QjHak4C) 1. [**Selection**](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/select-edge-face-or-object) and area selection filters 2. [**Measure** ](/tool-library/measure-tool)Distance and [**Measure Angle**](/tool-library/measure-angle-tool) tools 3. [**Section Planes**](/tool-library/section-planes) 4. [**3D Sketching Tools**](/formit-primer/part-i/3d-sketching) 5. [**Primitive** ](/tool-library/place-primitive-object)toolbar 6. [**Advanced Geometry**](/formit-introduction/tool-bars) toolbar with Join, Cut, Sweep, Loft, and Shell 7. [**Groups** ](/tool-library/groups)toolbar ### Settings ![](/files/-MlG7vE3KrT2TBIRBB5k) 1. **Settings** menu for UI and app settings. 2. **Touch Mode** to enable interactions on touch screen devices. 3. [**Collaboration**](/tool-library/collaboration) for managing collaboration sessions with multiple users. 4. **Autodesk account login.** 5. **Information** menu for help and links. ### Design ![](/files/-MlG7vE7_iD34DFLZ2PE) 1. [**Location**](/tool-library/setting-location) 2. [**Sun, Shadows, and Solar Analysis**](/tool-library/solar-analysis) 3. [**Energy Analysis**](/tool-library/energy-analysis) ## Palettes ![](/files/-MlG7vE9eex6pfBPjVey) [**Properties**](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/properties) ![](/files/-MlG7vEBWBgxrCYIR36i) [**Layers**](/tool-library/layers) ![](/files/-MlG7vECggVi6pp1i_ar) [**Scenes**](/tool-library/scenes) ![](/files/-MlG7vEDYmsFxinw4sga) [**Visual Styles**](/tool-library/visual-styles) ![](/files/-MlG7vEFPAYVOh_mYWoE) [**Groups Tree**](/tool-library/groups-tree) ![](/files/-MlG7vEHiMY4kfnl5zeq) [**Dynamo**](/tool-library/dynamo) ![](/files/-MlG7vEIVFcJApoeBPAo) [**Levels**](/tool-library/levels-and-area) ![](/files/-MlG7vEKMB5jnM7XyyuY) [**Content Library**](/tool-library/content-library) ![](/files/-MlG7vELOYr-KqyWZduR) [**Undo Manager**](https://github.com/FormIt3D/autodesk-formit-360-windows-help/tree/c377e7b8a3b8e43e684321d0b7de867608d317a3/tool-library/undo-manager.md) ![](/files/-MlG7vEN7ymRNVRwWjSC) [**Plug-Ins**](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/plug-ins) ### Show/Hide All Palettes In FormIt 2023 and newer, the palette can be minimized/restored by toggling Show/Hide All Palettes found in the Window menu:
## Context Menu Right-click on an element in the 3D canvas to display a menu of commands and modifications for that type of geometry. Hover over the icons to see their names. ![](/files/-MlG7vEP5NbHvbEfECF9) ## Keyboard Shortcuts Customize your FormIt [k**eyboard shortcuts**](/appendix/keyboard-shortcuts) in Edit > Preferences > Shortcuts. ![](/files/Wgk8Qwku9IkyJasJYCDj) # Navigating the Scene Use your mouse or touchscreen to easily navigate in and around your FormIt models: * **Orbit** by right-clicking and dragging the mouse or swiping across the screen for touch-enabled devices. This will use your cursor point in 3D space about which to orbit the camera. * You can also hold the Shift key to Pan. * **Zoom** in and out by scrolling the mouse wheel up and down, or pinching for touch-enabled devices. This will use a point in 3D space at which to zoom to, and will slow down the zoom as you approach a surface or another object. * You can also hold Ctrl to zoom at a constant rate, not affected by proximity to objects. * **Pan** by middle-clicking and dragging the mouse, or dragging two fingers for touch-enabled devices. You can also use the floating navigation toolbar on the right side of the canvas to go into specific view modes. Shortcuts are noted in parentheses. ![](/files/-MlG7uR4Rd9QvMGjH6_z) **Orthographic views**: Click to reveal a flyout menu of available [orthographic views](/tool-library/orthographic-views). ![](/files/-MlG7uRBpb4jozdCQ1bm) **Default 3D View (ZD):** Launches the default 3D view. ![](/files/-MlG7uRDXicbFF1O3j9a) **Walkthrough (FT):** “Jetpack” mode allows you to walk through the scene using your keyboard. Use WASD to move forward/backward/left/right, and use Q/E to move up/down. Use the spacebar key to "fly." ![](/files/-MlG7uREBl_uAZJPrLtw) **Orbit (O):** When enabled, left-click and drag the mouse to orbit around the model. You can also do this at any time by right-click and dragging. ![](/files/-MlG7uRFICmdqiqlcrik) **Swivel (SV):** Use the Swivel tool from the Navigation toolbar to look around the scene from a fixed point. ![](/files/-MlG7uRG19Li-wuBzCmn) **Pan (P):** Click and drag the middle mouse button, or use the Pan (hand) tool from the Navigation toolbar to pan across the scene. ![](/files/-MlG7uRHw7PQ-xGeQ_NU) **Zoom (Z):** Scroll the mouse wheel, or select the Zoom tool from the Navigation toolbar and click and drag the left mouse button to zoom. ![](/files/-MlG7uRISC6f9BfI65jB) **Zoom All (ZE or ZA):** Zoom to fit the entire model into the current view ![](/files/-MlG7uRJY2ztSrc_9Jni) **Zoom Selection (ZS):** Zoom to fit all of the currently selected objects into the current view. # FormIt Primer ![](/files/BAeZThUT999dUDrG559R) ## Content [**Part I**](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/formit-primer/part-i) covers a single workflow tutorial that goes over the basic tools while modeling the famous Farnsworth House step-by-step to help you start modeling today. ![](/files/-MlG7uQHNgm56TogwMBn) [**Part II**](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/formit-primer/part-ii) covers some more advanced tools using a pre-modeled fictional architectural project to explore advanced modeling features, analytical tools, and computational tools to help you take FormIt to the next level. ![](/files/-MlG7uQIKOXpthL4Gmfz) ## Credits This 2021 Edition of the FormIt Primer is a redesign and expansion upon the first Primer, developed in partnership with [EvolveLAB](https://www.evolvelab.io). [![](/files/-MlG7uQJKt8CjG4xBkXq)](https://www.evolvelab.io) # Part I ## Modeling Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House In Part I of this Primer, we are going to go over the basic FormIt tools and workflows to build a historic modernist house in just under two hours! Refer to the **FormIt Introduction** and **Tool Library** sections for detailed explanations on tools, toolbars, palettes, and processes discussed herein. ![The Farnsworth House](/files/-MlG7uUinZ5YnGt1ahA_) ### Pre-requisites Before beginning Part I, download and install FormIt for Windows using the directions found in the FormIt Introduction section here: [**Prerequisites and Installation**](/formit-introduction/prerequisites-and-installation). You will also need to download the data set found at the link below. The data set is a collection of files used throughout Part I. *If you cannot run FormIt for Windows, the majority of the tutorial can be completed using the free* [***Web Application***](https://formit.autodesk.com/app)***.** For more information about FormIt versions and licensing, visit the* [*FormIt website*](https://formit.autodesk.com). ### Data Set Throughout Part I, we will build the Farnsworth House step by step, breaking up the modeling into manageable chapters. If you wish to only complete specific chapters, the data set below will provide you with the progress up until the chapter you chose to do. Besides the **Chapter Files**, the data set also contains the necessary **Supporting Files** to complete all exercises. * [**FormIt Primer Data Set Part I**](https://formit-help.s3.amazonaws.com/FormIt+Primer+Part+1+Datasets.zip) # 1.1 - Set the Location *Setting your project’s location in the world is relevant for the accuracy of future model analyses, like solar studies and accurate shadows. It also allows you to import 3D terrain and scaled satellite image to use as a background reference.* 1 - Click the Location Icon from the toolbar. ![](/files/-MlG7uSOuTeEjy86Fvnl) 2 - Search for **Farnsworth House** in the Bing Maps search bar. ![](/files/-MlG7uSRmHfjyTU6wUDq) 3 - Click **Import Satellite Image and Terrain** to set the location, and FormIt will prompt you to define the satellite image crop. ![](/files/-MlG7uSSIQeH0XFquidc) 4 - Set image crop by zooming in or out (scroll button) and panning the satellite image (click and drag). Then click the **Finish Importing** button to bring the image into FormIt. ![](/files/-MlG7uST1lPZ4WJTwf1j) 5 - The Satellite image is imported to real-world scale with true North facing ‘up’ (along the positive y-axis). ![](/files/-MlG7uSWa3YrsEPokzx_) 6 - To see the North Arrow: 1. Go to the **Visual Styles Palette**. 2. Choose the **Environment** tab. 3. Toggle the **North Arrow** check box 4. The **North Arrow** will appear in the bottom left corner of the screen. You can also type the keyboard shortcut **DN** to toggle the **North Arrow** on and off. ![](/files/-MlG7uSarkwK9pR4Qc5Z) 7 - To adjust the satellite image’s transparency: 1. **Select the satellite image** by double clicking it. 2. Go to the **Properties Palette** 3. Move the transparency slider about **1/3**. ![](/files/-MlG7uScFmliU1XZns1V) # 1.2 - Project Set Up with Images and Grid *You can import PNG or JPG images onto the ground plane of the model by selecting File > Import from the Navigation Bar. However, to gain more control over the scale and position of an imported image, we can create a custom material and apply it to a rectangle that we have drawn ourselves.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.2 - Project Set Up with Images and Grid.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Calculate Image Size** The provided **plan.png** is an image of a plan printed on a 24” x 26” Sheet (ARCH D) which is 3600 pixels wide by 2400 pixels high. By knowing the drawing scale (¼"=1'-0") and the image dimensions you can calculate that 1’ = 25 pixels, which means that the image should be 144'x96' when imported into FormIt at full scale. ![](/files/tdqlCo6cP89EKjKTIHWq) ## **Import an Image to scale** 1 – Click the **Top View** icon from the **Floating Navigation Bar** to see the scene from above. ![](/files/-MlG7u_kjspADTPWQr8h) 2 - Choose the **Rectangle Tool (R)** from the 3D Sketch toolbar. ![](/files/-MlG7u_l3O8v5Xp3gpNB) 3 – To create a rectangle that is exactly **144’** x **96’**, click anywhere in the workspace to define the starting point, then move the mouse to preview and define the first side length. Start typing a dimension value to access a dialog where you can input the exact dimension. Click **OK** or press the **Enter** key to commit the dimension. Repeat the process to set the second side’s length and finish the rectangle. ![Enter length for rectangle’s first side.](/files/-MlG7u_mfOaQBen2wzUX) ![Enter length for rectangle’s second side.](/files/-MlG7u_nt5LyQGJFqQRH) ![Finish the rectangle.](/files/-MlG7u_oxpoG1ZrBYd52) 4 - To create the new “Floor Plan” material: 1. Open the **Material Palette**. 2. Click the **+** icon to create a new material. 3. Name the new material “**Floor Plan”.** 4. Under **MAPS** click on the **Texture** preview tile and browse to **plan.png** in the **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > Images** folder. Then click **Open**. 5. Under **PROPERTIES**, change the image’s scale by entering **144'** in the **Horizontal Scale** field and **96'** in the **Vertical Scale** field. Note that unlocking horizontal and vertical scale (**chain link** icon) may be required to insert values that change the image proportions. 6. Check **Transparency** and set it at around half. This will help align the imported floor plan image to the satellite image. 7. Click **OK** to finish the material. ![](/files/-MlG7u_p5O7ZvdS2frSA) 5 - To paint the rectangle: 1. In the **Material Palette**, single-click on the **Floor Plan material** tile to paint with this material. 2. Click on the rectangle you sketched to paint it. Press **Esc** to exit the paintbrush tool. ![](/files/-MlG7u_qup3LrMMAnE5C) 6 - If the material appears inverted or backward, you may need to reverse the face. You can do so by right-clicking with the mouse to access the **Context Menu** and selecting the Reverse Face (FF) button. ![](/files/-MlG7u_ry4sJllZOXxwo) ## **Align the Imported Image to the Satellite Image** 1 – To move the image, first select the rectangle by double-clicking on it. Then click-and-drag the rectangle and move it until it overlaps the building in the Satellite image. We will come back to aligning it perfectly later, just try to get it close for now. ![](/files/-MlG7u_s7bBdWia70jJX) 2 - To rotate the rectangle to align with the Satellite image: 1. Right-click on the rectangle to bring up the context menu. Choose **Rotate (Q).** 2. The **Rotate Widget** appears in the middle of the rectangle. Select the widget by clicking once on the orange grip in the middle. Move the widget to the bottom left corner of the rectangle. It will snap to the corner. Click to place it. 3. Type **9**, and the dimension box will appear. Click **OK** to rotate the rectangle counterclockwise by 9 degrees. ![](/files/-MlG7u_tiJJJQ2ivQ6na) ![](/files/-MlG7u_uAbq8BhO5EVCr) ## **Align the Grid to the Satellite Image** 1 - Now, we will align the grid with the Satellite image and the floor plan. Right-click anywhere on the **ground plane** and choose **Set Axes (SZ)**. ![](/files/-MlG7u_vJfO04craQIHD) 2 – The **Set Axis** widget will appear. Move the axis to the bottom left corner of the rectangle, where it should snap. Click to place it. ![](/files/-MlG7u_wA_6TSpPRwaAw) 3 - Click on the grip at the end of the red axis. Move the grip to the bottom right corner of the rectangle so that the red axis aligns with the bottom edge of the plane. Click off in space to commit this change. ![](/files/-MlG7u_xnrQGY5Kqjpk3) 4 - To align the view with the new grid, click the Top View icon from the Navigation Bar to reset the scene. ![](/files/-MlG7u_yZXVQ8A0sHHZr) 5 - To ensure the building in both images overlap, select the plan to move it once more until it overlaps the Satellite image correctly. ![](/files/-MlG7u_zv8HumKmznDOp) 6 - The satellite image, the rectangle, and the grid are now aligned, which will simplify 3D sketching. # 1.3 - 3D Sketch and Drag Face *We are ready to start drawing the Farnsworth house! 3D modeling in FormIt at its core consists of drawing lines to create faces and then dragging those faces to create volumes.* ‌ *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.3 - 3D Sketch and Drag Face.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Draw Faces with Lines** 1 – To facilitate the modeling process, you can use the **Floating Navigation Toolbar** to switch between different views modes. For this exercise, we recommend using the **Perspective (VP)** and **3D View (V3).** ![](/files/-MlG7uYNkJso9KLEs4hq) 2 – Newly created geometry will automatically join or “stick to” any existing ungrouped geometry it touches. To avoid this, you will typically want to organize your geometry with groups. To create a group from the floor plan, select the rectangle by double-clicking it, then right-click to access the **Context Menu** and select **Group (G).** ![](/files/-MlG7uYSOpQ_bGGqUhUg) 3 – When tracing the plan we don’t want the lines to snap to the grid, so click on **Settings** in the **Main Menu** and unchecking **Snap to Grid (SG).** ![](/files/-MlG7uYUxfmAiiavASE3) 4 – To start drawing, click the **Create Sketch** (Pencil) icon in the **Standard Toolbar** and choose the **Line tool (L)**. ![](/files/-MlG7uYV0QXLSSm3OJcm) 5 - Let's start by creating a rectangle on the imported image. To create the first line: 1. While in the **Line tool**, click near **the upper left corner** of the upper terrace in the imported sketch. 2. Move your mouse along the red axis that appears. 3. Click the **Tab** key to input the dimension: **77'-4 1\8".** ![](/files/-MlG7uYWzUieviBHYIZE) ***Note:** Anytime a temporary dimension appears while sketching, you can either press* ***Tab** or just start typing a number* *to open the* ***Dimension Dialog**.* 6 – To create the second line, move your mouse down along the green axis and enter **28’-8**” for the upper terrace’s short edge. 7 - To define the rectangle’s third edge and finish: 1. Move your mouse along the red axis and hold down the **Shift** key. The red axis line will thicken to indicate that the line is locked to this axis. 2. While the **Shift key** is pressed - move your mouse to the first point you drew. Click to commit the endpoint. 3. The third point will automatically be set, parallel to the red - axis defined by (A) - and the green axis - defined by (B). 4. Finally, to finish enclosing the rectangle, release the **Shift** key and click back on the first point you drew. Press **Esc** twice to exit the sketch tool. ***Note:*** *The red and green axes keep you parallel and perpendicular to the grid. When you draw a line off the world axes, a purple axis line will allow you to stay 90 degrees relative to your off-axis line.* ![](/files/bkJho5LdFQkiErJAxmNY) ## **Drag the Face to Create Volume** 1 - Single-click inside the outline you just drew to select the face. You are now automatically in the **Drag Face** tool. 2 - Single-click again to start the dragging. Move your mouse upwards (along the positive Z-axis) to extrude a volume in that direction. Start typing **12'-2"**, and a dimension box will appear with this value, then hit **Enter**. ![](/files/4ZEjfrb1iHc58fs2cB20) ***Note:*** *A* *single-click* *will select just a single face, whereas a* *double-click* *will select all (ungrouped) adjacent edges and faces.* ## **3D Sketching with Arc, Spline, and Circle** *The following exercise is not critical to finishing the house. However, it will allow you to experiment with some of the other 3D Sketching tools available. Click* ***here*** *to learn more about 3D sketching with World Axes.* 1 - Select the **Arc by three arc points (A)** tool. Click to define the start, and then the endpoint. The third click defines the arc's radius. 2 - Select the **Spline (S)** tool. Click to define any number of points to draw a spline. 3 - Select the **Circle (C)** tool. Hover and click to define the circle's center point. Click and drag or enter a dimension to define the radius. ![](/files/-MlG7uYe-LkA510_8vK-) # 1.4 - Add Floors with Levels *Levels allow you to slice masses with individual floor datums and calculate gross area per building mass. FormIt Levels and their custom names will translate to Revit Levels when the file gets converted to Revit.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the **1.4 - Add Floors with Levels.axm axm** file from the **FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create, and Customize Levels** 1 - To create levels: 1. Go to the **Level Palette** in the **Palette Bar**. 2. Click **+** (**Add Level**) four times to create four Levels. 3. Double-click each level’s current elevation to modify them to: **0’-0", 2'-2", 4’-6"** and **17’-8"**. 4. Double-click each level’s current name and rename them: **Ground, Terrace, Main Building,** and **Top of Roof.** ![](/files/-MlG7vkPIycPbQj3p8cJ) ***Note**: You can click the* ***++*** *icon to create multiple levels, with a specified and uniform distance apart. This is handy for multi-story buildings*. ## **Apply Levels to Geometry** *In the previous steps, we only created levels. Now we are ready to apply those levels to the geometry we have created.* 1 - To apply levels to the exiting geometry: 1. Select the entire upper terrace mass by double-clicking it. 2. In the **Properties Palette**, click **Use Levels**. This step will pre-select all levels that currently intersect the selected geometry. 3. Now the currently selected geometry has three levels applied to it (**Main Building, Terrace,** and **Ground**), but for this exercise, we only want to apply **Ground**. Uncheck **Main Building** and **Terrace**. 4. This process ensures that only the area intersected by **Ground** is considered for the gross area calculation, which can be seen in the **Area by Level** field. ![](/files/-MlG7vkTK-iPCnk4M8BP) ***Note**: If you do not see blue level lines on your mass, type* ***DL*** *to* ***Display Levels**.* ![](/files/-MlG7vkWZ2SWzXbUOArl) # 1.5 - Group Objects *Groups in FormIt function similarly to Families in Revit and Components in SketchUp. Grouping different objects prevent their geometry from joining. Copies of a group act as an instance of the original geometry, meaning that changes to one copy will affect all of them.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.5 - Group Objects.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create a Group** 1 - Select the upper terrace mass by double-clicking it. 2 - Right-click and select **Group (G)**, or simply press ‘**G**’. ![](/files/-MlG7uU58dp8N9MKzZAg) 3 - Notice that after creating a Group, you get automatically placed in the Move tool. ## **Move a Group** 1 - To assist in the modeling process, turn on **Grid Snapping (SG)**, if it was off. ![](/files/-MlG7uU6H9r0PpAMs0sP) 2 - To start moving the selected object, while still in the **Move (M)** command, click once on any lower corner of the mass. Then move your cursor up, and you should see a blue (Z) axis line appear. This line will assist you in moving the object straight up. 3 - With the blue axis visible, type **4'-6"** and a dimension dialog will appear. After entering the dimension, click **OK** or press **Enter** on the keyboard. This will move the entire mass up off the ground plane along the **Z axis**. ***Note:*** *Similar to Revit, you can also type* ***4’6**,* ***4’6”,*** *or* ***4.5**, and the program will interpret the value as 4(feet) 6(inches) when using imperial units.* ![](/files/-MlG7uU70FHhaIe5lTa3) ## **Edit a Group** 1 - To enter the **Group Edit Mode**, double-click the mass. 1. In the **Properties Palette**, rename the Group **"Massing - Main Building"**. 2. To save the changes and exit the **Group Edit Mode**, click on the **Finish Group Edit** checkmark icon in the upper left corner of the canvas, or double-click off in space. ![](/files/XRQzf3UdFdpFLBKC20OM) ***Notes**:* * *To learn about the* ***Category*** *options, go to the* ***Working with Revit*** \_chapter.\_‌ * *Each Group has its own undo/redo history that is distinct from the overall project - you can click the* ***Undo*** *and* ***Redo*** *arrows in the* ***Group Edit Wizard*** *in the upper left corner of the canvas.* ## **Apply Levels to a Group** ***Note:*** *Grouping a geometry overrides previous settings you may have applied to the geometry. Because of that, you will require to re-apply the Levels from the previous exercise.* 1 - To apply levels to a group: 1. Single-click the **Massing** **- Main Building** group to select it. 2. Go to the **Properties Palette** and check **Use Levels.** 3. Keep only the **Main Building** level by unchecking all the others. 4. The **Area by Level** field will display the currently selected object(s) gross area. The area of each **Level** is displayed in front of each **Level**’s name. 5. If you do not see a blue level line crossing the object horizontally, turn on the level display by going to the **Settings menu > Visual Style > Display Levels (DL).** ***Note**: If there is no area reported for the* ***Main Building*** *level, the geometry may not be intersecting the Level, which should be at 4’-6” height. Troubleshoot by repositioning the geometry or the* ***Level*** *height so they intersect.* ![](/files/-MlG7uU9ctf5VzN5WrLd) 2 - Deselect the Group by pressing **Esc** or single-clicking off in space. With no selected object, the **Properties Palette** will report the overall sketch’s gross area - rather than a specific object’s area. ![](/files/-MlG7uUAy1IE-RNZ_X51) ## **Manage Groups** 1 - To view and manage all groups in the sketch: 1. Go to the **Group Tree Palette**. There you will see: * **Terrain** group – group automatically created when the **satellite image was imported**. * **Massing - Main Building** – the building mass geometry group we just created. * **group 2** – unnamed group containing the floor plan image. 2. To rename **group 2** through the Group Tree Palette, double-click on **group 2**, and then type **Plan Image**. ![](/files/-MlG7uUBxOYAj0Ol35H-) ***Notes:*** * *For a tidy model, we recommend keeping the group names descriptive.* * *This is a handy way to manage and edit all groups in the model from one place.* 2 - With the **Plan Image** group still selected, navigate to the **Properties Palette**. Note that the group name was also updated in the **Group** field. ![](/files/gpUsu1vVaPgEvEcoGYf0) ## **Hide Group Context** *This tool is a quick way to hide all geometry outside the group you are currently editing. It becomes very handy whenever you have a large and complex model and other geometries get in the way.* 1 - To isolate a group: 1. Double-click on its geometry to edit the group. 2. Navigate to **Settings** in the **Main Menu** and check **Hide Group Context** or simply press **H** on your keyboard. Note how the **Plan Image** disappears. 3. Finish editing the group. Note that the **Hide Group Context (H)** mode is only active while inside the **Group Edit Wizard**. 4. To toggle this mode off again, simply press **H**. This option can be toggled at any time, inside or outside of a group. ![](/files/-MlG7uUD3FlCyEI4kN7o) # 1.6 - Control Visibility with Layers *Much like AutoCAD and Photoshop, Layers in FormIt allow you to manage the visibility of objects in your model. In this chapter, we are going to create a layer to save and hide the building mass for future analysis.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.6 - Control Visibility with Layers.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create Layers** 1 - To create the new layers: 1. Go to the **Layers Palette** and click the **+** sign three times to create three layers. 2. Double-click the layer names to rename them **Massing**, **Main Building Floor**, and **Plan Image.** ![](/files/-MlG7ucFYY76EhLavW11) ***Note:*** *You can click on a layer name and drag it up or down to re-order the layers.* 2 - To assign the **Massing - Main Building** group to the **Massing** layer: 1. In the canvas, select the **Massing - Main Building** group. 2. In the **Layers Palette** choose the **Massing** layer from the “**Selection On:”** drop-down menu. Similarly, assign the **Plan Image** group to the **Plan Image** layer. ![](/files/3NYzs8f8VicSGtlG1Ry5) ## **Duplicate Group** *We will now start the process of modeling the building in more detail. The first step is to create the floor geometry based on the building massing we already have.* 1 - Select the **Massing - Main Building** group again. Press **Ctrl + C (Copy)** to copy, and then **Ctrl + Shift + V (Paste in Place)** to paste the mass in the same place. 2 - To dissociate the new group geometry from the original group: right-click to access the **Context Menu**, and choose the **Make Unique (MU)** option. ![](/files/-MlG7ucZ-wsOeliQNG2g) ***Note**: The new group is no longer associated with the original. Changes to the new group will not alter the original group.* ## **Create the Floor Geometry** 1 - Reassign group’s layer: 1. Single-click to select either of the **Massing – Main Building** groups. 2. Put the group on the **Main Building Floor** layer using the “**Selection On:”** drop-down in the **Layers Palette**. 3. Uncheck the **Massing** layer to hide its geometry and keep it safe from any accidental edits. ![](/files/cFwhI1EAD9OtbAEYeuxN) 2 - Double-click the visible **Massing – Main Building** group to edit it. Re-name the group **Floor** in the **Properties Palette**. ![](/files/73Ie3c4cQ3haBofHqTuq) 3 - **Single-click** the geometry’s **top face** to select it. Click again and start dragging the face down. As you drag the face down, type **11’-2”**, and the **Dimension Dialog** will appear. Click on **OK** after entering the value. The resulting floor should be 1' thick. Double-click off in space to exit the group. ![](/files/-MlG7ucby1af9g5mntGf) # 1.7 - Paint with Materials As we saw in an **earlier exercise**, you can create your own materials, and then paint faces with those materials in FormIt. In this exercise, you will create and edit more materials as well as import materials from the Autodesk Material Library. *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.7 - Paint with Materials.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create the Glass Walls** 1 - To view the plan containing the dimensions we are going to reference, go to the **Layer Palette** and turn on the **Plan Image** layer. 2 - Select the **Rectangle Tool (R)**. We are going to create a rectangle directly on top of the existing floor group. Make sure you are not editing the Floor Group but drawing on top of the existing grouped object. ![](/files/-MlG7uTd-kRNe9VxzFYd) 3 - To start the rectangle for the glass area: 1. Click at the back corner of the existing floor and move the mouse along its shorter edge. 2. Type **28’-8”** to define the first edge length, and click **OK**. This should be the same length as the existing short edge of the floor. 3. To define the second edge, start moving the mouse along the existing floor’s longer edge. Type **55'-5 ½"** to set the length of the second edge, then click **OK**. 4. Click **Esc** to exit the rectangle tool. Single-click inside the new rectangle to select the face and start dragging it up. ![](/files/KSgc2Kz84rmJBRmk9ZTM) 4 - To define the height, move the mouse upwards along the **Z Axis**, press the **Tab** key, and enter **11'-2"**. ![](/files/C2QtxqOLgufqkZyLjLvG) ***Note:*** *Anytime you are using a tool for which you can enter a dimension, you can either press* ***Tab*** *or just start typing numbers!* 5 - Double-click and **Group (G)** the new geometry. 6 - Double-click the group to edit it. In the **Properties Palette** name the group **Glass Walls.** ![](/files/-MlG7uTgecPgSFTLC0kJ) 7 - To define the glass wall’s thickness: 1. Right-click on the top face and choose the **Offset Face Tool (OF).** 2. Move your mouse cursor inward, and type in **4".** 3. Click **Esc** twice to clear the tool, and the selection. ![](/files/-MlG7uThPpNdiVqdsid1) ​\_**Note:**\_ *The default unit for imperial projects are feet, similar to Revit. If you enter a single number without a specified unit, like* ***4**, you will get* ***4 feet (4’)*** *and not* ***4 inches (4”)**.* 8 - To carve out the interior area, single-click the interior top face to select it, then click again to start the **drag face** operation. Push the face all the way down, until it disappears, and click in the space to finish the process. ![](/files/-MlG7uTirNgLOR_dx2Zf) ***Note:*** *In FormIt, unlike other software, you cannot accidentally push the face you are trying to delete ‘too far’ such that a new negative extrusion is formed.* 9 - End **Edit Group** mode by double-clicking off in space or pressing **Esc.** 10 - Select the **Glass Walls** group with a single-click and put it on the **Main Building Floor** layer. ![](/files/MhKSPpencE7m80zbZnuG) ## **Import a Material from the Autodesk Material Library** 1 - Edit the **Glass Walls** group again by double-clicking into it. 2 - To import a new material to the model: 1. Go to the **Materials Palette**. 2. Choose **Material Sample** in the drop-down menu at the top of the palette to navigate through the **Autodesk Material Library.** ​ 3. Click on the **Glass+Glazing** folder to open it. 4. Find the **Glass – Blue Tint** material and single-click on it to add that material to your **In Sketch** material library. 5. Note that you should be back in the **In Sketch** library, which now includes the newly selected material. ![](/files/5dQqNgtt6jdjq9XkPP9G) ![](/files/-MlG7uTlCL0kAeSASaOD) 3 - After adding the material, you should automatically be in the **Paintbrush** tool. If not, simply single-click on the **Glass – Blue Tint** material again. To paint all the walls, double-click the geometry with the **Painbrush** tool. This will apply the selected material to the entire object. ![](/files/-MlG7uTml0FX1YuiocTx)​ 4 - Click **Esc** to exit the **Paintbrush** tool. Click **Esc** again, or double-click off in space to exit the group. ## **Quick Copy the Floor to Create the Roof** 1 - To quickly create the roof based on the floor geometry: 1. Select the **Floor** group with a single-click. 2. Click one of the lower corners to start the **Move** tool. 3. Start moving the floor up along the blue axis (**Z Axis**). Create a **quick copy** by tapping the **Ctrl** key. A "ghost" preview of the copy should appear. ​ 4. While moving along the blue axis (**Z Axis**), start typing **12' 2"** and a **Dimension Dialog** will appear. Click **OK** or press **Enter** to finalize the position. ![](/files/-MlG7uTnEdD0K8y6UKPh) ![](/files/-MlG7uToQdGC0-01FGwY) ## **Edit the Roof** 1 - While the copied group is still selected, use the **Make Unique (MU)** command to disassociate this group from the floor group. 2 - Double-click the group to edit it. Re-name the group to **Roof** in the **Properties Palette**. Exit the group by double-clicking off in space. 3 - In the **Layers Palette**, make a new **Layer** called **Roof** and add the **Roof** group to it. You can toggle the layer on and off to verify the correct elements are on the roof. Refer to **Chapter 6** for more information on how to work with **Layers**. 4 - Navigate back to the **Materials Palette** and import the **Concrete - Broom Finish - Colorized 1** material from the **Concrete+Asphalt** folder in the **Material Samples** **(Production)** library. Note that by clicking on the material, the selected geometry will be automatically painted, and the new material will be added to the **In Sketch** material library. ![](/files/-MlG7uTpQ4dbeXhfOXPA) ***Note:*** *Painting a group outside of* ***Group Edit Mode*** *is a helpful technique that allows you to paint different instances of the same group with different materials.* ## **Create the Lower Terrace** 1 - Based on the **Plan Image**, create the lower terrace as a **Rectangle (R)** that is **55' 3"** long and **22'-7 3/4"** wide, and extrude it by 1’. Position the new rectangle so that it is 8 5/8” away from the main building South edge (the depth of the columns we will create later). ***Notes**:* * *Refer to previous chapters to learn how to draw and extrude rectangles.* * *You may need to toggle* ***Snap to Grid (SG)*** *on or off to click at* the terrace's corner. 2 - To finalize the lower terrace: 1. **Group (G)** the geometry and name it **Lower Terrace Floor**. 2. **Move** the group up **2'-2"** off the ground plane. 3. Create a new **Layer** called **Lower Terrace** and add the group to it. 4. Add the **Terrace Level Floor** to the group. ![](/files/-MlG7uTq2qww_igi1Fle) ***Note:*** *This image doesn’t represent the step-by-step process to create and assign the geometry to groups, levels, and layers. For more information on these processes, refer to previous chapters in this Primer.* 3 - Import the material **Stone > Stone - Travertine**. 4 - In the **Materials Palette**, find the imported **Travertine** material and modify it: 1. Double-click the preview tile to open the **Material Editor** pop-up. 2. Click the **Color** preview tile to open the **Color Editor** pop-up. 3. Change the **Val** field to **190** to darken the tint of the material. ![](/files/-MlG7uTrfJkn2PNImsXx) 5 - **Paint** the **Floor** and **Lower Terrace Floor** groups with the modified **Travertine** material. ![](/files/-MlG7uTsnB40bYTfvYuk) # 1.8 - Create Columns with Array *In this exercise, we will sketch a detailed element - an I-beam column. Then we will use the Array tool to quickly create multiple equally-spaced copies.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.8 – Create Columns with Array.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Sketch the Column Profile** 1 - To facilitate the drafting process: 1. Go to the **Top View (VT)**. 2. Switch the view mode to **Orthographic (VO)**. 3. Turn off the **Main Building** **Floor** and **Roof** layers. This step will prevent the new geometry from snaping to the existing geometry on those layers. 4. Zoom into the upper left corner of the **imported floor plan** image so you can view the column in detail. 5. Turn off the **Snap to Grid (SG)** feature (if you have it on). This will help with drawing the detail lines. ![](/files/TrfCxXkPQosoF6vlDVjl) *To draw the column, we will first draw one half, then mirror it to quickly create the other symmetrical half.* 2 - To create the first half of the I-beam, use the **Line tool (L)** to make the following sketch using the specified dimensions. Don’t worry about the exact position of the column on the plan image just yet. ![](/files/-MlG7uZcnJr7S58fylV2) 3 - To mirror the shape you have just drawn: 1. Double-click to select all the faces and edges of the drawn geometry. 2. Right-click and select the **Mirror Tool (MI)**. 3. Click on the center orange grip of the **Mirror Widget** and place it at the geometry’s bottom left corner. 4. Use the bottom arrow from the double-sided arrow button in the Widget to rotate the mirroring-axis -90 degrees (clockwise). 5. Single-click off in space, or press **Esc** to finish the mirroring process. The result should look like an I-beam profile with a line down the middle. Press **Esc** again to clear the selection. ![](/files/-MlG7uZdF9Dr0DKu1lNj) ![](/files/-MlG7uZedOM60HyGQsyK) ***Note**: The final geometry location and orientation is previewed with the ghosted blue shape while you are adjusting the mirror widget. You can use this preview as a reference to mirror the geometry to the intended location.* 4 - To join both sides into a single geometry, remove the line dividing them by clicking on it to select it and then pressing **Delete**. Now the two surfaces are joined into a single surface. 5 - To move the geometry to its final location: 1. If off, turn on the **Plan Image** and **Roof** layers, to use them as a guide. 2. Double-click the column profile to select its face and all of its lines. Start moving the selection along the green axis (**Y Axis**). Hold **Shift** and move the profile until it aligns with the Roof, then click to place it. 3. Similar to the previous step, move the geometry once again, this time locking it to the red axis (**X Axis**). 4. Click to place it on top of the I-Beam drawn in the **Plan Image**. Getting it close is fine, like in the following image, the horizontal position does not need to be perfect. ***Note:*** *The* ***Shift*** *key will lock the geometry to move along only one axis, in this case, the green (**Y Axis**). This will ensure the column profile does not accidentally move up and align to the top of the roof plane.* ![](/files/Q5S0aZxi55bBedkenCUK) ## **Extrude and Array the Column** 1 - To facilitate the next drafting process, switch the view mode back to **Perspective (VP)** and **Orbit (O)** to position the camera as to visualize the I-Beam profile from the northwest. Use the north arrow at the bottom left corner to help you position the view. ![](/files/-MlG7uZgAhXegUtZCX_H) ***Note:*** *To learn how to navigate around the sketch, we recommend checking out the* ***Navigate the Scene*** *chapter.* 2- Select the column profile face and extrude the face up to **17’-8”**. ***Note:*** *If while moving the column profile, it aligned itself to the roof, extrude the face down by* ***17’-8”***\ \&#xNAN;*instead of up.* 3 - Zoom out and turn the **Roof** layer on (if off). The top of the column should line up with the top of the roof. ![](/files/l9f6oDy2kRK4HSVjlTWE) 4 - To keep the model organized and tidy, select the column geometry again and do the following: 1. **Group (G)** and name it **Column Tall**. 2. Create a new **Layer** called **Column** and add the group to it. 3. Import the material **Metal - Brushed - Colorized** and paint the group with it. ![](/files/NocxI66HAQTZOUR60YE1) ***Note:*** *See previous chapters for more information on* ***Groups**,* ***Layers**, and* ***Materials**.* 4 - Click **Esc** to clear the paintbrush tool. ## **Array the Columns** 1 - Go to the **Top View (VT)** and switch the camera mode to **Orthographic (VO)** again. 2 - Turn off the **Roof** layer. 3 - To start the array process: 1. Single-click to select the column group. Right-click to bring the **Context Menu** and choose **Array (AR)**. 2. In the **Array Properties** dialog, use the following settings: * **Length Between Copies** * **Linear** (default) * **Group each solid then array** (default) * **Number of Copies: 3** * Press **OK** to close the dialog. ![](/files/ZstpZAiPt0ei9LpQyfbn) 4 - To place the new elements: 1. Single-click on the column to start the **Array**. Move the cursor along the red axis (**X axis**). 2. Set dimension to **22'**. You now have **four** columns **22'** apart. 3. **Esc** to clear your selection. ![](/files/NDhhuNdtZzMHQ1Sr4rCT) 5 - To select all the **Tall Column** groups at once, hover your mouse over one of them and press the **Tab** key once. Notice that all 4 column’s bounding boxes have been highlighted. Single-click on the column your mouse is hovering over and they will all be selected. This is a quick way to select all instances of the same group at once. 6 - Perform another **Array (AR)** to create the columns at the other side of the building. This time make 1 copy along the green axis across the building. Set dimension to **29'- 4 5/8”.** ***Note:*** *29’ 4 5/8” = 8 5/8” (column depth) + 28’-8” (main building width).* 7 - To visualize the whole building, go to the **3D View (V3)** and set it to **Perspective (VP)**. If off, turn on the **Main Building Floor**, **Roof**, **Lower Terrace**, and **Column** layers. ![](/files/TFnb9Syx8XX9raIKhQWd) ## **Create the Terrace Columns** *Now we will duplicate the main building columns to create similar, but shorter, versions for the terrace.* 1 - To facilitate drafting, we recommend going back to an **Orthogonal (OV)** and **Top View (VT)** setting. 2 - To create the new columns: 1. Hold **Ctrl** or **Shift**, click on the 3 columns closest to the **Lower Terrace Floor** to select them. 2. Single-click on any one of the columns to start moving all 3 selected columns at once. Press the **Ctrl** key once to create a **quick copy**. A ghost preview of the copy will appear. 3. Move the copies down along the green axis (**Y Axis**) by **23’-4 3/8**”. Press **Esc**. 4. Without deselecting, move the copied columns along the red axis (**X Axis**) by **22’** to place them in their final position. 5. Again, with the 3 new columns still selected, right-click one of the copied columns and select **Make Unique (MU)**. These columns are now associated with each other, but unique from the originals. ***Note:*** *Holding* ***Shift*** *or* ***Ctrl*** *allows you to select multiple elements at once, or remove elements from your current selection.* ![](/files/a3ZpWgFOqqVXmwrOWDyM) 3 - Modify the new column group: 1. Double-click to edit one of the new groups and rename it **Column Short.** 2. Adjust the height of the new column to align to the top of the **Lower Terrace** **Floor** (3’-2”). To do that, select and drag the column’s face down along the blue axis (**Z axis**) and hold **Shift**. Hover the cursor anywhere on the top face of the **Lower Terrace Floor** and the column’s height will automatically align to the Lower Terrace. Once the height is set, click to finish. ![](/files/-MlG7uZnMzrmJctDzwyN) ***Note:*** *You can check the height of the short columns by using the* ***Measure (ME)*** *tool. Alternatively, you can select one of the column’s vertical edge and see its length in the* ***Properties Palette**.* 4- Using the techniques you just learned, copy the furthest short column to the opposite side of the **Lower Terrace Floor** to create the last remaining column. ![](/files/-MlG7uZoW9IGQphyNIGo) # 1.9 - Adding Details *FormIt is a great massing tool - as well as a great modeling tool. We will start to add detail to the Farnsworth House in the form of doors and mullions for the glass box. We will then cover some additional tools, and practice the process of adding new geometry, layers, materials, and group management.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.9 - Adding Details.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create Window Frames** *We are going to create a 2" metal frame and mullions around the glass box. Note that these mullions will intentionally overlap with the glass box.* 1 - Create a new layer called **Glass Walls** and move the **Glass Wall** group to it. 2 - To facilitate visualization, turn off the **Roof** layer so we can see the entire glass box. 3 - To start creating the first window frame: 1. At the building’s western side, use the **Rectangle Tool (R)** to draw a new surface directly over the exterior glass face. Make sure to create the surface outside the **Glass Walls** group. 2. Select and drag the newly created face **2"** towards the interior. Press **Esc** to clear the selection. The final result should look like the image below. 3. Single-click the face you just created. Right-click to access the **Context Menu** to use the **Offset Face tool (OF).** ***Note:*** *If you have trouble selecting the new face, press the* ***Space Bar*** *key to alternate between different selectable objects, or temporarily turn off the* ***Glass Walls*** *layer.* ![](/files/-MlG7uVf-znOKZ7HdWoS) 4 - To set the offset dimension, move your mouse toward the inside of the face, and enter **2"** to create a new smaller rectangle. ![](/files/-MlG7uVhrP2a5AqUlXMW) 5 - Single-click to select the interior rectangle you just created. Click again and drag the face towards the building’s interior until it disappears. Click once more to finish removing the center volume from the frame geometry. ![](/files/-MlG7uViNLLMuXC-4j1x) 6 - Double-click to select the geometry we just created and **Group (G)** it. Name the group **Mullion Frame – EW**.​ 7 - Create a Layer named **Mullion** and place the new group on it. 8 - To set the frame’s material: 1. Inside the **Materials Palette**, duplicate the **Metal – Brushed – Colorized** material by right-clicking on it and selecting **Duplicate Material**. 2. Double-click the new material’s preview tile to edit it. 3. Rename it to **Metal – Brushed – Gray**. 4. Modify the material’s color by clicking on the **Color** tile in the **Maps** section, and darken the grey by changing the **Val:** to **150**. ![](/files/-MlG7uVj2bZF2JiQ7390) 9 - Click **OK** to save these changes to the new material, and then paint the **Mullion Frame – EW** group with it. Afterward, the group's **Properties Palette** should match what is shown in the below image: ![](/files/mSnLapsX6RmMvp0yKOp8) 10 - Create a new instance of the frame on the eastern side by using any of the following tools: **Quick copy**, **Array,** or **Mirror**. 11 -Repeat the steps above for the North and South sides of the glass box. Name the new group **Mullion Frame – NS**. Don’t forget to paint them and place them on the **Mullion** layer! ![](/files/Flpnq9Yr93CJrIYA7Hqf) ***Note:*** *The mullion frames overlap each other at the corners. This is intentional. The above result shows the resulting mullion frame geometry with the* ***Glass Wall*** *and* ***Column*** *layers turned off.* **Create Mullions** 1 - In plane with the exterior glass face on the building’s South or North side, draw a **2” x 10’-10” Rectangle (R)** spanning from between the bottom and top of the mullion frame. Do not worry about the exact position of the rectangle along the frame, we will move it into place in the following steps. ![](/files/-MlG7uVmyOphs1a0rasQ) 2 - Extrude the rectangle back **2”**, and then **Group (G)** it and name the group **Mullion – Vertical**. Place the group on the **Mullion** layer and paint it with the **Metal – Brushed – Grey** material. **Locating the Mullions** *Now we will set the location for the first mullion so that its centered on the* ***Mid-Point*** *of a column.* 1 - To see the columns again, turn on the **Column** layer, if it was off. While you are in the **Layers Palette**, you can also turn off the **Lower Terrace** and **Plan Image** layers to make the next steps easier. 2 - To move the mullion to its new location: 1. Single-click to select the vertical mullion group you just created. **Zoom (Z)** in and click on the **Mid-Point** of the mullion’s bottom exterior edge, symbolized by a red triangle\*\*.\*\* 2. Start moving the geometry horizontally towards a column. Press **Shift** to lock the movement in the red axis (**X Axis**). Note that once the movement is locked the red axis gets thicker. 3. Zoom out until you can see the base of the column. While still holding **Shift**, click on the **Mid-Point** at the base of the column's outer face. The mullion will continue to only move along the red axis (**X Axis**), but will align to the **Mid-Point** you just clicked on. ![](/files/EGwAD9t8kDL4bPxgsCVr) ***Note:*** *The mullion is now directly behind the column. Turn off the* ***Column*** *layer or* ***Orbit (O)*** *to visualize the mullion.* 3 - Press **Esc** to clear the **Move** tool. 4 - Use the **Array (AR)** or **Quick Copy** tool to create four (4) more vertical mullions along the same side, spaced **11’** apart. To learn how to use the **Array Tool**, refer to previous chapters. 5 - Use the Tab key to select all the **Vertical** Mullion groups, and copy them to the opposite side of the building, so that both the **North** and **South** frames have identical mullion layouts, as shown in the next image: ![](/files/-MlG7uVowJuv0nh9fAUy) ## **Create the Door Mullions** 1 - **Orbit (O)** the perspective view until you are looking at the center of the West mullion frame. 2 - Similar to creating mullion frames, draw a **3’-6”** wide door panel with a **2”x 2”** frame. Make it a **Group (G)** with the properties: Group Name: **Curtain Wall Door**; layer: **Mullion**; material: **Metal – Brushed – Grey**. 3 - Copy this group to create the second door frame, and move them so that they are centered in the **Mullion Frame – EW** group, as shown below. ![](/files/-MlG7uVpHvGFsvl48Cxs) ## **Create Roof Cornice with Sweep** *We will now create the cornice of the Farnsworth House using one of FormIt’s advanced modeling tools -* ***Sweep**. To learn about other advanced modeling, check out the* **2.2 -** ***Advanced Modeling** chapter* *in the* ***FormIt Primer - Part II**.* *The first step into creating a* ***Sweep*** *is to draw a profile perpendicular to the sweep “extrusion”. To do that, we will use the roof geometry as a guide.* 1 - Turn on the **Roof** layer and zoom in to one of its corners. 2 - Using one of the roof’s vertical sides as a reference, draw two adjacent rectangles. The first will be **6”** high by **4 5/8**” wide, and the second is **2”x 2”**. Delete the line dividing the two rectangles to create a single face. The result should look as below. ![](/files/2BsaMrcelOCZk0rvG2g3) 3 - To create the sweep: 1. With no selected geometry, click on the **Advanced Modeling Tools** button in the **Standard Toolbar**, and select **Sweep (SW)**. 2. The **Sweep Selection Wizard** will start and prompt you to **Select a face (or edges) for sweep profile**. Select the profile face we just created. 3. Once the profile is selected, you will be prompted to **Select a face (or edge) for sweep path, then click finish**. Select the top face of the roof. FormIt will automatically use the boundaries of the selected face as the sweep’s path, and the sweep will be created around the entire roof. ***Note:*** *If you are having trouble selecting either of the faces,* ***Orbit (O)*** *around to view the face a little better and try again. As an alternate option, select all the edges of the roof instead of the roof’s top face to complete the sweep.* ![](/files/-MlG7uVrAkyMGhJwWvOs) 4 - Keep your model organized by creating a **Roof - Cornice** group, adding it to the **Roof** layer, and assigning the **Metal – Brushed – Colorized** material to it. ![](/files/-MlG7uVsJEQk3DMptvn0) 5 - To finish up, turn on the **Column** layer, and you will see that the newly created sweep intersects with the tops of the columns. Resolve this by editing any one of the **Column Tall** groups, and dragging the top face down until it aligns with the bottom of the cornice. ![](/files/-MlG7uVtcKgQi49Wini6) # 1.10 - Computational Groups with Dynamo *In this chapter, we will leverage the computational power of* [***Dynamo***](http://dynamobim.org) *to place and modify flexible groups that are tied to OOTB Dynamo Graphs Samples.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.10 – Computational Groups with Dynamo.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* *You can* [***learn more here***](http://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo) *about how FormIt and Dynamo work together for computational design workflows.* ## **Create Lower Terrace Stairs** 1 - Make sure the **Lower Terrace, Main Building Floor**, and **Plan Image** layers are turned on, since that is where we are going to add the stairs. 2 - To place a stair group tied to one of the OOTB Dynamo Samples: 1. Open the **Dynamo Palette** in the Palette Bar. You should see a few built-in Dynamo objects in the **Dynamo Samples** directory 2. Single-click the **Stairs** Dynamo sample to bring it to the model space. FormIt will run the graph behind-the-scenes and generate the stair geometry from this graph. 3. Move your cursor over the canvas, and once the stair is loaded, a ghosted preview of the stair geometry will now be moving alongside your mouse. Move your cursor over the canvas, near the terrace, and click to place the stair. Press **Esc** to clear the selection. Note that after placing the stairs the **Properties Palette** will automatically open. ![](/files/SHiS8oerQHBwTO03FlXW) ***Note:*** [***You can also link local directories***](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-getting-started) *containing Dynamo graphs, and run your own local Dynamo graphs just like these samples.* 3 - To update the stairs dimensions: 1. With the stair group selected, modify the inputs available under the Dynamo **INPUTS** section at the bottom of the **Properties Palette** to match as shown below. Most groups created via Dynamo Scrips will have a Dynamo section included in their properties when selected. * Add Top Landing = False * Add Middle Landing = False * Add Bottom Landing = False * Floor-to-Floor Height = 2.6 * Stair Width = 12 * Riser Height = 0.6 * Tread Length = 1.25 * Tread Overlap = 0.25 * Tread Thickness = 0.25 * Height Between Middle Landings = (not relevant since no middle landing is being created) * Middle Landing Length = (not relevant since no middle landing is being created) * Top/Bottom Landing Length = (not relevant since no landing is being created) 2. Click on the **Run** button to re-run the Dynamo script using the updated input values. 3. Move the group as needed to place the stair in the correct location accordingly to the **Plan Image**. Take care not to change the elevation of the stair group at all as you move it. Refer to previous chapters to learn more about tricks and techniques when moving model elements. ![](/files/-MlG7ualZm0xMD2GD-jx) ***‌Note:*** *The* ***Floor-to-Floor Height*** *input is an approximation of the stair’s total height. The* ***Riser Height*** *is the parameter that actually defines the height of the stairs. In this example we set the* ***Floor-to-Floor Height*** *as 2.6’ but the final stair height is 3.0’ (0.6’ (**Riser Height**) x 5 (number of risers)). Since the span between the ground and the terrace top of floor is 3’-2”, the remaining 2” is contained in the upper riser.* ## **Create Main Building Stairs** *In the previous steps we created a stair with no landings. Now we will create a stair that uses an upper landing that aligns with the* ***Main Building Floor**.* 1 - Start by making a copy of the stairs we just made: 1. Select the existing stair and then click anywhere on the **Plan Image** to start a move command. This will cause FormIt to use the elevation of the **Plan Image** as the starting reference height for place our new copy. Press **Ctrl** to make a **quick copy**. 2. Move the cursor over closer to the main building above the terrace. Note that now the terrace’s top face is the new reference plane. Click to place the group. ![](/files/7FExLmQfxilAf8yCoi8t) ***Note:*** *Since the* ***Plan Image*** *is at the* ***Ground Level*** *plane, the* ***Move Tool*** *will use that plane as a reference for its start point. Note the* ***On Face*** *tooltip in the above image, indicating that the Plan Image face is selected as the starting reference, and the top face of the* ***Lower Terrace Floor*** *is selected as the ending reference.* 2 - Use the **Make Unique (MU)** tool so that when we change this stair’s Dynamo inputs it will not affect the lower stair. Reposition the group as needed so that it is close to its final location – we will fine tune this later. You can toggle the **Lower Terrace** layer visibility to see the plan below to help position it, but again be careful not to change the new stair’s elevation as you move it. 3 - In the **Properties Palette** update the **Dynamo Inputs** as shown below and run the script once more. * Add Top Landing = True * Floor-to-Floor Height = 2.333 * Riser Height = 0.466 * Tread Length = 1.5 * Top/Bottom Landing Length = 2.5 ![](/files/-MlG7uaoz7yj24cYVqpv) ***Note:*** *If you set* ***Add Bottom Landing*** *to* ***true*** *and re-run the script, the bottom landing’s top face should align with the* ***Lower Terrace Floor**’s top face. This is happening because – differently from the previous stairs - we adjusted the* ***Riser Height*** *to match the* ***Floor-to-Floor Height*** *to the true height we want (2’-4” or 2.333’).* 2 - Reposition the group again to its final position. The top landing should be flush with the **Main Building Floor**. 3 - To finalize the stairs, add the **Stone - Travertine** material to it to match the floors. To learn more about how to apply materials, see previous chapters. # 1.11 - Import Models with Content Library *In this chapter, we will import existing SketchUp models, as well as use the FormIt Content Library to place OOTB families that have been converted from Revit. Note that when opening SKP files with FormIt, they come with intact Materials, Groups and Components, Layers (Tags), and Scenes. Some clean-up may be needed to keep your projects tidy and organized.* *For this chapter we will be using files from the* **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files** folder. If you have not already, be sure to download the required folders, or entire data set, from the ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Import and Edit SKP files** *First, we will go through the process of adding a piece of downloaded content to your own personal content library*. Note that in this exercise we will be only using SKP files. To learn more about how to open/import other file formats, refer to [**this blog post about Formit 2021.2 features**](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/formit-2021-2-and-new-revit-add-in-now-available) and to **this chapter about** **Expanded Import and Export File Formats**. 1 - Make sure to **Save (Ctrl + S)** any open work, then start a new FormIt sketch. To do this, you can either: 1. Open another session on FormIt in a new window by right-clicking on the FormIt Icon in the **Windows Taskbar** and clicking on the **FormIt** icon. This will open a new FormIt window, allowing you to run two FormIt sessions side-by-side. 2. OR, after saving, start a **New Sketch (Ctrl + N)** from the **File** dropdown in the **Main Menu** bar. ![](/files/-MlG7ufT_hyTUInjjAMD) 2 - Create a new folder called **Custom FormIt Content** inside the **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > FormIt** folder in the ***Farnsworth House Data Set**.* 3 - **Save (Ctrl + S)** your new sketch in that folder. We recommend naming it: **Ottoman – Barcelona\_Mies.axm** 4 - In the new empty FormIt file: 1. **Import a Local File (Ctrl + I)** by selecting **Import > Locally…** from the **File** dropdown in the **Main Menu** bar. 2. Choose: **Ottoman – Barcelona\_Mies.skp** from the **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > SketchUp** and click **Open**. ***Note:*** *If you do not see the* ***Ottoman – Barcelona\_Mise.skp file**, make sure the file format dropdown in the bottom right is set to* ***All Supported Formats**.* ![](/files/-MlG7ufX9v0HHkBBbZZ9) 5 - Rename the imported group **Ottoman - Barcelona\_Mies**. 6 - When we eventually import this model into our Farnsworth House file, it will be placed by using this file’s **Origin** point. To control l placement point, we want to move the **Ottoman - Barcelona\_Mies** group so one if its corners is located at the **Origin**. To do this: 1. Ensure **Snap to Grid (SG)** is on. Draw a reference **Line (L)** starting at the **Origin** (There the X, Y, and Z axes intersect). Click anywhere to place the second point. 2. Select the ottoman group and start the move command by single-clicking on the lower left corner of its leg, as shown. *To learn more about how to move objects, refer to previous chapters.* 3. Move the group to the **Origin**, by snapping to the start point of the reference line we just drew. 4. Delete the reference line. ![](/files/2RBg44dKtFQfoL2AIVZY) 7 - We recommend deleting any unwanted layers that were imported with the SKP file, as any layers this model has will eventually be imported into our Farnsworth House model. To do that, go to the **Layers Palette**, select **Layer 0**, and click the **-** button. This will delete the layer while keeping its geometry. ![](/files/P45TccXsar9eZtU8el9h) ***Note:*** *Whenever you delete a layer, any geometry or groups that were on that layer are assigned to have* ***No Layer**, which is the default value for any object that has not yet been assigned to a layer.* ## **Create Content Thumbnail** *This next step will setup a scene to be used as the* ***Content*** *thumbnail, which will be displayed in the* ***Content Library Palette**.* 1 - To define the view settings for the thumbnail scene: 1. In the **Environment** tab of the **Visual Style Palette**, uncheck all the checkboxes and set the **Lower/ Background** color to white. 2. Make sure your view mode is set to **Perspective** **(VP)**. 3. Use the **View Navigation Tools** to zoom in pick a camera location that represents the object well, similar to the below image. ![](/files/wzIEZEjTM1sHebqQX5UE) 2 - To save the settings you just set, create a scene: 1. Go to the **Scene Palette**. 2. Click on the **+** button. This will create a new scene based on your current settings. 3. Rename it **Thumbnail** and make sure that at least the first four (4) checkboxes are checked; **Camera**, **Layers**, **Sun and Shadows**, and **Visual Styles**. The rest of the scene settings are not really relevant for creating the thumbnail image. 4. Use the **Update Scene** button any time you want to refresh your **Scene** to match the current camera view and visual settings. ![](/files/LHmJYJEhyrrvuVqxrC5P) 3 - **Save (Ctrl + S)** the completed ottoman model again. Note that the **Content Thumbnail** is created from the current view when the model was last saved, so make sure you are in the **Thumbnail Scene** before you save. *If you wish, you can compare your file against ours by opening the* ***Ottoman - Barcelona\_Mies.axm*** *file saved at* ***Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > FormIt > Furniture*** *in the* ***Farnsworth House Data Set**.‌* *You can follow the same steps above with the bench and chair SKP files located in the same folder as the ottoman.* ***Tip:*** *To expedite the process we recommend using the* ***Ottoman - Barcelona\_Mies.axm*** *file you just created as a template. While modeling you may want to turn on the* ***Grid*** *and the* ***Axes*** *again from the* ***Visual Styles Palette**. By adjusting only the camera position of your* ***Thumbnail Scene*** *for each piece of furniture, it will ensure that the* ***Content Thumbnails*** *remain consistent for all of your content models.* ## **Link a Content Library** *Now back to our Farnsworth House project. We will learn how to link the **FormIt** folder in the **Farnsworth House Data Set**, to easily access all of its files - including the* **Custom FormIt Content** *we just created - from within our project.* 1 - After switching back to, or re-opening, the Farnsworth House model. *If you did not complete the last chapter, download and open the* ***1.11 - Import Models with Content Library.axm*** *file from the* ***Farnsworth House Data Set**.* 1. Open the **Content Library Palette** and click the **Link Content Library Directory** icon. The **Preferences** window will pop-up with the **Content Library** tab open. 2. Click the **+** icon to **Add a new Content Library location**. A third window will pop-up for you to navigate your computer’s directory and select a folder. 3. In the ***Farnsworth House Data Set**, navigate through the folders:* ***Supporting Files > FormIt**. There you will find the* folders containing the **.axm** files we created earlier in this chapter. Double-click the **FormIt** folder to select it. 4. Click **Select Folder** and that folder’s path will show up in the **Library Locations – Local** Panel. 5. Back in the **Preferences** window, click **OK**, and the linked folder will be added to the **Content Library**. 6. To access this new library, open the drop-down menu at the top for the **Content Library Palette** and select **FormIt**. 7. Note that the folder structure and all the **.axm** files in the linked folder will show up in the **Content Library Palette**. Double click any sub-folders to access the files in it. ![](/files/-MlG7ufdqwwACuRtCzkP) **Note:** If you have access to **Autodesk Docs** (previously know as Autodesk 360), you can also access files you may have stored there through the **Content Library** drop-down menu. ## **Place Content from the Library** *‌Now we will place the content items we created inside in the Farnsworth model.* 1 - So that we can see inside the house to place the furniture, turn off the **Roof** layer and **Orbit (O)** the perspective view until you can see the entire Main Building Floor. 2 - Back in the **Content Library Palette**, ensure the dropdown is still set to the **FormIt**. Before placing any of the furniture we just made, we need to place the ‘core’ of the house: 1. Click on the folder named **Other** to open it, and then click on the **Farnsworth House – Core** thumbnail to select it. 2. Hover the mouse over the **Main Building Floor,** to click on the **Centroid** of the floor to place the **Core**. 3. To go back UP to the FormIt folder, use the **Navigate Up** button. ![](/files/-MlG7ufgVpTDV57IL8Yc) 3 - Set the camera to an **Orthographic (VO)** **Top View (VT)** and turn of the **Main Building Floor** to see the **Plan Image**. Refer to previous chapters to learn more about the **Views** and **Layers** settings. 4 - Select the **Farnsworth House - Core** and move it until it closely aligns with the Plan Image. ![](/files/-MlG7ufiLaPIIxOiZ4Q2) ***Note:*** *While moving the* ***Core**, be careful not to change its elevation. You can either use the* ***Shift*** *key to restrict the movement to always be along one of the axes, or ensure that the start and end reference points of your* ***Move (M)*** *command are both at the same height by clicking only on the* ***Plan Image**, not the* ***Core*** *itself. Refer to previous chapters to learn more about the* ***Move (M)*** *Tool.‌* ## **Place Furniture from the Library** 1 - Using a similar process, you can now place the furniture you created earlier in this chapter from the **Custom FormIt Content** folder. If you did not convert all three (3) of the SKP files, you can use the premade versions inside the **Furniture** folder instead. ***Notes:*** * *Turn the* ***Main Building Floor*** *layer back on, so you can place furniture directly on the* ***Main Building Floor**’s surface.* * *While placing a new object, use the* ***Tab*** *key to alternate between placement planes.* * *While placing a new object, use the* ***Space Bar*** *key to rotate it by 90 intervals before placing.* ![](/files/-MlG7ufk6y8-gr8nqx8o) 2 - Similarly, explore the **Content Library Samples** to place OOTB Content. Note that multiple of these have several different sizes to choose from, similar to Family Types in Revit. ![](/files/-MlG7ufl5qc9tllul1hW) ## **Using the Scale Tool** 1 - Using the techniques, you just learned, place one instance of the **tree\_pine** component from the **Farnsworth House Data Set > FormIt > Planting** folder. 1. Once placed, select the group and rename it to **Tree**. Right-click to access the **Context Menu** and choose **Non-Uniform Scale (NU)**. 2. Click on one of the **Non-Uniform Scale Buttons** to resize and change the proportions of the **Tree** group as desired. ![](/files/-MlG7ufm7ejDGtfPEXUl) ![](/files/-MlG7ufnvMQvOpXNqiPm) ***Note:*** *Similarly, the* ***Scale (SC)*** *tool can be used to re-scale an entire model or group uniformly.* 2 - Copy this group and place multiple trees around the house, using the **Scale Tools** to create a variety of sizes and proportions. ![](/files/-MlG7ufoqfm_F0yXfdFt) ***Note:*** *Even though the trees are all instances of the same group, we were able to* ***Scale*** *them to different sizes. Using the* ***Scale (SC)*** *and* ***Non-Uniform Scale (NU)*** *outside of group edit mode allows you to modify individual instances of the same group. If we were to edit one of the* ***Tree*** *groups and modify its geometry or material, all group instances would still be updated, but also each would keep their current customized scale. Give it a try!* ### **Keep Model Tidy** *Remember to always sort added content onto layers. In this example, we recommend placing the core and all furniture on the* ***Main Building Floor*** *layer and the trees on a new layer named* ***Planting**.* # 1.12 - Visual Styles *Modeling conceptual masses is just half of what FormIt has to offer. The other half are beautiful graphics that help to tell a story to a client, or team member. In this chapter, we will cover ways to set up your* ***graphic visual styles*** *and create animations.* *If you did not complete the last section, download and open the* ***1.12 – Visual Styles.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* ## **Create an Animation** *In these next steps, we will learn how to use* ***Scenes*** *to create an animation.* 1 – To create the first **Scene**: 1. Turn on all the layers except **Terrain**, **Plan Image,** and **Massing**. 2. Make sure the camera mode is set to **Perspective (VP)**, and position the camera so that it is looking at the entire house from slightly above, similar to the image below. 3. Open the **Scenes Palette**. 4. Click on the **+** icon to create a new scene from our current view. 5. Rename it to **Aerial View 1**, and match the other **Scene Properties** to what is shown in the image below. ![](/files/-MlG7vvaoFJqX60bSVfl) 2 - To create the second **Scene** and then animate between them: 1. Adjust the camera to a new position so that you are looking at the house from a different angle. Create a new **Scene** named **Aerial View 2** using the same process we followed in the previous step. 2. Click the **Play** button. After the set **Pause Time** of **2 Seconds**, the animation will start slowly moving back and forth between the two scenes. This will continue until you click the **Stop** button to stop the animation. ![](/files/-MlG7vvc7dCWvmNrWyKy) ***Note:*** *You can adjust the* ***Pause Time**,* ***Transition Time**, and* ***Camera Speed*** *using the settings at the bottom of the* ***Scene Properties**. Try adding some more scenes and playing with these settings to customize your animation.* ## **Customize the Visual Styles** *Now we are going to create another scene with some customized **Visual Styles** settings.* 1 - First, open the **Visual Styles Palette**. Note there are four (4) tabs at the top, each containing different visual settings: **Surfaces**, **Edges**, **Environment**, and **Model Diagnostics**. To learn more about each tab visit the **Visual Styles** chapter in the **Tool Library** section. 2 – To customize some settings in the **Surface Tab**: 1. Turn on **Shadows (DS)**. 2. Turn on **Ambient Shadows (DA)**. 3. Turn on **Monotone Surfaces (DM)**. This makes an abstract black and white image without any materials. ![](/files/-MlG7vvfIK-hL5UnfZCb) 3 – To customize some settings in the **Edge Tab**: * 1. Adjust the sliders to lighten the **Edges** contrast to around **30%**. 2. Turn on the **Extend Edges (DX).** 3. Adjust the sliders to lighten the **Silhouettes** contrast to **30%**. ![](/files/-MlG7vvg-jXJmuHbuKfC) 4 - To customize some settings in the **Environment Tab**: 1. Turn off **Axes**. 2. Turn off **Levels**, if on. ![](/files/xFJHtK5u41FcpeRavnNz) 5 - Create a new scene called **Customized Scene** to save these settings. Now you can switch back and forth between the **Scenes** to reset the graphic settings. ![](/files/-MlG7vvjlgCCMmEOiHup) ***Note**: If you uncheck the* ***Camera*** *property of the new scene, you can use it to only toggle on the visual settings we just created without move the camera position. Give it a try by going to one of your previous Aerial scenes, and then double-clicking on the* ***Customized Scene*** *and watching what happens!* ***Note:*** *To Learn about* ***Visual Styles Diagnostics*** *and advanced applications for* ***Scenes**, check out the* ***Primer Part II**.* # 1.13 - Section Planes *In this chapter you will learn how to use* ***Section Planes*** *to cut your model, revealing interior spaces and structural elements. FormIt supports multiple* ***Section Planes*** *at once for a Section Box-like effect.* *If you did not complete the previous chapter, download and open the* ***1. 13 - Section Planes.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* 1 - To create a new Section Plane: 1. Click on the **Section Plane (SP)** button from the **Standard Toolbar**. 2. Hover over the model to identify a plane to use as reference. Note the arrows at the corners of the **Section Plane** indicating the direction of the section cut. Press the **Tab** key to alternate between different planes, if needed. 3. Click to place the **Section Plane** anywhere on the southern glass wall of the main building. The plane will scale to the size of your model and remain selected. ![Section plane preview when hovering over the glass wall.](/files/-MlG7uWiFAuCH7GTHgJJ) ![Scaled section plane after being placed.](/files/QQkaWwsGBay7V75r7SFK) 2 - With the section plane still select, click to start moving it backwards until it is cutting through part of the main building, similar to the image below. This works similarly to moving any model element, except that the section plane can only move along an axis perpendicular to the direction it is facing. Once you are happy with the position, press **Esc** to clear the selection. ![](/files/HnByJmWP86sUcY9ZRsr8) ***Note:*** *You can add up to 6 section cuts to your model at once.* 3 - Open the **Layers** **Palette**. Note that two (2) new layers have been generated - **Section Indicators** and **Section Cut 1**. 1. Toggle the **Section Cut 1** layer off and back on. This controls whether the section cuts the model or not. 2. Now toggle the **Section Indicator** layer off. This hides the section plane and its arrow indicators, but does not affect whether the actual section cut is active or not. ![](/files/9CGOjS4aj10xWDTd43LQ) 4 - In the **Surface Tab** of the **Visual Styles** **Palette**: 1. Check the box next to **Poche Color** to turn it on. This effect will color any solids cut by the section plane with a specified color. Black is the default color, but you can simply click on the color preview to change it. 2. Turn of **Shadows (DS)**. ![](/files/-MlG7uWmmFt5OEoZdYn6) 5 - To finalize your section, go to the **Scenes Palette** and create a new Scene called **Section**, saving the current **Camera** position, **Layers** visibility, and **Visual Styles** settings. ![](/files/-MlG7uWnarVKd0znXM3J) # 1.14 - Export Image *In this chapter, we will be exporting a high-resolution image of the sectional perspective scene we have built up over the last few chapters.* *Although not required to complete this chapter, if you did not follow the whole tutorial up until this point and would like to export images similar to what is shown below, download and open the* ***1.14 – Export Image.axm*** *file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* 1 - When exporting an image, whatever is shown in the canvas will be exported almost exactly as you see it in FormIt. We would like to export an image of the **Section** Scene. 1. So first we need to open up that scene form the **Scenes Palette** by double-click on it. 2. From the **Main Manu** bar, go to **File > Export > Locally (Ctrl + E)**. The **Export File** window will pop-up. 3. In the new window, under **File type options** scroll down and select **As Image** (it is the last one). In the export options box, after **Preset:** changes the dropdown option to be **4K UHD** instead of **Viewport**. This will automatically define the output image resolution, **Dimension (px)**, to **3840** x **2160** pixels. 4. Click on **Export** and the **Specify file to save to…** window will pop-up. 5. In the new window, navigate to choose the location and name to save the image at, then click **Save**. ![](/files/-MlG7uZWMRbvC4pt1_QY) 2 - If you wish to compare your results to the provided export image, go to **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > Images**. ![Provided sample export image from the Farnsworth House Data Set.](/files/-MlG7uZZL4IyY93HYLUz) \_\_ # 1.15 - Working With Revit *One of FormIt's most exciting features is the ability to move your model from a flexible modeling environment like FormIt, to a powerful parametric environment like Revit. In this chapter, we will go through a few exercises that move various elements from FormIt to Revit, and from Revit to FormIt.* *This chapter will make use of sample Revit families. If you have not already, you can download them from the **Farnsworth House Data Set.** If you did not follow the whole tutorial up until this point, you can also download and open the **1.15 – Working With Revit.axm** file from the **FormIt Primer Part 1 Datasets**.* *In these exercises, we will use Revit 2022, which has improved interoperability capabilities with FormIt. Previous versions of Revit will not have some or any of the features shown in this tutorial, and will have different UI.* ## From Revit to FormIt ### Convert Revit Families for Use in FormIt If you (or your firm) have a trove of Revit Families that you want to use in FormIt, then you will be interested in this section, which discusses how to batch export RFA files to FormIt. ***Note:*** *The steps below show the interface and the necessary steps when using Revit 2022, but the* ***Convert RFA to FormIt*** *tools has been available since Revit 2016.* 1 – Open a New Revit Project or Family. Then: 1. From the **Add-Ins** ribbon, find the **FormIt Converter** panel and click on the **Convert RFA to FormIt** button. The **Convert Revit Families Dialog** will pop-up. 2. In the **Path to Revit Family File** field, browse to wherever you saved the following folder on your computer: **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > Revit**. 3. In the **Path to FormIt Content** field, browser to **Farnsworth House Data Set > Supporting Files > FormIt > Custom FormIt Content**. If you have not completed chapter **1.11 Import Models with Content Library**, you may need to create the **Custom FormIt Content** folder, or choose another destination. 4. Click **OK** to start the conversion process. ![](/files/-MlG7vBPk3FZ4LiCxNTI) ***Notes:*** * *This process will take some time as Revit opens the* ***RFA*** *in the first path, then converts and saves it as an* ***AXMF*** *format for FormIt.* * *In this exercise, we are only converting a single file, but you can use this process to batch-convert all* ***RFAs*** *in the selected folder (including any* ***RFAs*** *in nested folders).* 2 - Once the process is completed, go back to FormIt. There you will see the new content appear in the **Content Library Palette**, inside the **FormIt >** **Custom FormIt Content** folder we previously linked. If you saved your converted **AXMF** file(s) to a different location, or did not complete chapter **1.11 Import Models with Content Library**, you may need to add that folder to your content library to see its contents. Refer to chapter 1.11 for instructions on how to add folders to your content library. ![](/files/-MlG7vBRW9AKsnm_t6_W)‌ **Note**: *Not all categories from Revit are supported for export. The 'free standing' or ‘level based’ families are supported, but the 'host based' families like doors and windows are not. Mass, Casework, Entourage, Furniture, Furniture System, Generic Model, Parking, Site, and Specialty Equipment are all supported. Any unsupported families in the selected fold will simply be skipped.* ## From FormIt to Revit *There are two different ways to bring geometry from FormIt to Revit. You can import an existing* ***.axm**, into either a Revit project or Revit family file, which will behave similarly to an imported model or CAD file. Alternatively, you can launch FormIt from within Revit, and bring each FormIt group into Revit as an individual Generic Model element. The second method is covered in the **Part II** chapter* ***2.8*** ***Advanced Revit Workflows**.* ### Importing the Farnsworth House to Revit 1 – To import an FormIt file (**.axm**) to Revit, start a new Revit project and open the default 3D view. Then: 1. Go to the **Insert Tab**, and click on the **Import CAD** button. The **Import CAD Formats** window will open. 2. Make sure the **Files of type** dropdown is set to **FormIt Files (\*.axm)**. 3. Navigate to and select the Farnsworth **.axm** file you have been working on. If you have not been following along with the Primer Part I, you can also open **1.15 – Working With Revit.axm** file the **Farnsworth House Data Set > Chapter Files** folder. 4. Make sure that **Import FormIt Levels** is checked. 5. Once the settings are defined, click **Open**, and the FormIt geometry will be brought into Revit as a single element. ![](/files/tEmudMbD9zjH4J2PTWm8) Importing a FormIt file using the import CAD button. ![](/files/73QoOXhRyXibaSQf4gab)\ Imported .axm element. Note that the Levels from the FormIt model are also imported into Revit. *Similar to other CAD formats, the layers in the original file are imported to Revit. This feature allows you to define different visibility settings for each layer to easily manipulate the graphic appearance of your FormIt file in any Revit view.* 2 – To adjust the imported .axm file’s layer visibility: 1. Go to the **Visibility/Graphic Overrides (VG or VV)** window, **Imported Categories** tab, expand your imported FormIt file, and uncheck the **Planting** layer to turn off the layer in the current view, and click **OK**. 2. Change the **Visual Style** to **Realistic**, and you will see that all the FormIt materials have been imported into Revit. ![](/files/xCZoYdKZgPn5joaOTngy) 3 - In fact, the imported FormIt materials will now be available in this Revit project, tagged with the Class **FormIt**. Just open the **Material Browser** and search for “FormIt” and you will see them all. These can now be used in your Revit project just like any other material. ![](/files/SqOW1X7oaQ3vDkSxajda) # Part II ## Advanced Tools In **Part II** of this Primer, we are going to dive into some of the more advanced tools FormIt has to offer. We will explore how to use simple yet powerful modeling, diagnostic, analysis, and interoperability tools to modify and enhance the Encode Campus Model pictured below. If you are new to FormIt, we recommend starting with **Part I**, as **Part II** will assume you are already familiar with the basics of FormIt. Refer to the **FormIt Introduction** and **Tool Library** sections for detailed explanations on specific tools, toolbars, palettes, and processes discussed herein. ![](/files/-MlG7uQIKOXpthL4Gmfz) ### Pre-requisites Before beginning Part II, download and install FormIt for Windows using the directions found in the FormIt Introduction section here: [**Prerequisites and Installation**](/formit-introduction/prerequisites-and-installation). For most chapters, you will also need to download and make use of the data set found at the link below. *If you cannot run FormIt for Windows, the majority of the tutorial can be completed using the free* [***Web Application***](https://formit.autodesk.com/app)***.** For more information about FormIt versions and licensing, visit the* [*FormIt website*](https://formit.autodesk.com)*.* ### Data Set The Encode Campus, pictured above, is a fictional medium-sized multi-use project set in an urban plot, complete with organized layers, scenes, materials, and even geometries tied to live editable Dynamo scripts. All façade elements of the Encode building are controlled by Dynamo scripts, driven by a path at the base of the building that defines the façade shape. * [**FormIt Primer Data Sets Part II**](https://formit-help.s3.amazonaws.com/FormIt+Primer+Part+2+Datasets.zip) # 2.1 - Offset Line Tool *The* ***Offset Line (OL)*** *allows you to draw lines with a defined thickness. You can set the offset width and justification direction, making this tool an easy way to trace plans, create walls, draw roads, or quickly make any other linear-based shape with a set thickness.* *In this exercise, we will add some interior partitions to the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**. If you have not already, you can download the file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**.* ## Drawing Walls *First, we will draw a few walls on the 2nd Floor office space using the* ***Offset Line (OL)*** *tool.* 1 – After opening the ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**,* let’s orient the current view to a plan view. From the **Scenes Palette**, double-click on the scene named **Plan – 2nd Floor Office**. ![](/files/IT3LKYvHi8HLZfoJqhu4) ***Note:*** *Using scenes to control both the camera position and the visibility of section layers is an efficient way to navigate the model. For more information on Sections, check out the* ***Section Planes*** *chapter from the **FormIt Primer Part I.*** 2 ***-*** To start the first wall of what will be a small conference room: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar**, click on the **Create Sketch** button (pencil icon) and select the **Offset Line (OL)** tool. 2. To start drawing the walls, single-click on the bottom left corner of the shaft. 3. Start dragging the mouse to the left along the green axis (**X axis**), then press the **Tab** key or start typing a dimension. 4. The **Tool Option** dialog will appear, where we can set not only the length of the offset line, but also its **Thickness** and **Alignment**. For the **Dimension**, type **22'**.For the **Thickness**, type **6”**. For the **Alignment**, select either **Left** or **Right** from the dropdown, so that the bottom edge of the offset line is flush with the shaft wall as shown in the below image. Then click **OK.** ![](/files/-MlG7v0uK6DDZHfSFmG2) ***Note:*** *If you want to modify the default* ***Thickness*** *and/or the* ***Alignment**, without entering a* ***Dimension*** *in the* ***Tool Option*** *dialog, simply delete the value from the* ***Dimension*** *field before pressing* ***OK**. You will be back in the model with the* ***Offset Tool (OL)*** *still active. Now you can click in the model to define the next end point of your offset line.* 3 - To draw the rest of the walls for the conference room 1. Without exiting the **Offset Line (OL)** tool, draw a shape matching the dimensions shown in the image below. To create each segment, either use the **Tab** key or just start typing to enter the desired length of each edge. 2. The direction of the **Left**/**Right** offset is based on the direction of the polyline you are drawing, and therefore may flip while you are in the process of drawing the entire shape. If this happens, simple press **Tab** and switch the **Alignment** dropdown between **Left** and **Right** as needed. 3. To complete the Offset Line command, double-click at the location of your final endpoint, which should intersect the first line you drew. Don’t worry if the offset lines you just drew disappear when you double-click, we will find them again in the next step. ***Note:*** *Remember, you can always switch between* ***Orthographic (VO)*** *and* ***Perspective (VP)*** *camera modes to make drawing easier. However, some elements perpendicular to the camera may not be visible is Orthographic mode.* ![](/files/-MlG7v0wx0GB979UwUsy) ***Note:*** *When using the* ***Offset Line (OL)*** *tool, don’t worry if you create any overlapping or intersecting paths. As soon as you finish the command, all the lines will be merged into one clean surface, and any extra inner edges will be removed.* 4 - If the offset line you just created is not visible, it is because the new surface you just made is in the exact same plane as the office’s floor. Orbit the view slightly until you see the offset lines you just drew clashing with the floor surface. Select it by single-clicking anywhere on the face. ***Note:*** *If you are having trouble selecting this new surface, either use the space bar to cycle through selection options or temporarily turn off the* ***Encode Main Building – Floors*** *layer.* ![](/files/-MlG7v0x6cv1dYPLaFoy) 5 - Extrude the shape **8’-0”** vertically to create the walls. ![](/files/-MlG7v0ygn331bxVMSt2) 6 - Feel free to populate this office floor by drawing and extruding more walls to get more familiar with the **Offset Line (OL)** tool. You may need to alternate between the **Plan – Second Floor Office** scene and a 3D view, as we did above. When you are ready, take a look at the next sections to see a few more creative uses for this tool. ## Making a Door *The* ***Offset Line*** ***(OL)*** *tool does not need to be used exclusively in plan. Below we will use it to make a quick doorway.* 1 - First, position your 3D view so that you can see where the longest wall we drew meets the exterior corner of the shaft, similar to the image below. If you are having trouble, start from the **Plan – Second Floor Office** scene we used earlier, or ensure that the **Section – 2nd Floor Office Plan** layer is still turned on. 2 - Often times, doorways are located based on their center line, not their jambs. Let’s use the **Offset Line (OL)** tool to create a door opening by its center point: 1. First we will mark the doorways center point. Use the **Line (L)** tool to draw a **3’** line from the bottom corner of the shaft along the bottom edge of our new wall as shown. 2. Start the **Offset Line (OL)** tool again. 3. To start drawing the door, click on the endpoint of the line we just drew. This will ensure that the center of our doorway is **3’** from the shaft wall. 4. Drag the mouse up along the blue axis (**Z Axis**), and the press the **Tab** key. Enter a **Dimension** of **7’**, a **Thickness** of **4’**, and set the **Alignment** to **Center**. Then click **OK** to create that segment. Press **Esc** to finish and exit the **Offset Line**. ***Note:*** *If you are having trouble getting this single-segment offset line to be in plane with the wall, it is likely caused by your current axis. Use the* ***Set Axes (SZ)*** *tool to reset the axes directions relative to the* ***Plan – 2nd Floor Office*** *scene – so that green axis (**X Axis**) is pointing to the left and red axis (**Y Axis**) is pointing up.* ![](/files/-MlG7v15ojqMhb2MlANj) 3 - To turn the doorway outline into an opening, single-click on the face we just made, and drag it back through the wall until it disappears. ![](/files/-MlG7v16i4S8TZVoobCx) ## Getting Creative 1 - Next, we will add some more entryways to the conference room along with a sweeping window, all using a single Offset Line! 1. Start the **Offset Line (OL)** tool again, and choose a starting point along the base of the same wall approximately **10’** to the left of the corner of the shaft. 2. Start dragging the mouse up along the blue axis (**Z Axis**) again, then press **Tab**. 3. This first line will be another doorway. Enter a **Dimension** of **5’-6”** again. This time set the **Thickness** to **3’** and make sure the **Alignment** is still set the **Center**. The click **OK.** 4. To make the horizontal strip for the window, drag the cursor along the green axis (**X Axis**) towards the conference room’s far corner. 5. Hold **Shift** to lock to the green axis (**X** Axis) and then click anywhere along the exterior corner of the wall. Press **Esc** to finish the Offset Line. ![](/files/-MlG7v17WDTjdLQs8Irr) 2 - To finish up, let’s cut the conference room walls with the shape we just created, and then add some glass. Select the L-shaped surface we just created by single-clicking on it. Then, drag it backwards past the farthest conference room wall so that it cuts 3 walls at once. ![](/files/-MlG7v195YNQU6aXVCbP) 3 - Now to add some glass: 1. Using the **Line** tool, create a total of four (4) vertical lines as shown; one at each of the open corners, and one at the edge of each new doorway openings. In doing so, FormIt will create three (3) new surfaces for us. 2. Paint these three (3) surfaces with the **Glass - New** material from the **Materials Palette**. 3. Let’s not forget to keep our model organized, as that is always a good practice. Group all the geometry we just created – glass and walls – together in one group. Name it **Conference Room** and place it on the **Encode Main Building – Interior Partitions** layer. ![](/files/-MlG7v1Af42aaMbrQIu-) 4 - The final step is up to you! Be creative, and you can take this project anywhere you want with FormIt. In the below image, we added some furniture and a ceiling to the conference room, mirrored a copy of the conference room group to the opposite side of the shaft, added another 'pod' area, and populated the floor with office furniture. We then arrayed that geometry to all of the the office floors: ![](/files/-MlG7v1BxeFHbT3iaQW0) # 2.2 - Advanced Modeling Tools: Shell and Cover *Shell creates a hollowed-out form with a given thickness from a solid, and Cover creates a face from a closed loop of (not necessarily coplanar) edges. These are simple but powerful tools for quickly creating forms from just about any geometric shape.* *In this exercise, we will create a penthouse on top of the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm*** *using shell and cover, while touching on various other modeling tools that were not covered by the* ***FormIt Primer Part I**. If you have not already, you can download the file above from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**..* ## **Modeling the Penthouse Mass** *First we will create the mass form for the penthouse, using a variety of modeling tools. Feel free to either follow along verbatim or get creative and make your own design!q* 1 - With the **Encode Campus Sample Model.axm** open, go to the **Penthouse** scene (or adjust your view and layers so you can see the roof of the main building). 2 - Let’s use some geometric primitives to quickly create a form: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar**, select **Cube (Alt + B)** from the **Create Primitives** dropdown button. 2. With the cube’s preview active, press the **Tab** key to set its dimensions (Width: **100’**, Depth: **15’**, Height: **10’**), and then place it on the roof in a similar location to the image below. Similar to placing a component, you can rotate the cube by 90-degree intervals by pressing **Space**. 3. Add a second **Cube (Alt + B)**, (Width: **30’**, Depth: **15’**, Height: **12’**), and rotate it **8.5** degrees, so that it matches the angle of the façade and makes a **98.5** degree angle with the long cube. Position this cube so that it intersects the long cube similar to the image below. ![](/files/Dm6C93ENilUKdkJiMHkP) ***Note:*** *Make sure both cubes are sitting directly on the roof surface. It is easy to accidentally change their elevation when moving them around.* 3 - To make the box into what will eventually be a more dramatic space, we will angle some of its faces using the **Tilt Face (TF)** tool. 1. Select either the NE or NW face of the angled box, right-click to bring up the **Context Menu**, and select **Tilt Face (TF)**. 2. Tilt the face by an angle of **15** degrees outward. Just like many FormIt tools, you can either press **Tab** or just start typing a number. 3. Do the same for the adjacent face as shown. ![](/files/jdzpNlCjSIu9pSfxKhf7) ***Note:*** *While in the* ***Tilt Face (TL)*** *tool, you can rotate the selected face about any axis you would like. Just use the circular grips to adjust the axis of rotation (dotted blue line).* 4 - To make the form a bit more complex, let’s add some curves: 1. Open the **Create Primitives** dropdown, but this time select **Cylinder**. 2. Using the default radius of **6’** and height of **12’**, place the cylinder anywhere on the roof for now. 3. Using the **Non-Uniform Scale** tool, stretch the cylinder in the direction parallel to the long box by **300%**. To learn more about the scale tools, refer to chapter **1.11 – Import Models with Content Library.** 4. Move the cylinder so the center of its long axis is along the edge of the long box, as shown. Don’t forget that constantly toggling between views, like the **Top View (VT)** used in the second image below, can be helpful for modeling and moving objects into place. ![Placing and scaling the cylinder](/files/qpH4amKtwB8idyv1KNTc) ![Moving the stretched cylinder into place](/files/ZumKvLgwUr7oLeYEJWh7) ***Note:*** *Even though the shapes we have placed thus far overlap, you can still individually select each one by double-clicking on any of its faces or edges. This is because any time you place (or create) a closed shape, FormIt recognizes it as a ‘body’ and will keep track of its geometry together until you intentionally join it with something else.* ## **Joining and Cutting** *We can use the* ***Join Geometry (JG)*** *and* ***Cut Geometry (CG)*** *tools to merge the shapes we have just created into a single form.* 1 - First, we will do the joining: 1. In the **Standard Toolbar**, click on the **Advanced Geometry Tools** dropdown and select the **Join Geometry (JG)** tool. 2. This will bring up the **Join Geometry Wizard**. Similar to using the **Sweep** tool back in chapter **1.9 – Adding Details**, all advanced geometry tools have their own wizard to guide you through their use. 3. Select one of the boxes. Make sure to double-click to select the entire solid, not just a single face. Notice that the wizard will automatically move on to the next step. 4. Select the remaining box. 5. Click on the checkmark in the wizard to complete the join. To check if it worked, you should be able to select all of your newly joined geometry with one double-click. ![](/files/mbVR4DrDehgcReMmIlvR) ***Note:*** *If your current selection already contains geometry that can be joined, like two (2) or more overlapping solids, you can also access the* ***Join Geometry (JG)*** *tool from the context menu by right-clicking on your selected geometry.* 2 – Now, we will cut the ellipse out of our boxy mass: 1. With no geometry selected, go to the **Advanced Geometry Tools** and click on **Cut Geometry (CG)**. 2. The **Cut Geometry** **Wizard** will appear. Make sure to read what it says carefully, because when cutting, unlike joining, the order that you select the geometry is important. 3. First **Select the solid to be cut into**, which in our case is the boxy mass we created above. 4. Next **Select solids to be removed**, which is the elliptical cylinder. 5. Click on the checkmark in the wizard to complete the cut. ![](/files/k93fJzEVzDUBav1N19RE) ***Note:*** *Notice that the ellipse set to be “removed” will not be deleted, but its geometry was carved out of the box geometry, as we will see in the next step.* 3 – To finish up, drag the top face of the ellipse down by **11’-6”**, so it becomes a 6” thick platform. We can use this as a start to our roof garden patio later. You should now be able to clearly see the cut we just made. ![](/files/jha4lwCeWhlOjsOOUuNB) ## **Shell and Cover** *Now that our mass is constructed, we can use* ***Shell Solid(s) (SH)*** *to quickly create a space with walls, a floor, and roof that all have thickness. Then we can use* ***Cover (CV)*** *to quickly create some glass faces for our penthouse.* 1 – If you select an entire solid, the shell tool will create an offset ‘shell’ from the selected geometry on all sides - making it hollow but still covered on all sides. Often, the more useful way to use the shell tool is by selecting the faces of a solid that you do not want to include in the shell. Sounds confusing? It is actually quite simple, let’s give it a try below: 1. From the **Advanced Modeling Tools**, select **Shell Solids(s) (SH)**. 2. In the **Offset Distance** dialog that appears, enter a thickness of **-8”**, and press **OK**. 3. Using single-clicks, select just the three faces we want to remain open; the curved surface and the two tilted faces we made previously. 4. Click on the checkmark in the wizard to complete the shell. ***Note:*** *A negative shell offset value will offset the new surfaces towards the inside of the shape, while a positive value will offset them towards the outside.* ![Shell in progress](/files/M44g9n3wZJkeTCsrQSVU) ![Finished Shell](/files/qQ0XEH6AnOWqX1cilBWa) 2 - Now we almost have a complete penthouse, it is just missing a few walls. We can use the **Cover (CV)** command to quickly create some surfaces from a selected loop of edges. First, let’s cover the curved area: 1. From the **Advanced Modeling Tools**, select **Cover (CV)**. 2. Select all four (4) edges around the curved opening. You may need to use the **Tab** key to select an entire curved edge at once. 3. Click on the checkmark in the wizard to complete the cover. ![](/files/prwV6Ri6K0uS3Ol4IsiM) ***Note:*** *Whenever you are prompted to make a selection while using a wizard, be it one of the advanced modeling tools or a dynamo script, you do not need to hold* ***Ctrl*** *or* ***Shift*** *to deselect or select multiple objects. To remove a previously select object, simply click on it again.* 3 - Do the same thing for the openings where the tilted faces were. If you have been following along with our design, there will be eight (8) edges you need to select. ![](/files/GJ3M2vQeHZzGAkDzufgC) ## **Finishing Up** *To finish up the penthouse, we will sample a few ways to make quick curtain walls out of the surfaces we just created.* 1 - Let’s start by using the built-in Dynamo **Storefront Curtainwall** script. If you are new to using Dynamo in FormIt, check out chapter **1.10 - Computational Groups with Dynamo** in the FormIt Primer Part I. 1. In the **Dynamo Palette**, make sure the folder dropdown is set to **Dynamo Samples**. 2. Scroll down and click on the **Storefront Curtainwall** tile, which will launch the wizard for this script. 3. In the canvas, select the two angled surfaces we just made with the **Cover (CV)** tool. 4. Click on the checkmark in the wizard, and then wait for the script to run. It may take a few seconds. 5. (optional) Update the script parameters and re-run it until the mullion layout it adjusted to your liking. The inputs we changed from their default values were: 1. Mullion Depth: **0.5** 2. First Horizontal Mullion Spacing (on center): **4.833** 3. Typ. Horizontal Mullion Spacing (on center): **4.833** 6. Paint the surfaces we used for the script’s input with the transparent material of your choosing. We used **Glass - New**. ![](/files/LnS6or9nMhWat6XhP3sv) ![](/files/7xjGe7apeclR8LnlWalP) ***Note:*** *If you want to learn more about advanced uses of Dynamo within FormIt, check out the Primer Part II chapter that deal specifically with Dynamo:* ***Dynamo FormIt Nodes**.* 2 – Unfortunately, the script we used in the last step does not always work well on curved surfaces. Another trick to quickly give a surface a curtain-wall appearance to a somple surface is to use a material with a **Cutout** map, which makes part of the material transparent. FormIt comes with three (3) built-in materials like this for curtain walls. All we have to do now is grab one, paint our surface, and then scale it using the **Adjust Material Placement** tool: 1. In the **Materials Palette**, import the **Glass – Storefront with Spandrel** from **Material Samples > Glass+Glazing**, and then paint the curved surface with this material. For more information on importing and using materials, see **Chapter 1.7 - Paint with Materials** in the FormIt Primer Part I. 2. Right-click on the curved surface you just painted and select **Adjust Material Placement** **(MP)**. 3. Using the up and down arrow, scale the material vertically until the mullion above the thin horizontal window band is just visible below the top edge of the curved opening. With our design, we have found that entering a height of **8’-7”** works well. 4. Now using the horizontal arrow, scale the material horizontally so that the vertical mullions are about 3’ apart, similar to the spacing used in our tilted curtain walls. With our design, we found that a value of **9’** works well. ![Painting with a cutout curtain wall material](/files/Ltq6XcrdyUQs7JDc3qXA) ![Stretching the material vertically](/files/j5YWEThG469O7AFD9Fwa) ![Stretching the material horizontally](/files/nYGG3kAygiph9KU2Ye3Q) 3 - Add some finishing touches to the design! In the finished image below, some of the things we did to enhanced our roof include: * Used **Sweep (SP)** to add a parapet, bound to the roof’s outline. * Used the OOTB Dynamo script **Array Along Path** to place stepping tiles around the roof perimeter. * Added various tile materials to the penthouse, using the **Adjust Material Placement** **(MP)** tool from above to rotate and alight their joints. * Downloaded, converted a .skp file of a solar panel, and then imported it into the model. To learn more about importing various file types, refer to the **Advanced Export and Import** section. * Added some string lights using the **Generate String Lights** plugin – To learn more about plugins, make sure to check out the next chapter in Part II: **Plugins**. Feel free to put your own creative touches to the model, and explore some of the other advanced modeling tools we did not get to in this chapter! You can compare your creation to our finished sample model by downloading and opening the **Encode Campus Sample File\_Completed.axm** from the **Encode Model Data Set**. ![Scene in completed model.](/files/-MlG7vAm2yn1Zxq6vGxZ) \_\_ # 2.3 Orthographic View Workflow *Learning to work between orthographic and perspective view modes, combined with the available preset camera options (Top View, Front View, etc.) can open up new modeling workflows and increase your efficiency within FormIt.* *In this chapter, we will create some elevation views in the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**, using the preset view options and the Align Camera With Face tool. If you have not already, you can download the sample file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**.* ## Adding Elevation Views *Sometimes it is easier to work in an orthographic view instead of perspective, for instance when trying to align elements across a façade, or while drawing walls in plan. In the below section, we will use the orthographic view mode to create elevation view scenes in our model, which you can use later on to draw from.* We are going to use the preset elevation views (**Front View (VF)**, **Right View (VR)**, **Left View (VL)**, and **Back View (VB)** ) to help us create orthographic elevation scenes. However, these preset elevation views are based off the current location and orientation of the model axis, so first we need to check that. 1 – Make sure the model’s axes are aligned to match what is shown in the below image, including the direction of the green, red, and blue axes lines. If you do not see your them, simply type **DZ** for Display Axes, or use the checkbox in the **Visual Styles Palette > Environment** tab. ***Note:*** *For more on how to adjust the model’s axes, refer to the Part I chapter* ***1.2 - Project Set Up with Images and Grid.axm*** ![](/files/-MlG7uW5coyWTGZAQwD8) ***Note:** The site of the Encode Campus is diagonal, relative to the cardinal directions. However, since the axis has been set to be parallel to our site and building, we can use the preset elevation views to get the perfect elevation camera angles for our model!* 2 – To create the first elevation scene: 1. Change your camera to **Orthographic (VO)** mode by clicking on the button in the **Floating Navigation Toolbar (HB)**. 2. From the preset elevation views dropdown in the **Floating Navigation Toolbar (HB)**, select **Right View (VR)**. 3. In the **Layers Palette**, turn off the **Existing – Context Buildings – Massing** layer, because it may be blocking our view of the Encode campus. 4. When in orthographic view mode, there is a clipping plane based on the location of your camera, which may cause this view to initially appear to be cutting through your model at a random location. To fix this, simply **Zoom All (ZA)**. 5. Zoom back in until the Encode Campus takes up most of your view. 6. In the **Scenes Palette**, create a new scene and name it **Elevation – Northwest**. ***Note:*** *For more information on adjusting layers or creating scenes, refer to the Part I chapters* ***1.6 - Control Visibility with Layers*** *and* ***1.12 - Visual Styles**, respectively.* ![](/files/0FHtmsTHF8X85V4NGUgM) 3 – Repeat the previous step for the other 3 directions, to create a total of four (4) new elevations scenes. If you axes match ours, the views should correspond to elevation directions in the following way: * **Front View**: **Elevation – Northeast** * **Right View**: **Elevation – Northwest** * **Left View**: **Elevation – Southeast** * **Back View**: **Elevation – Southwest** ## **Align Camera With Face** *This tool allows you to align your current camera to look directly at a selected flat face. Combined with orthographic view mode, we can use this to create an elevation of a slightly off-axis wall.* 1 – Open up the **Campus – Top-Down** scene, which is already set to both **Orthographic (VO)** and **Top View (VT)**. Do you see the slightly diagonal masonry wall, on the street-facing façade of the campus’ southwest building? If we had been working only in perspective, this slight angle is something that may have been difficult to notice! ![](/files/zJDKy4KO4v6DZ8OeAM0P) 2 – Orbit the view so you can see the exterior face of this wall. 3 – Double-click to edit the entire **SW Building** group, and then double-click again to edit that building’s **Exterior Masonry** group. 4 – Right-click on the exterior face of the slightly angled wall, and select **Align Camera With Face (AF)**. The camera will automatically rotate so that you are looking directly at this slightly angled wall. ![](/files/-MlG7uW99IY14Gc2u-_x) ***Note:*** *When using the* ***Align Camera With Face*** ***(AF)*** *tool while in orthographic mode, the resulting view’s clipping plane is set based on the clipping plane of the* ***Perspective (VP)*** *camera. If the clipping plane is positioned in the correct place, there may be no need to turn off the* ***Existing – Context Buildings – Massing*** *layer to see the angled wall. Everything ‘behind’ our camera’s clipping plane is hidden from view! This is a handy trick that can be used to make pseudo-section, plan, interior elevations, or even RCP views without using up one of the six available section planes.* 5 – Save this view as a scene called **Elevation – Angled Wall** so that you can easily return to it at any time.\ 6 – To finish up, we have added some windows to the slightly-angled face. Feel free to add your own touches to this wall by working between **Orthographic (VO), Perspective (VP)**, and the newly created elevation scenes! ![SW Building with six (6) new windows added along the angled face.](/files/Si98jrwBXLdPpvNLtj4h) # 2.4 - 3D Terrain Workflows *In this chapter we are going to explore working with the 3D terrain, making use of multiple tools covered in previous chapters. Using a site with steep topography, we will take the terrain that gets automatically imported, prepare the geometry, and then cut a hole for a basement from it.* *If you wish to use exactly the same location as demoed in this tutorial, open the* ***2.4 – 3D Terrain Workflow\_Start.axm*** *from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**.* 1 – Start a new FormIt file, and import the 3D Terrain using the **Location (SL)** tool. Use the address “**120 Arapahoe Ave, Boulder, CO 80302”**, and select a region to import similar to the image below, making sure to include the octagon-shaped building. (If you are starting from the ***2.4 – 3D Terrain Workflow\_Start.axm*** file you can skip this step.) ![](/files/-MlG7ufBaKaeYZS7UVZG) ***Note:*** *For more information on how to use the set* ***Location (SL)*** *tool, refer to the **Part I** chapter **1.1 – Set the Location**.* 2 - In the **Layers Palette**, turn on **Terrain** layer, which was automatically created when the Terrain was imported. ![](/files/LZ9s4DdNYoLDI1LE2DgM) 3 – The 3D terrain is imported as a mesh object, but before modifying it, the terrain must be converted to a FormIt geometry Object. This can be done using the **Meshes to Objects (MO)** tool: 1. Edit the **Terrain** group, and select all of the faces in that group. 2. Right-click one any of the selected faces to bring up the Context Menu. 3. Select the **Mesh To Object (MO)** tool. The mesh will be automatically converted to a FormIt object. 4. Finish editing the group. ***Note:*** *What is a mesh? In short,* ***Meshes*** *are lightweight representations of geometry, but* ***Objects*** *are more editable. To learn more, see the* ***Meshes*** *chapter in the* ***Tool Library**.* ![](/files/-MlG7ufFqpK5AvEpDcmB) 4 – The next step is to create a second object which we will use the cut the Terrain. For this example, we will create an octagon based on an existing building in the site. 1. Turn off the **Terrain** layer. 2. Draw a **Polygon (Y)** with **8** sides and a **30’** radius, and place it on the **XY Plane.** 3. From the **Top View (VT)**, move the octagon so that it is directly over the similarly-shaped building visible in the satellite image. 4. Move the octagon up vertically **150’** along the blue axis (**Z Axis**). 5. Turn the **Terrain** layer back on. ![](/files/-MlG7ufHxDhK1UAzBr5i) 5 – Next, we will cut into the Terrain. For more information on how to use cut, and other advanced modeling tools, see chapter **2.2 - Advanced Modeling Tools**. 1. Extrude face downwards, so that it dips a few feet beyond the top face of the **Terrain** group. 2. Use the **Cut Geometry (CG)** tool to carve the extrusion out of the **Terrain**. 3. Delete the octagon we just used to cut the terrain. You should be left with just an octagon-shaped hole. ![](/files/-MlG7ufIRu3sfGKFDwgZ) 6 – Extrude the cut bottom face to adjust the basement depth. In this example, we aligned the base to the lowest point in the site. ![](/files/-MlG7ufJVPK4PZG3tS0q) 7 – To experiment with a few more FormIt features, you can continue manipulating the terrain in the following way: 1. Use the **Extrusion Tool** once again, to readjust the base depth to be about midway between the highest and lowest point of the octagon. 2. Created a new material and applied it to the unpainted faces. 3. Use the **Tilt Face (TF)** tool to create a softer transition between the base grade and the natural terrain. Now we have a nice platform to build our octagonal building on, based of the real terrain data of the site! ***Note:*** *To learn more about the* ***Tilt Face (TF)*** *tool, see chapter* ***2.2 - Advanced Modeling Tools**.* ![](/files/-MlG7ufLRnWmA6DewdcI) ***Note:*** *To compare your results to ours, check out the* ***2.4 – 3D Terrain Workflow\_Completed.axm*** *file from the* ***Encode Model Data Set**.* # 2.5 - Plugins Please refer to the [Plugins ](/plugins)chapter. # 2.6 - Dynamo FormIt Nodes *FormIt comes with a library of Dynamo nodes that transfer geometry between FormIt and Dynamo. In the previous chapters we have seen how Dynamo objects can be created and dynamically adjusted within FormIt. In this chapter, we will edit a provided Dynamo graph to create a modified version of the OOTB stair graph.* *For this chapter, we will be using both the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm*** *model* *and the* ***Stairs by Top Edge.dyn*** *Dynamo script. If you have not already, you can find both of these files by downloading the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**..* *If you are new to using Dynamo inside FormIt, we recommend completing the* ***1.10 -*** ***Computational Groups with Dynamo*** *chapter in* ***Part I*** *of this primer. While this chapter will involve editing Dynamo graphs, we will only really cover elements of Dynamo as they relate to FormIt-specific nodes. If you are new to Dynamo, you can learn more by visiting the* [***Dynamo Primer***](https://primer.dynamobim.org/01_Introduction/1-2_what_is_dynamo.html)***.*** ***You'll need FormIt for Windows 2022.0 or newer for this section.*** ## **Adding a Dynamo Library Location** *While FormIt comes with a library of OOTB graphs in the **Dynamo Samples** folder, we need a place to create and save our own custom graphs. To do this, we will first want to add a new folder to FormIt’s **Dynamo Library Locations**. This is similar to adding a folder to FormIt’s content library, so if you need a refresher check out the Primer Part I chapter **1.11 - Import Models with Content Library**.* 1 – To add a new **Dynamo Library Location**: 1. With the **Encode Campus Sample Model.axm** open, go to the **Dynamo Palette**. 2. Click on the **Link Dynamo Directory** button in the top-left corner. 3. The **Preferences** window will open, with the **Dynamo** tab automatically select. Click on the **Add a new Dynamo library location** ‘plus’ icon. 4. Navigate to wherever you downloaded the **Encode Model Data Set**, and select the **Supporting Files** > **FormIt Primer Graphs** folder. 5. Click on **Select Folder** and then **OK**, and you will be brought back to FormIt. 6. In the folder dropdown at the top of the **Dynamo Palette**, select the **FormIt Primer Graphs** folder we just added. ![](/files/-MlG7v_cBVtDNMtJ-VJT) ## **SendToFormIt** **Node** *For any Dynamo graph to work with FormIt, it must have at least one* ***SendToFormIt*** *node.* 1 – Let’s start by trying to use the **Stair by Top Edge** graph as is, from the folder we just added. 1. Start by going to the Section - Longitudinal scene. 2 – We're going to add the **SendToFormIt** node to the graph. To do this, we're going to use "Edit Source Graph" in a new FormIt model so we're not polluting the working model with our graph authoring changes. 1. Right-click on the **FormIt icon** in your taskbar, and select **FormIt** to launch a new empty FormIt window (or simply middle-click on the FormIt Icon). 2. In the **Dynamo Palette**, find the **Stairs by Top Edge** tile, and click on the small drop-down arrow on the tile’s right edge or right-click the tile. 3. Select **Edit Source Graph**. This will automatically launch Dynamo and open the graph we want to edit. ![](/files/-MlG7v_ffYqmR3fkHIAg) 2 – Once Dynamo and the graph have opened, zoom into the area shown below, containing the right-most green and purple groups. ![](/files/-MlG7v_gmbgpF2q4F3PJ) ***Note:*** *Dynamo graphs flow from left to right, and so you will typically find the output nodes on the far right side of the graph.* 3 – Now we need to add a **SendToFormIt** node, to send the stair geometry you see in the background into our FormIt model: 1. In the Add-ons (packages) area on the left, expand the **FormIt** dropdown, and click on **SendToFormIt**. A **SendToFormIt** node will appear in the center of your screen. 2. Add the new node to the purple **Send Stair Geometry to FormIt** group by selecting both the purple group and the new **SendToFormIt** node, and then right clicking on the **SendToFormIt** node and selecting **Add To Group**. Move the new node to a location similar to what is shown in the below image. 3. Right-click on the **SendToFormIt** node and make sure **Is Output** is checked. It should be by default, but if it is not then no geometry will be sent to FormIt. 4. Rename the **SendToFormIt** node to **SendToFormIt.Stairs**. 5. Connect the two (2) inputs of the new **SendToFormIt.Stairs** node as shown in the image below. ![](/files/-MlG7v_hkE5JiiBibw0r) ***Note:*** *Although we are only using the* ***SetAsMesh*** *options node, which determines whether the geometry is sent to FormIt as an object or as a mesh,* *there are a number of* ***FormItGroupOptions*** *node available. Each one controls various properties of the geometry sent to FormIt; feel free to experiment with some of the others!* 4 – Let’s get back to FormIt and see if it worked: 1. Save and then close Dynamo. The updated graph will be automatically reloaded back into FormIt. 2. Switch back to the FormIt window with the **Encode Campus Sample File** and in the **Dynamo Palette**, click again on the **Stair by Top Edge**. 3. Place the stair in the model, similar so what is shown in the image below. 4. Select the stair, and note that its group name matches the name of the Dynamo graph. 5. Now, double-click to edit the group, and select the nested stair geometry group. Notice that that group’s name matches the name we gave to the node in Dynamo. ![](/files/-MlG7v_jdFkDAkUQotOz) ***Note:*** *Don’t worry about the stair’s exact location, we will fine tune that in the following section.* ![](/files/RumSXnA3ScVazLAAVFa9) ***Note:*** *In this case we only needed one* ***SendToFormIt*** *node, but you can create multiple. Each one will create a new group in FormIt, based on the name of the* ***SendToFormIt*** *node it came from.* ## **SelectFromFormIt Nodes** *As we have seen it previous chapters, Dynamo graphs can prompt the user to select specific geometry, which is then used by the graph. Now we will add two (2) of these nodes to our stair graph, so that the stairs orientation, width, and height can be calculated from the selected FormIt geometry inside of Dynamo.* 1 – Delete the stair we just placed. 2 - Switch back to the empty FormIt window. 3 - In the **Dynamo Palette**, click on the dropdown for the **Stairs by Top Edge** tile and select **Edit Source Graph**, and it will open in Dynamo again. ***Note:*** *If you edit a Dynamo graph directly from its* ***Properties Palette*** *by clicking on the* ***Edit Embedded Graph*** *(instead of from the* ***Dynamo Palette**), you will be editing the embedded graph for that group only, and not the source graph saved in the folder we added to FormIt’s Dynamo Library earlier.* 4 – This time, we want to add some selection nodes, which are often located near the beginning, or left, side of the graph. Zoom into the area shown below. ![](/files/-MlG7v_lHekK6fLK9lPX) 5 – To add the new selection nodes: 1. In the **Add-Ons** area, expand **FormIt** and click on **SelectFromFormIt** twice, which should create two (2) new nodes in the center of your screen. 2. Arrange them one above the other as shown in the below image, create an orange group for them, and name it **Geometry Selected from FormIt**. The order in which the user is prompted to select elements in FormIt is based on the vertical positioning of the selection nodes in Dynamo; the top-most node will show up first, and the bottom one will show up last. 3. Rename the top node to **Select Top Edge**, and the bottom node to **Select Bottom Floor**. When this graph is run in FormIt, a Dynamo Selection Wizard will appear, and will use the names of these nodes as the prompts for what geometry to select. 4. Right-click on each node, and ensure that **Is Input** is checked. It should be by default, but if it is not, these nodes will not be recognized by FormIt. 5. Wire up the new selection nodes as shown in the below image. They each only have one (1) connection. ![](/files/-MlG7v_mcbL0YTcG3YyP) ***Note:*** *The new nodes may have warnings, causing them to turn yellow as seen above. You can ignore these for now. The warnings are because the nodes are expecting geometry from FormIt, but have not received any yet (because we just added them!).* 6 – Now we need to make a few more changes to the graph, so that the stairs are created from the geometry from the selection nodes. First, we need to change the **Floor-to-Floor Height** and **Stair Width** inputs so that they get their values from the selected geometry instead of from input sliders: 1. While holding **Shift**, click on the output of the **Floor-to-Floor Height** node inside the orange **Slider Inputs** group, and move those wires to the output of the **Calculated Floor-to-Floor Height** node just above. 2. Using the same technique, move the output wires from the **Stair Width** in the orange **Slider Inputs** group to the output of the **Calculated Floor-to-Floor Height** node above. 3. Delete the old **Floor-to-Floor Height** and **Stair Width** nodes, as we will not need them anymore. ![](/files/ZJVQ6OtimYaBGEQKWXQZ) ***Note:*** *If you want to add any* *Dynamo Input nodes to your graph, it is very similar to adding the* ***SelectFromFormIt*** *nodes. Just make sure they are marked as* ***Is Input**, rename and reorder them however you would like them to show up in FormIt, and they will appear in the FormIt* ***Properties Palette**!* 7 – Lastly, zoom over to the right end for the graph, where we added the **SendToFormIt.Stairs** node earlier. We want to switch this output node to use the stair geometry that has been moved and rotated based on the selected Geometry in FormIt’s location. Simply switch the connection from the **Stair Geometry** group to the **Rotated and Translated Stair Geometry** group. ![](/files/PMwg5zbKQFNd09ztSmhd) ## **Using the Graph** 1 - Now that we have added both selection and bake nodes, the graph is ready. Save and close Dynamo, and then switch back to the FormIt window with the **Encode Campus Sample Model.axm** and try it out by: 1. Make sure you are still in the **Section – Longitudinal** scene, then draw a 6’ line along the right-edge of the first-floor stair opening. This will define the width and angle of the stair. 2. In the **Dynamo Palette**, click on the **Stairs by Top Edge** tile to start the graph. 3. A Dynamo Selection Wizard will appear, and instruct you to make the first selection using the name we gave to that selection node earlier: **Select Top Edge**. Once you have selected the edge we just drew, click on the forward arrow in the Dynamo Selection Wizard. 4. The next prompt will be the name of our other selection node, **Select Bottom Floor**. Select the ground floor slab of the main encode building, then click on the checkmark. 5. After the stair is created, notice that in the **Properties Palette** you now have the option to re-select geometry for either of the selection nodes. Also note that the sliders corresponding to the input nodes we deleted, **Floor-to-Floor Height** and **Stair Width**, are no longer there – they are now calculated from the selected geometry. ![](/files/-MlG7v_s_kdYV2ndwUz7) ***Note:** If you change either the position of the top edge or the height of the bottom floor and re-run the graph, the stairs will update accordingly. It is usually good practice to avoid manually moving any Dynamo-generated geometry that depends on FormIt selections, as that can change its relationship to the selected geometry used to create it. Sometimes grouping the Dynamo group and the selection geometry together will help keep them connected and avoid any issues.* 2 – To finish up, feel free to add your own touches. We did the following, using various tools covered in previous chapters: 1. Created a stair between each floor. 2. Slightly rotated the top edge of the bottom stair, to create a slightly-diagonal stair to the ground floor. 3. Slightly adjusted some input sliders for each stair to achieve our desired settings. 4. Used the **Railing Along Path** Dynamo Graph to create landings around the stair openings. 5. Added a central stringer for each staircase using **Sweep**. 6. Placed all the stairs, strings, and railing all on a new layer called **Encode Main Building – Stairs**. ![Finished stairs, views in section.](/files/-MlG7v_tjhsgU5WyagzV) ![Finished stairs, as visible from the Eye Level – Plaza scene.](/files/Sy9EIwvLsQhtVVFHzKUk) # 2.7 - Diagnostics Tools 2.7 - Diagnostics Tools FormIt comes with some useful built-in model diagnostics tools to help keep your model clean and healthy, including checking for watertight geometry, identifying flipped faces, and viewing all group bounding boxes at once. *In this chapter, we are going to identify and fix some errors built into the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**. If you have not already, you can download the file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**..* *For more information on repairing models, visit the* [***Repairing Solid Models***](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/repairing-solid-models) *FormIt Blogpost.* ## Identify Watertight Issues *A watertight model or group is a solid object with no gaps, stray edges, or other* [***non-manifold geometry***](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/maya/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2016/ENU/Maya/files/GUID-8E97CEF7-1CFE-4838-B4B7-59F526E21AB2-htm.html)*. Checking for watertightness can be important for calculating volumes, running accurate solar and energy analyses, exporting models to other file formats, and preparing models for 3D-printing or manufacturing.* 1 - Once you have opened the **Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**, we will adjust the layer visibility to isolate the geometry we would like to check for watertightness: 1. Open the **Layers Palette**. 2. Select all layers by single-clicking anywhere inside the list of layers and pressing **Ctrl + A**. 3. Single-click on any of the layer checkboxes that is currently on, and all layers will be turned off. 4. In the **Filter** input box near the top of the Layers Palette, star typing “**Exterior Masonry”** until you see just the layer we want. 5. Click on the checkbox to turn on the **Encode Main Building – Exterior Masonry** layer. 6. In the **Floating Navigation Bar** click on the **Zoom All (ZA)** button. You should now see just the exterior brick walls of the main building. ![](/files/iumiw9BB3uNr8OYC9ceu) ![](/files/TTY6dNKY98EVBTaM4ewR) 2 - Now let’s check for any watertight issues! 1. Open the **Visual Styles Palette**. 2. Select the **Model Diagnostics** tab (wrench icon) in the top right. 3. Check the box next to **Identify Watertight Issues**. 4. Any watertight issues will be highlighted in Red. In this case there are two, one along the entire top face of the wall, and a small spec which is actually located in a window bay of the building’s rear façade. 5. Before addressing these issues, select the **Exterior Masonry** group, open the **Properties Palette**, note that the **Volume** property reads **0 cu ft**. This is because the group is not watertight, so its volume cannot be calculated. ![](/files/-MlG7vC8epqV66rU9328) ***Note:*** *The red watertight issue highlights are visible through any model material, opaque or transparent, making them easy to find.* ![](/files/rGYRqYYQr3CyXHQFrBZC) 3 - Now that we have found watertight issues, we can address them. First we’ll tackle the top face of the wall. 1. Double-click the **Exterior Masonry** group to edit it, and then zoom in and select the top face of the wall. In the **Properties Palette**, note that the top face of the wall is actually its own group. In FormIt, a watertight geometry must be composed of a single group, which is why we are seeing these red \_\*\*\_lines. 2. To resolve this issue, simply **Ungroup (U)** the selected face, and the red line around the top of the brick wall should disappear. ![](/files/kFTht6wyR9xqdUzWYH35) ***Note:*** *You can also quickly tell that you have selected grouped geometry by the dotted-blue bounding box around the selected geometry. Ungrouped faces and edges will not have this.* 4 - Now, let’s handle the other small watertight issue still highlighted in red. 1. Zoom and rotate the model until you can clearly see the small triangular gap. the area with the watertight issue so that you can see the triangular gap. 2. While still in group edit mode, use the **Line (L)** tool to trace a line across one of the longer edges of the triangular hole, then press **Esc** twice to exit the line tool. ![](/files/-MlG7vCHYW8YVQBDQaeA) ***Note:*** *FormIt will automatically create a surface to fill in the triangular gap after drawing a single line. This happens anytime you trace or complete a co-planar group of lines.* 5 - The red watertight lines should now have disappeared. To finish up, we will remove the remaining unwanted edge and then re-check the group’s volume: 1. To delete the unwanted edge, try using the **Merge (MG)** tool. This tool will join any coplanar surfaces and delete all extra edges in one click. To do this, double-click on the brick wall to select all its surfaces and edges, the right click to bring up the context menu and select **Merge (MG)**. 2. Press **Esc** or **F** to finish and exit the group edit. Then single-click the **Exterior Masonry** group to select it again, and re-open the **Properties Palette,** if not already open. 3. Now that the group is watertight, FormIt can calculate the wall’s **Volume** for us! ![](/files/R6TPmAwfAUnXIOeqnO46) ***Note:*** *The* ***Identify Watertight Issues**, along with examining solids for issues, can also be used to help find any stray edges lying about your model – give it a try!* 6 - Don’t forget to turn **Identify Watertight Issues** off when you’re done, or every stray edge in your model will be highlighted red! ## Identify Back Faces *In FormIt when you paint a surface with a material, it is automatically applied to both sides. However, other 3D modeling and visualization software may render a surface differently based on which side is visible; the “front” or the “back”. Luckily, FormIt has an easy way to check this!* 1 - Let’s take a look at the existing **NE Building**. Go to the **Scenes Palette**, and double-click on the **Default Visibility** scene to reset the layer visibility. 2 - Instead of using layers this time, double-click on the **NE Building** group to edit it, and again on its **Exterior Masonry** group to edit that. 3 - Orbit your view until you can see the front façade of that building, and enable **Hide Group Context (H)** so you are just looking at the brick walls. Now we can check to see if any back faces are visible: 1. Open the **Visual Styles Palette** again. 2. If not already selected, click on the **Model Diagnostics** button (wrench icon) in the top right. 3. If you haven’t already, uncheck the **Identify Watertight Issues** checkbox, and then activate the **Identify Back Faces** checkbox instead. ![](/files/-MlG7vCKNWCMqBp5WDTN) 4 - There are (3) back faces that are highlighted with FormIt’s default ‘back face’ color, but due to its similarity to the brick material they are hard to see. To fix this, we can enable **Monotone Surfaces**: 1. To display the surface visual styles options, in the **Visual Styles Palette** click on the **Surfaces** button (solid cube icon) in the top left. 2. Check the box next to **Monotone Surfaces**. Now the back faces are easier to see. ![](/files/-MlG7vCOYRSf_w2KflRk) ***Note:*** *The* ***Back Faces*** *checkbox and color in the* ***Surfaces*** *tab (not to be confused with the* ***Identify Back Faces*** *diagnostics tool), when turned on, allows a user to paint both sides of a face with different materials. Back faces without an assigned material will be colored with whatever color is set in the box just to right of the* ***Back Faces*** *checkbox. This is activated by default when working with imported geometry from software that by default will allow opposite sides of a face to have different materials by default, like SketchUp.* 5 - Now all that is left is to flip the ‘back’ faces so we only see front faces. Double-click on the **Exterior** Masonry group to edit it, and for each of the back faces: 1. Zoom into and right-click on a back face to brings up the **Context Menu**. 2. Select **Reverse Face (FF)**, or type the keyboard shortcut **FF**. ![](/files/-MlG7vCSyva2KNLyiZFC) ***Note:*** *You can also hold* ***Ctrl*** *of* ***Shift*** *and click on each back face to select them all together, and then flip them all at once by pressing* ***FF**.* 6 - Don’t forget to turn off both **Monotone Surfaces** and **Identify Back Faces** to see the regular materials again. ## Show Group Bounding Boxes *This tool allows you to see the bounding boxes of all groups in the model at once, regardless of whether their layer is currently visible or not. This can help you quickly identify groups whose extents are much larger than they need to be, as well as groups with varying axis orientations.* 1 - To make all group bounding boxes in the model visible: 1. Open the **Visual Styles Palette**. 2. Select the **Model Diagnostics** button (wrench icon) in the top right. 3. Activate the **Show Group Bounding Boxes** checkbox, and uncheck any others that are still checked. 4. Zoom out using the mouse scroll wheel or by clicking on the **Zoom (Z)** tool in the **Floating Navigation Toolbar** until you can see all the dotted-blue bounding boxes on the canvas. 5. Even if most of the layers are still turned off, notice that we can see one group bounding box that seems unnecessarily large! ![](/files/-MlG7vCToty8p73qiYdC) ***Note:*** *Some of the bounding boxes in this view are at different angles. A group’s bounding box is oriented along that group axis, so a quick way to tell the basic orientation of a group’s internal axis is by looking at its bounding box.* 2 - To find out what is making that bounding box so big, let’s turn on all some layers using a pre-made scene and try to fix the issue: 1. Open the **Scenes** **Palette**. 2. Double-click on the scene named **Default Visibility** to turn all the main layers back on. 3. See the vertical line in the far corner of the largest bounding box? Double click on that to edit the group it is inside of, select the line, and delete. Then exit that group. ![](/files/eyZ500XyDRdrbRFrvGNE) 3 - Now when we look at all the group bounding boxes, there are no bounding boxes that are significantly larger than expected compared to the model geometry. ![](/files/-MlG7vCWbUwtWFVVrLgr) # 2.8 - Advanced Revit Workflows *In this chapter we will learn about this fresh new feature in Revit 2022, by launching FormIt from within Revit, and using FormIt to produce geometry and design options that can then be imported right back into your Revit Model. To follow along, you will need the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.rvt*** *file, which is included with the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**.* *Note that to be able to access this feature you have to have both Revit 2022 and FormIt Pro licenses. Access to FormIt Pro is available only to subscribers of the Autodesk Architecture, Engineering, & Construction (AEC) Collection or customers with an enterprise business account. Learn more about* [***FormIt Pro here***](https://formit.autodesk.com/#pro-callout)*.* ## Opening FormIt from Revit 1 – Start by opening the **Encode Campus Sample Model.rvt** in Revit 2022. Make sure you are signed in with your Autodesk account. You will not be able to launch FormIt from inside Revit if you are not signed in, or if you do not have a FormIt Pro license. 2 – To launch FormIt from within Revit: 1. Open the default 3D view. 2. Navigate to the **Massing & Site** ribbon, and click on the **3D Sketch** button. 3. Click on the **Launch FormIt with all visible Revit Objects** option. This will launch FormIt in a new window, with all the visible Revit geometry already imported into FormIt. ![](/files/-MlG7utTxGHrOx2lQ0PR) ***Note:*** *You must be in a 3D view to launch FormIt, otherwise the* ***3D Sketch*** *button will be grayed out.* 3 – Now let’s add some design options! All the visible Revit geometry will be imported as one mesh, and placed on a layer called **Revit Context**. Add two new layers named **Option 1** and **Option 2**. ![](/files/6NzwS8GYF1UhXBZdLtYw) 4 – Now, we are going to use these two layers to sketch out a couple of design options for the courtyard-facing facades of the two masonry mass buildings. For option 1, we added some glass extrusions to mimic those of the main Encode building. For option 2, feel free to get creative! We threw some curves and a bridge in there. Just don’t forget to keep all your geometry organized into groups, and place those groups on their respective layers. ![Option 1](/files/Xr2GFv7WcZ2eEwJvaHpp) ![Option 2](/files/Q5DRHB9jfeHeQ4KVP0cV) 5 – We are now going to import the designs separately, into two different design options in the Revit model. To import the design on the **Option 1** layer back into Revit: 1. In the **Layer Palette,** make sure the **Option 1** layer is on, and the **Option 2** layer is off. 2. Select all of the geometry on the **Option 1** Layer. To make this easier, you may want to turn off or lock the **Revit Context** layer. 3. In the **Standard Toolbar** of FormIt, click on the right-most button: **Send the selected model back to Revit**. 4. In the pop-up dialog, make sure **Selected Only** is selected. 5. Click **OK**. ![](/files/v2i4cCvUhwG7T2mEhAOk) ***Note:*** *The* ***Revit*** *button will not appear in a regular FormIt session. It will only be available if you have launched FormIt from inside Revit.* 6 – Back in Revit, your FormIt geometry from the **Option 1** layer will be imported into the Revit Model. Each group will be imported as a separate generic model family. Let’s place these on a design option, and then import **Option 2** onto a different design option: 1. In Revit, select all the geometry that was imported from FormIt so far. 2. At the bottom of the Revit window, click on the small **Add to Set** button. 3. In the **Add to Design Option Set** dialog, under the **Courtyard Façade Options**, uncheck **Option 2**. Now the selected geometry will only exist in design option 1. ***Note:*** *Design Options in Revit are a simple way to keep track of and switch between multiple designs ideas relating to the same model. To learn more, visit the* [*Revit Support and learning Design Options*](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/revit-products/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2021/ENU/Revit-Model/files/GUID-D48B1E7E-BC34-414E-85BD-790F199BB2C0-htm.html) *page.* ![](/files/-MlG7utZKx8TV-a7sWEI) 7 – Before importing the second design, let’s switch active design options so the new geometry is imported directly into the correct design option. At the bottom of the Revit window, switch the Design Option menu to **Option 2**. Now that this is the active option, all created or imported geometry will be placed automatically onto this design option. ![](/files/-MlG7ut_cGjctuWm1qjC) ***Note:*** *Any geometry on the* ***Revit Context*** *layer will be ignored when FormIt is sending your geometry back to Revit.* 8 – Switch back to FormIt, and import the geometry on the **Option 2** using the **Send the selected model back to Revit** button, the same way we did previously. 9 – You should now be able to view both designs by switching between design options at the bottom of the Revit window. If you change the **Visual Style** to Realistic, you will also see that any materials that you applied in FormIt have been brought into Revit, similar to what was covered in the **Part I** chapter **1.15 - Working With Revit**. In the below image, we have created a 3D perspective view in Revit to look at our design options. ![](/files/-MlG7utcATNyk3gk6YH3) ## Exporting a Section Box *Sometimes you may not want to export an entire Revit model to FormIt, as you may want to create design studies for a small area or interior space. Below we will see an example of a quick way to export a small portion of your Revit model to FormIt and back.* 1 – Make sure to set the Design Option back to **Main Model**. 2 - With the **Encode Campus Revit Model.rvt** still open, go to the **Corner Office 3D View** from the Project Browser. 3 – Similar to earlier, select the **3D Sketch** button from the **Massing & Site** ribbon, and choose to **Launch FormIt with all visible Revit objects**. ![](/files/ip1MMW1rke3qCoPzznnA) ***Note:*** *When working between FormIt and Revit there are always two options to control what geometry you would like to transfer. You can choose to control what is visible in the current view, and then select the transfer ‘all visible’ geometry option, or you can choose to just transfer the currently selected geometry.* 3 – FormIt will launch again, and you can create a design study using FormIt’s modeling tools inside the model context exported from Revit. When you are finished, simply click on the **Send the selected model back to Revit** button again, and your design will be imported into the Revit model in the correct spot! Working fluidly between Revit and FormIt is an easy way to quickly prototype design ideas for just about any part of your project – big or small! To learn more about using FormIt, visit the [**FormIt + Revit**](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit#:~:text=FormIt%20Groups%20become%20Revit%20Mass,using%20Revit%202018%20and%20newer.) page. # 2.9 - Solar and Insight Energy Analysis *FormIt comes with built in environmental analysis tools, so you can understand even your earliest design studies from a building performance perspective. These features are only available with a* ***FormIt Pro*** *license, so if you are following along on* ***FormIt*** ***Web*** *you may not have access. You will need an internet connection to use the tools discussed in this chapter. Learn more about* [***FormIt Pro here***](https://formit.autodesk.com/#pro-callout)*.* *In this chapter, we will perform both a* ***Solar Analysis*** *and* ***Insight Energy Analysis*** *on the* ***Encode Campus Sample Model.axm**. If you have not already, you can download the file from the* ***FormIt Primer Part 2 Dataset**.* ***Note:*** *Before any of the analysis tools can be used, the location of your project must be set. The Encode Campus Sample Model’s location is already set to a plot in Denver, CO, USA, which you can check by clicking on the* ***Location*** *button from the* ***Standard Toolbar**. To learn more about how to set a project’s locations, see the **Part I** chapter* **1.1 -** ***Set the Location**.* ## **Shadows** *Once your project’s location is set, you can view accurate shadows by enabling shadows, and adjusting the time of day and date. Below we will add three scenes to the model to record the summer and winter solstices and the spring equinox.* ***Note**: Shadows may cause a decrease in application performance. Two suggestions for mitigating this are: turn shadows off if you notice the model is getting slow; turn off layers* ***unnecessary for analyzing shadows**, like* *layers containing furniture or people.* 1 - So that we have a good view of the entire campus, open up the **Scenes Palette** and go to the **Default View and Visibility** scene. 2 - To create the first scene with shadows: 1. Enable them by clicking on the **Shadows (DS)** checkbox in the **Sun + Shadows** dropdown, located on the **Standard Toolbar.** 2. Update the **Day of Year** to **June 21**st (The year does not really matter, so the default of 2000 should be fine). 3. Update the **Time of Day** to **12:00pm**. 4. Add a new scene named **Shadows – Summer Solstice**, and uncheck every scene property except for **Sun and Shadows**, as shown. ***Note:** For more information on creating and editing scenes, refer to chapter **1.12 - Visual Styles** in Part I of the Primer.* ![](/files/HZ6qu81H2yzXIfu9Ga5F) ***Note:** Wondering about the big blue **Solar Analysis** button? We will cover it in the next section, as it works a bit differently from the shadows.* 3 - Create two more scenes in a similar way. The first set to **12:00pm** on **Dec 21st**, and name it **Shadows – Winter Solstice**. The second on **12:00pm** on **March 21st**, and name that one **Shadows – Spring Equinox**. 4 – Go to the **Eye Level – Plaza** scene, and then try toggling between the three shadow scenes we just created and notice how the shadows change. Since these shadow scenes are not tied to a camera position, you can now go to any view or scene in the model, and then toggle between the three shadow scenes to analyze how the shadows will behave. ![Collage showing the three different Sun + Shadow settings we just created.](/files/-MlG7uhNA93c94kdIHGh) ***Note:*** *Using* ***Export (Ctrl + E)*** *to save images, and layers to control the visibility of different design options, you can utilize scenes and shadows to export and compare the effects of shadows at different times on various designs.* 5 – Instead of making more scenes to study different times of the day, let’s instead try utilizing the **Sun Editor** tool: 1. Turn off **Pre-selection Highlights (PS)** from the **Settings** dropdown, so the geometry your mouse is hovered over will not turn blue when we are trying to adjust the time in the 3D sun editor. 2. From the **Sun + Shadows** dropdown, check the **Sun Editor (DR)** box. A red sun diagram will appear in the center of the canvas. 3. Click and drag the circular blue grip across the red arc with time markers to change the time of day of the shadows. While this will immediately change your view’s overall lighting, the new shadows will not render until you release the mouse button. 4. Orbit your current view. You will see that the **Sun Editor (DR)** will remain in the middle of the screen, but you can rotate around it and see that it is actually a 3D arch representing that day’s sun path. If you switch between the shadow scenes we made previously, or change the day in the **Sun + Shadow** dropdown, the red arch will move to match the selected date. ![](/files/-MlG7uhPmQxvtlkW-xlV) ***Note:*** *You can customize your toolbar visibility by right-clicking on any toolbar, or selecting the* ***Window*** *dropdown, and toggling which toolbars you would like. In the above image, we have turned off the* ***Standard Toolbar*** *and turned on only the* ***Design Toolbar**, which contains the* ***Sun + Shadow*** *tools.* 6 – Don’t forget to turn the **Sun Editor (DR)** off again when you are done, and re-enable **Pre-selection Highlights (PS)**! ### **Solar Analysis** *This tool allows you to quickly create a heat map of solar exposure for the selected surfaces.* 1 – Once the solar analysis tool is started, you will be placed in a special selection mode and will loose access to most other tools, including all of the palettes and toolbars. So before we start, we want to adjust some visibility settings. Open the premade **Solar Analysis Visibility** scene, as this scene will hide a lot of layers containing glazing and other detail elements we do not want in the study. The solar analysis does not take transparency into account, so we need to hide the windows so we can select just the floors and walls. Including unnecessary detailed elements (like furniture, railings, or people) can slow down the solar analysis. ***Note:*** *Make sure to also turn off any new layers you may have created in other Part II chapters that you do not want to include in the solar analysis (like the penthouse curtain walls from chapter* ***2.2 – Advanced Modeling Tools: shell and cover,*** *or the stairs and railings from* ***1.6 – Dynamo FormIt Nodes**). After adjusting these settings, we recommend updating the* ***Solar Analysis Visibility*** *to include these visibility changes.* 2 - To start the solar analysis, from the **Sun + Shadow** dropdown, click on the **Solar Analysis** button. It may take a few moments for FormIt to locate the nearest weather station and gather the required data. 3 - Now we want to select the surfaces to include in the analysis. Selecting surfaces for a solar analysis works a bit differently than regular object selection in FormIt, so we recommend: 1. Switch to the orthographic view mode by clicking on the **Orthographic** button (the normal keyboard shortcut will not work in this mode, so you have to click the button. 2. Orbit the view so you are looking down at the Encode Campus from above, with the main building oriented horizontally on your screen, as in the image below. 3. Create a selection window by clicking and dragging, starting up and left main building, then dragging down and right to create a rectangular selection window that encompasses the entire main building. 4. If you make a mistake with your selection, you can click on the **Reset** button to clear the current solar analysis selection. 5. Click on the **Perspective** view button and rotate your view back into 3D. 6. Double-click on the brick facades and roof surfaces (but not windows) of the other two site buildings to add all of their exterior surfaces to the selection. 7. Back in the **Solar Analysis Wizard**, click on the **Analyze** button to run the analysis. This may take a minute or two, as it will calculate the results for each monthly peak as well as the total annual solar loads. ***Note:*** *When selecting surfaces for a solar analysis, there is no need to hold Ctrl or Shift to select multiple elements. You can simply click on any element to add or remove it from your current selection.* ![](/files/-MlG7uhRyl_maXUe_0IP) ![](/files/-MlG7uhSYjHRZ7MmOCrH) 4 – Once the analysis is complete, we can take a look at the results: 1. Hover you mouse over any point on an analyzed face to see the radiation values at that point. (Be careful not to click though, or it will alter your selection and you will have to re-run the analysis!) 2. In the **Solay Analysis Wizard**, move the slider to change which monthly peak you are looking at. The monthly peak mode can be useful for shading studies. Values are shown in BTU/sq ft. It looks like the louvers on the north façade of the main building are doing a lot of work to block some of the late-afternoon summer sun, but throughout the hotter months the glazing on the south (street facing) sides of the building could use some exterior sun protection! 3. Try changing the **Range/Method** dropdown to **Year Cumulative**, which will show you the total exposures for every selected surface for the entire year; this can be useful for PV Potential studies. With a flat roof and no tall adjacent shadow-casting buildings, some of the flat roofs of the Encode Campus may be well suited to host some solar panels! These calculated values, shown in kWh/sq m, could be shared with a PV panel manufacturer to calculate the potential energy gains from installing PV panels – all at an early design stage! 4. To exit the solar analysis, click on the small checkbox in the top left corner of the **Solar Analysis Wizard**. ***Note:*** *Similar to the shadow studies, you can also use the* ***Export (Ctrl + E)*** *feature here to save images of solar studies for different design options and then compare them.* ![](/files/-MlG7uhTzrigawzoP3SK) ## **Energy Analysis with Insight** *FormIt has integrated the same Building Performance analysis tools that Revit uses.* ***Insight*** *provides a dashboard of building system parameters that can be adjusted to reflect potential scenarios without requiring you to* ***re-analyze*** *model geometry. Insight works best with FormIt* ***massing*** *geometry.* 1 – Insight works best on massing geometry, so open the **Massing Only** scene. 2 –We only want to analyze the buildings on the Encode Campus, not all the surrounding site buildings as well, so turn off the **Existing – Context Buildings – Massing** and **Existing – Streets and Paving** layers (FormIt will only send visible geometry to Insight). 3 – Insight requires at least one level to be applied to the geometry being analyzed. Although the levels in the **Encode Campus Sample File.axm** are already applied to these masses, if you have made any changes to the model that affect the building floor heights, you may need to update both the mass geometry and the layer heights. To learn more about adjusting layers and applying them to specific geometry, see the **Part I** chapter **1.4 - Add Floors with Levels**. 4 - To start the analysis, in the **Standard Toolbar** click on the **Energy Analysis** dropdown button, and then select the only non-grayed-out option: **Generate Insight.** This analysis will be done in the cloud. It may take a few minutes or more, but in the meantime, you can continue modeling in FormIt until the results are ready. ![](/files/-MlG7uhUhAMTkCAN4ANm) 5 – Once the analysis is complete, you will be able to select the **View Insight** button. This will launch a web browser where you can view the results of the analysis. Alternatively, you can log in to [***http://insight.autodesk.com***](http://insight.autodesk.com) to see any of the Autodesk Insight Analysis you have done. 6 - Insight Energy Analysis reports energy use intensity numbers based on many factors which can be individually adjusted in real time on the website. Some of these factors include HVAC type, Operating Schedule, Roof Construction, Percent Glazing, and more. Each factor is displayed as a card showing the current setting and how adjusting the setting can impact the energy use intensity of the design. So, even though the FormIt model only represents massing, the Insight Energy Analysis can provide detailed feedback to help inform your design at an early stage. Try clicking on a few cards and adjusting them to seeing how it changes the calculated values. ![](/files/-MlG7uhVsIo-70fDmI7r) *To learn more about how to read and understand the data provided by Insight, as well as compare your model’s output against benchmarks like* ***Ashrae 90.1*** *and the* ***Architecture 2030*** *challenge, visit the* [***Insight Support and Learning***](https://blogs.autodesk.com/insight/) *page.* ***Notes:*** * *If your design changes form drastically, then you can re-send the updated mass to the same dashboard, and the existing analysis will be updated. If you want to create a new dashboard for an updated design, make sure to use* ***Save As*** *to save a new copy of your FormIt Model first.* * *If your Energy Analysis is unsuccessful, you may have sent some non-manifold or non-watertight mass geometry to Insight. To learn about how you can identify and repair these issues in FormIt, see the Part II chapter* ***2.7 - Diagnostics Tools***. # 2.10 - Collaboration Sessions *FormIt 2022 allows you to share your current FormIt session with others with just the click of a button. Collaborators can not only view but actually edit your current model alongside you in real-time.* ***Note:*** *To host or join a* ***Collaboration Session**, you will need to have a FormIt Pro license, which is included with the* [***Autodesk***](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview?plc=AECCOL\&term=1-YEAR\&support=ADVANCED\&quantity=1) *\*\**[***AEC Collection***](https://www.autodesk.com/collections/architecture-engineering-construction/overview?plc=AECCOL\&term=1-YEAR\&support=ADVANCED\&quantity=1)*. You can learn more about* [***FormIt Pro features here***](https://formit.autodesk.com/#pro-callout)*.* ## Hosting a Collaboration session 1 - To start a new Collaboration session: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar**, click on the **Collaboration** icon, and select **Start Collaboration session (CS)**. 2. Click the **Start Session** button. ![](/files/-MlG7uzcYpWZ5QpDgnwS) ***Note:*** *As a host, you do not need to have the specific file that you want to share open before starting a* ***Collaboration Session**. You will be sharing your current session of FormIt, not a particular file, which allows you to open and switch between various FormIt models without having to start a new session!* 2 - When the Collaboration Session starts started successfully, you will see: 1. A public link generated by FormIt, which you can share with anyone you would like to join the session. 2. A **Close** button, which you can now click to exit the **Start Sharing Session** dialog. Your sharing session is now live, and you can begin collaborating! ***Note:*** *Don’t worry, even after closing this dialog you can still access the current Collaboration Session’s share link at any time – which is what the next section is about!* ![](/files/-MlG7uzfSa3g0q8wZou7) ## Inviting Others to a Collaboration Session *Anyone who is part of a collaboration session has the ability to invite others to join, even if they are not the host, through the process below.* 1 – To invite others to participate in the current Collaboration Session: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar,** click on the **Collaboration** icon, and select **Invite others to collaborate (CI)**. 2. Click the **OK + Copy to Clipboard** to copy the link, then send it to anyone who you wish to invite to the current Collaboration Session. ![](/files/-MlG7uzgWGrkleWo4NwN) ## Joining a Collaboration Session *Once you have a link to a live FormIt Collaboration Session, joining is easy. If you do not have FormIt Pro for Windows, simply paste the link into a browser and you will automatically join through* [***FormIt Web***](https://formit.autodesk.com/app)*.* 1 - To join a Collaboration Session from FormIt Pro for Windows: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar,** click on the **Collaboration** icon, and select **Joint existing session (CJ)**. 2. Paste the session ID or link provided from the host into the dialog box, and click **OK**. ![](/files/-MlG7uzi5y2hKXQTIdBU) ***Note:*** *Before joining a Collaboration Session, make sure to save any open models. Joining a Collaboration Session will automatically close any FormIt files you previously had open.* 2 - As a guest, you cannot open, close, save, or export FormIt files while participating in a Collaboration Session. ## Working in a Collaboration Session 1 - When in a Collaboration Session, you can model using FormIt’s tools as you normally would, but so can anyone else who’s part of the session! Here are some things to note when collaborating live with FormIt\_:\_ 1. Each participant is assigned a color. In the canvas\*\*,\*\* whatever geometry they select is highlighted with that color. In this case, we have selected the largest cube, and it has been highlighted with our color, which is **orange**. 2. Note that the other participant is assigned **green** and has select the smallest cube. 3. The **Users Window** displays a list of all current participants. Your username will have an asterisk in front of it. 4. To view the model through another user’s camera perspective, right-click on their username inside the **Users** **Window** and select **Follow Camera**. You will then see the model through their perspective until you right click on that same user again and select unfollow camera. 5. The **Chat Window** allows each participant to communicate with all other participants. In the chat, each participant’s name is highlighted with the same color that was assigned to them for their selected geometry. ***Notes:*** * *If two participants try to modify the same geometry at once, it may cause one or both of their modifications to be ignored.* * *While following another participant’s camera, you will not be able to control your own camera view until you choose to unfollow theirs.* ![](/files/-MlG7uzj-2mmBNM-8a2r) ***Note:*** *If either the* ***User*** *or* ***Chat*** *window are hidden, they can be re-opened by clicking on the* ***Window*** *dropdown in the* ***Menu Bar**, and checking the box next to the window(s) you would like to re-open.* ## Ending or Existing a Collaboration Session 1 - The process for ending a Collaboration Session, if you are the host, or exiting a Collaboration Session, if you are a participant, is the same: 1. From the **Standard Toolbar,** click on the **Collaboration** icon, and select **Stop Sharing**. ![](/files/-MlG7uzk-3gxerK0h_SI) # Tool Library ![](/files/BAeZThUT999dUDrG559R) ## Tool Library Learn about FormIt's various tools, features, and integrations. # 3D Text ## Powered by Dynamo In FormIt 2021 and newer, you can generate and modify 3D Text objects, which are powered by Dynamo. Dynamo enables editing the font, size, and other properties of the text in-place, without having to re-generate and re-position the text when edits are needed. ![](/files/gR7fMMLq1vWa1FZKqrxk) ## Placing 3D Text ![](/files/-MlG7ugIWSjQh4RILmFt) * Go to the Dynamo panel in FormIt for Windows, and ensure you're in the Dynamo Samples directory. * Click the 3D Text sample. * Move your cursor to the canvas, and you'll see the 3D Text appear on your cursor. * Before placing, you can hover over geometry to orient the 3D Text differently - for example, on a vertical surface to get the text to align itself vertically. You can also hit Tab to cycle between orientations. * Click to place the 3D Text, which will be generated inside a FormIt Group. * After placing, the Properties panel will show up to reveal the available options for 3D Text. ## Iterating In Place The beauty of using Dynamo to generate 3D Text is that editing it is easy, and keeps the text in its current position, for quick iteration. 3D Text options are available in the Properties panel when the 3D Text Group is selected, or when editing the Group. After placing the 3D Text initially, the Properties panel will be displayed automatically. You can also select the Group and switch to Properties yourself, or double-click the Group to automatically switch to the Properties panel. ![](/files/t4A2jV9GzmVPJvFo1MM9) ### Text Enter the text you'd like the 3D Text geometry to display. This field also previews the selected font and justification. Hit Enter/Return for multiple lines. ### Font Select the font for the 3D Text. This list will display the fonts available on the machine, and selecting a new font will update the Text field. Note that some fonts have more complex geometry, and may take more time to generate using Dynamo. ### Justification This will move the text to align relative to the Group's Local Coordinate System origin. * Left will ensure the text starts at the Group's origin, and expands to the right. * Center will ensure the text is always centered about the Group's origin. * Right will ensure the text ends at the Group's origin. ![](/files/-MlG7ugLTatp3r23gCI9) ### Text Size ![](/files/-MlG7ugMhqglSwqXG6_f) The height of the text. The unit is based on the [FormItLengthString ](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo/#dynamo-formit-nodes)node, and any unit can be used. ### Extrusion Depth The amount of 3D extrusion of the text, in the unit set by the [FormItLengthString ](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo/#dynamo-formit-nodes)node. 3D Text is designed to be solid, so this value can't be zero, but you can get it very close to 0 so it's less obvious that it's extruded. ### Tracking ![](/files/-MlG7ugN8so3TriI1b-D) Tracking is useful to adjust the default spacing between letters from a particular font. It uses the unit set by the [FormItLengthString ](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo/#dynamo-formit-nodes)node, and can be positive or negative. For example, in Feet, 0.25 will add 3" of spacing between each letter. Conversely, -0.25 will make all the letters 3" closer. ### Multi-Line Spacing ![](/files/-MlG7ugPQZNhen91i9ZP) If you have multiple lines in the Text field, this value controls how much space is between each line of text. It uses the unit set by the [FormItLengthString ](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo/#dynamo-formit-nodes)node. ### Invert Text ![](/files/-MlG7ugRNx6HxgFNszaH) When True, this option will create a solid around the text, and will remove the text from it, giving the result of "inverted" text - as if the text was cut out of a material. ### Inverted Text Border ![](/files/-MlG7ugSE4SrHaobHI88) Only applies when Invert Text is true. Specifies the amount of border around the text to use for the solid from which the text is removed. It uses the unit set by the [FormItLengthString ](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo/#dynamo-formit-nodes)node. ### Curve Faceting Quality Curves from fonts are converted to line segments using 3D Text, so this value controls how fine the curves are faceted. Lower numbers will result in more coarse faceting (longer segments) and higher numbers will result in finer faceting (shorter segments). This value overrides FormIt's Curve and Surface faceting settings in Preferences. ### Run After editing the options, click the "Run" button to run the underlying Dynamo graph, and generate new results. This button will turn blue when parameters have changed, so you know that "Run" needs to be clicked to see the updates in the final geometry.‌ ### Edit Embedded Graph Clicking this will launch the Dynamo graph editor environment, so you can view and edit the underlying Dynamo graph to quickly change parameters and see live updates, or to inspect/adjust the logic. This isn't required but can be useful for troubleshooting or for faster editing. See below for more. ## Iterate Faster in Dynamo If you're iterating on 3D Text options, it might be faster to launch the Dynamo graph editor, which will allow you to adjust parameters and see the changes in real-time. This also allows you to inspect the logic behind the graph, in case there are issues. ![](/files/-MlG7ugYtdkPYpCYUrQk) You can click the "Edit Embedded Graph" button in the Properties panel, to start the Dynamo graph editor. ![](/files/2BNjliJGFjdJ60r9tbBQ) ## Troubleshooting 3D Text uses Dynamo behind the scenes, and Dynamo uses a modeling kernel called ASM to generate its geometry, which is passed back to FormIt. Some fonts may create "self-intersecting curves", or other problematic geometry, which cause errors in ASM. If you get an error when trying to run 3D Text, or if letters disappear, it's worth clicking "Edit Embedded Graph" to see what's going wrong with the graph, and where the failure might be happening. Some fonts also have known issues that prevent them from being turned into proper geometry. Bahnschrift is one example of this. If you run into another font that's problematic, [let us know on the forums](https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/formit-forum/bd-p/142). We'll do what we can to fix issues with specific fonts. # Align Camera With Face Quickly align the camera to look directly at any face. Select a single face, then right-click to access the Context Menu. Look for Align Camera with Face at the top of the menu, or use shortcut AF: ![](/files/-MlG7ubPHvVKIpD_YnWx) # Arc Use the Arc tool to create half circles or symmetrical arcs. There are two ways to create arcs. ## Arc by Three Points ![](/files/-MlG7uq_8i4HDsgpk3LN) An arc is defined by three points and can be drawn on the X, Y, and Z axes. Define your first point then determine a distance from the first to the second point and finally a third point for the height of the arc. You will automatically be provided a 'half-circle' point which you can snap to; beyond this, the arc line will extend past the first two points. You can see the length between the first point and the second point as you're determining the second points next location; to manually specify a length, simply enter a value and a dimension box will appear. ![](/files/-MlG7uqaklS8A6x43Q6O) After drawing the arc, you can make a face using the [Line tool](/tool-library/line-tool) to connect the first and second points. ## Arc by Center ![](/files/-MlG7uqbI1h8xtXUcNaC) Choose the mid point of the arc, then drag to choose the center, and drag to define the length of the arc. Simply start typing a value to enter a precise number of degrees for the arc. ![](/files/-MlG7uqdu-kFGGW_xV_T) ## Editing an Arc You can also modify an arc you have already placed by right-clicking it and choosing Edit Arc at the bottom:
The Edit Arc grips will appear, allowing you to change the radius, angle, or alignment of the arc. The new arc will appear as an outline while editing.
To complete the edit, exit the tool by clicking into empty space or hitting ESC. The new arc will replace the current arc. # Array You can create both linear and radial arrays in FormIt. To **array edges, faces, or entire objects**, click on the Array icon from the Context Menu. Next, choose Linear or Radial, specify the other parameters, and click the object to start an array. Click again to place the arrayed elements. ## Linear ![](/files/-MlG7uiS-HCSF1NIkgna)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uiUJ5MlOyzrggJW)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uiWpHwDNRlG3ch1) ## Radial ![](/files/suIwdGhBtF3uZuXOD7CF)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uiZO7Tj9zb3RIHv)\ ![](/files/-MlG7ui_3mVwxyWcixCW) # Array Along Path ## Powered by Dynamo In FormIt 2021 and newer, you can array objects along a path, and quickly customize the results in-place. Array Along Path is powered by Dynamo, which means the array is easily configurable to get the results you want, and re-running the logic will update the geometry in-place. ![](/files/rstGhFd6j4X3R32BijvO) ## Starting Array Along Path * Go to the Dynamo panel in FormIt for Windows, and ensure you're in the Dynamo Samples directory. * Click the Array Along Path sample. * On the left side of the screen, you'll see a prompt to "Select object(s) to array." * You can select any mix of FormIt objects for this step. * Once you've got something selected, you can hit the "next" arrow on the left side of the screen, or just hit Enter. * Now you'll see a prompt to "Select path for array." * Here, you should select only a series of contiguous edges, or a Group containing a series of contiguous edges. * Once you've got the path selected, click the "finish" button, or hit Enter. * The Dynamo panel will indicate it's processing the changes. When it's done, you'll have a Dynamo-generated Array in a FormIt Group, ready for modifying (see below). ## Iterating In Place After running Array Along Path, you'll see its results are set to default values, so you'll want to modify them to suit your needs. When Array Along Path runs, it creates a new Group containing the results, and FormIt will automatically select the Group and show the available options for that Array Along Path instance. You can always return to the Array Along Path properties by selecting the Group and switching to the Properties panel, or by editing the Group which will automatically show Properties. ![](/files/pT9U0RaXWnTiMbDdtJlY) ### Select Object(s) to Array Click this to go back to the selection wizard to change which objects are being arrayed. ### Select Array Path Click this to go back to the selection wizard to change the path that is used to calculate the array. ### Array Type This toggles the type of array to calculate: By Distance, or By Number. **When true**, the calculation will be "By Distance", so the number below refers to the distance between copies. **When false**, the calculation will by "By Number of Copies", so the number below this field refers to the number of copies to fit along the path. ### Include Original Selection In Results When **true**: * The object(s) selected will be counted as one of the new copies * The resulting Dynamo Group will include the original selection in its results, so the new copies will Z-fight with the original selection. You can put the original selection on a [Layer](/tool-library/layers), and turn it off to hide it. When **false**: * The resulting array will **not** include the original selection, so you'll get the number of copies you specified **in addition to** the original selection, and the results won't Z-fight ### Rotate Copies Along Path When **true**, the copies are rotated to maintain the orientation of the original object relative to the path. When **false**, the copies are not rotated, only moved. ### Use Relative Positioning Along Path When **true**: * Each copy will maintain the distance between the path and the original object. * If the original object is **not** positioned at one of the path endpoints, the largest remaining segment of the path will be used for the array calculation. When **false**: * The entire length of the path will used to calculate the array, regardless of where the original object is relative to the path. * This decouples the path's location relative to the object, and simply uses the entire path. Useful if the path and object are not near each other. ### Reverse Path Direction For closed paths only. When using Array Along Path with a closed path, the direction of the curve may unexpectedly flip the expected results of the array. Toggle this to **true** to reverse the array direction if the results are flipped. ### Run After editing the options, click the "Run" button to run the underlying Dynamo graph, and generate new results. This button will turn blue when parameters have changed, so you know it needs to be clicked to see the updates in the final geometry.‌ ### Edit Embedded Graph Clicking this will launch the Dynamo graph editor environment, so you can view and edit the underlying Dynamo graph to more quickly change parameters and see live updates, or to inspect/adjust the logic. ## Selecting Geometry When selecting objects for Array Along Path, and other selection-based Dynamo graphs: * You can select any mix of FormIt objects - vertices, edges, faces, solids, Groups, and Meshes. * Note that depending on the step, some of these objects should not be selected. * For example, when selecting the path, you should only select a contiguous series of edges, or a Group containing a contiguous series of edges. Anything else will cause the graph to fail. * You can double-click on an object to select everything attached. * You can use the area selection window to grab a series of objects. * You can select objects already selected to deselect them. * At least one object is required to proceed with a selection-based step. # AutoSave Starting with v17.3, FormIt for Windows includes AutoSave, which makes a backup copy of your FormIt model while you work. This backup file can be used to recover data if FormIt closes with unsaved changes. ## Toggling AutoSave Find configuration options for AutoSave in Edit > Preferences > AutoSave. ![](/files/oKDhwNQVKUToBDpZZPaU) AutoSave is enabled by default, but can be disabled entirely by simply unchecking the box. Set the interval (in minutes) at which AutoSave will make a backup copy by entering a value in the "AutoSave interval" number box. Note that these preferences are application-level, and will not change when opening different files. ## How AutoSave Works When AutoSave is enabled, it determines whether the current FormIt file has unsaved changes. If there are unsaved changes, Autosave creates a backup copy of the file at the specified interval. Backup files are stored next to the original file, and have an extension of `.axmb`. For example, if your original FormIt file is stored at `C:/Users//FormIt/MyProject.axm`, the backup file can be found at `C:/Users//FormIt/MyProject.axmb`. If you start a new FormIt session without opening an existing file, unsaved changes can be found at `C:/Users//Documents/Untitled.axmb`. Once you save the new model to a different location, the backup will start adding unsaved changes next to the new location, as noted above. When you save changes to the original file, AutoSave automatically deletes the backup file since the backup is now older than the original file. However, making subsequent changes to the saved file will prompt AutoSave to again start backing up at the specified interval. If your working file has unsaved changes and you choose to close FormIt and discard the changes, the AutoSave backup will be deleted. However, if FormIt is forced to close — either through a computer shutdown or an application crash — the AutoSave backup file will remain, and can be used later to recover data. ## Working With AutoSave Enabled FormIt minimizes the potential performance impact of AutoSave by executing the backup in a separate process. With small- to medium-sized files, you shouldn't notice when AutoSave backs up. With very large files (\~400MB and above), you might notice just a momentary pause while FormIt copies the entire model and starts backing up in a separate process. If you're wondering if AutoSave is currently backing up, you can watch the status bar the bottom left of the application for a brief "AutoSaving..." message: ![](/files/-MlG7uq5qXCbD0Kvwut4) If your status bar is disabled, you can enable it at Window > Status Bar or via the shortcut HS. ## Recovering Data with AutoSave When opening a FormIt file with a backup available, FormIt will alert you that the backup file exists. As mentioned above, this could be simply due to you closing FormIt without electing to save changes to this project last time it was edited, or due to FormIt unexpectedly closing. ![](/files/-MlG7uq6HhOIEWTbPe6j) Clicking the "Open it?" hyperlink will load the `.axmb` backup file. Similarly, you can use File > Open, and manually select the `.axmb` file from the file explorer to open a backup. Once the backup file is open, the next time you save, FormIt will require you to pick a different FormIt file (`.axm`) to overwrite. You cannot overwrite FormIt backup files (`.axmb`). # Boolean Cut You can cut one object or group from another with the Cut Tool. There are two ways to access the Cut tool: ## Boolean Cut from the Toolbar Keyboard: C G ![](/files/-MlG7vuNe8RBqvZKWjnN) Run the Cut command and follow the mode instruction in the upper left of the screen Single-click to select an object to cut into: ![](/files/-MlG7vuRbsp5uqryrFjn) Single click to select an object(s) or group(s) to be removed: ![](/files/-MlG7vuVaFkT3guJbLz8) Click the checkmark to finish the command. The object that was removed remains in the scene. You can delete it or use [Layers ](/tool-library/layers)to hide it. ## Boolean Cut from the Context Menu 1. Double-click to select the object to be cut into. (Single-click for a Group) 2. Holding the **CTRL key** double click an overlapping object(s) to cut out. 3. Right-click on the object that will be cut, and choose the [**Cut tool**](https://github.com/FormIt3D/autodesk-formit-360-windows-help/tree/c377e7b8a3b8e43e684321d0b7de867608d317a3/tool-library/boolean-operations.md) in the Context Menu. ![](/files/iTXdjbq8hqzTGXg8dj6o) # Boolean Intersect You can cut out the intersection of two objects or groups with the Intersect Tool. There are two ways to access the Intersect tool: ## Intersect from the Toolbar Keyboard: I G ![](/files/7wNWPsE6vmUFiPxaqsaN) Run the Intersect command and follow the mode instruction in the upper left of the screen Single-click to select an object to cut into:
Single click to select an object(s) or group(s) to take the intersection with:
Click the checkmark to finish the command. The first object will be replaced with the intersection of the selected geometry. You can delete the object object if you don't need it!
## Intersect from the Context Menu 1. Double-click to select the object to be cut into. (Single-click for a Group) 2. Holding the **CTRL key** double click an overlapping object(s) to intersect with. 3. Right-click on the object that will be cut, and choose the **Intersect tool** in the Context Menu.
# Boolean Join You can join one object or group into another with the Join tool. There are two ways to access the Join tool: ## Boolean Join from the Toolbar Keyboard: J G ![](/files/-MlG7uff8kPUuLHprF5k) Run the Join command and follow the mode instruction in the upper left of the screen Single-click to select an object to join into. ![](/files/VocZ7tYrzCQPnfJ8hAko) Single-click to select an object or group to be joined. ![](/files/GU2vRnV0DLk57XhVqEkA) Click the checkmark to finish the command. ## Boolean Join from the Context Menu 1. Double-click to select the object to be joined (single click for a group). 2. Holding the **CTRL key,** double click an overlapping object you want to join with the first object. 3. Right click on any of the objects and choose the Join Tool in the Context Menu. ![](/files/uPag7zFvvVAUESoSjfcA) # Circle ## Drawing a Circle Use the Circle tool to draw a circle in space or on another object. Keyboard shortcut: C ![](/files/-MlG7uu7_NjMTRlidKKE) To draw a circle, first, choose the center point and then specify the circle radius. Next, the circle automatically becomes a face. ![](/files/-MlG7uu8ogMu2D0pVj9G) ![](/files/-MlG7uu9XrRNaV7bc6sp) ## Editing a Circle You can also modify a circle you have already placed by right-clicking it and choosing Edit Circle at the bottom:
The Edit Circle grips will appear, allowing you to change the size or orientation of the circle. The new circle will appear as an outline while editing. You'll see a few grips appear: * The center grip controls the origin of the circle * The grip along the edge controls the radius of the circle * The grip at the top controls the normal/orientation of the circle
To complete the edit, exit the tool by clicking into empty space or hitting ESC. The new circle will replace the current circle. # Collaboration FormIt allows multiple users to collaboratively edit a FormIt model on any combination of Windows, iPadOS, or Web clients, all while seeing their changes in real-time! With a FormIt Pro subscription, you have access to the Real-time Collaboration feature which allows you to: * Start a collaboration session and invite colleagues. * Join a collaboration from the FormIt Windows, Web, or iPadOS apps. * Collaborate with colleagues to explore designs in a shared sandbox environment. * Follow another collaborator's camera to see the model from their viewpoint. * Let a client follow your camera as you guide them through your design. * Chat with collaborators in the session. ## Start a Collaboration Session 1. From the Collaboration drop-down, choose "Start sharing session." ![](/files/i04e4fpLJc2dvkZuZEqL) 2. Email a link to collaborators. This link prompts recipients to log into their Autodesk accounts to immediately start collaborating. ![](/files/BCvYLK2FQDv7UcruP6Pg) # Content Library Content Libraries are a convenient way to store components and other items you want to use repeatedly. By default, FormIt includes several Libraries of samples, including a Library of furniture samples, and a Library of Dynamo sample scripts. In FormIt 2021, BIM 360 content can now be accessed and consumed from the Content Library. ![](/files/50W0ZXxDBXrWg5DduUZk) Learn more about using the Content Library [here](/formit-primer/part-i/import-export-and-content-library). To see a few Content Libraries [see this blog post](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/content-library). # Copy Object There are three ways to copy an object. **Copy Using the Context Menu** 1. Select the object by double-clicking it. 2. Right-click the object. 3. Select the [**Copy tool**](/tool-library/tilt-array-copy-and-paste) in the Context Menu. 4. Right-click anywhere else in the scene and choose the **Paste button**. Note: This also works with **CTRL + C** or **V**. Use Paste In Place (**CTRL+Shift+V**) to paste an object exactly where it was copied from. **Copy Using the CTRL Key** 1. Select the object by clicking it (double-click to select a whole body or everything attached). 2. Press and hold the **CTRL key** and start dragging the object, or start moving the object and then tap **CTRL** 3. Instead of moving the object, you'll now be moving a copy of it. 4. Note that Ctrl-copy does not currently work when Touch Mode is enabled. 1. In Touch Mode, you'll need to use the copy/paste tools in the Context Menu (press and hold) or use Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V, then place the object down, and reposition it as needed. **Copy Using the Array Tool** 1. Select the object by double-clicking it 2. **Right-click** the object and select the [**Array tool**](/tool-library/tilt-array-copy-and-paste) 3. Select the number of copies you want to make 4. Choose whether the next drag will define the distance between two objects or the total length of the array. 5. Click **OK .** ![](/files/ubDnfAy8TPT95DQRLIzq) # Cover, Sweep, Loft Enclose open edges, make geometry changes along a path of edges, and connect multiple profiles or edges. ## To close a series of faces 1. From the **Advanced Geometry Tools** menu in the action bar, click the **Cover** tool. ![](/files/T0oqTOqDDTmHGGLZTKfl) 2. Click the edges of the object you want to cover. 1. Click **Finish** ## To sweep geometry along a path 1. Use a line to mark the face of an object that you want to cut. ![](/files/-MlG7ukhiintRY3vsHlS) 2. Click the sweep tool icon. ![](/files/icsmwodDMOamEkT5qzxW) 3. Select the face you marked earlier. ``` ![](../.gitbook/assets/sweep2.png) ``` 1. Select the edge you want to cut. 2. Click the **Finish** icon. The original object is modified along the sweep path. ![](/files/-MlG7ukkC3jGyu2wWwwe)![](/files/-MlG7uklqrp9awP57YaR) ## To loft multiple profiles or edges 1. From the **Advanced Geometry Tools** menu in the Action bar, click the **Loft** tool. ![](/files/eY2umXv7I51W4lZG4P50) 2. Select the face or edges you want to loft on the first object. 3. Select the face or edges you want to loft on the second object. Repeat this step for additional objects. 4. Click the **Finish** icon. ![](/files/-MlG7ukpBVIfaRoNUzDw) # Create Panorama In addition to the In Sketch view camera options available, FormIt can export a Panorama image for 3D viewing of your sketch in an external viewer, available from the View menu:
This will generate a full 360-degree image from the current camera view. The width of the image can be modified and the mode can be toggled between Cylindrical and Spherical panorama:
Save the file, and load it in your favorite 3D viewer, such as (used in these examples):
This is a also a great tool for viewing indoor spaces:
# Curve + Surface Faceting FormIt is a polyhedral modeling system, so curves like circles, arcs, and splines are represented by a series of straight edges or segments. Similarly, a curved surface like the wall of a cylinder, or a dome, is comprised of a series of planar faces with hidden border edges. By default, FormIt uses 40 edges, or facets, to represent a circle, and 24 facets to represent a 3D, curved object like a cylinder. For more complex surfaces like a dome, a value of 24 sets the perimeter faceting count, and also impacts how densely faceted the rest of the shape is. In FormIt for Windows v18 and newer, the curve and surface faceting values are customizable: ![](/files/-MlG7up5bLueJn8ptxmk) ![](/files/-MlG7up7HfNhus7Misdc) **Curve Faceting Quality** Changing the Curve Faceting Quality will affect how many facets are used when drawing new circles and arcs in FormIt, as well as when placing primitive shapes. For example, setting this to 64 would create a 64-sided full circle or a quarter-circle arc with 16 facets. This value will also affect the quality of circles and arcs imported from SAT files, as well as when baking geometry from Dynamo. You can set this value for new sketches, or just the current sketch. For existing curves, you can also use the Rebuild Curve plugin to retroactively rebuild an **existing** arc or circle with a new faceting count: ![](/files/aMvw1UtxglATFroRbpn4) ![](/files/2rAaTEqYgYCJvSh6mK2O) **Surface Faceting Quality** Changing this global setting will affect the quality of 3D curved surfaces imported from SAT files and when baked from Dynamo. For example, setting this to 64 then baking a sphere from Dynamo will use 64 faces around the equator of the sphere, plus 64 facets in each of the rings going to the poles of the sphere, which adds up quickly! Use higher values with caution, as it can affect the performance of FormIt in some cases. Once you've got a result that's high quality, you can [convert it into a Mesh](/tool-library/meshes) to improve performance. When working with Dynamo, you can modify the faceting quality, and hit "Run Graph" in the Properties Panel without changing any parameters, to take advantage of new faceting counts: ![](/files/QgUTfJyfpZNsB97A1RGM) As with curves, you can set the surface faceting quality for new sketches, or for the current sketch only. Note that faceting values are currently limited to multiples of 4, so when entering numbers manually, FormIt will round to the nearest multiple. You can use the sliders and arrows to cycle through accepted values. ![](/files/jFDE3KxpUzc6HltnuD5H) # Delete, Edit, Move Remove an object, change its location, or modify its properties. ## Delete First, make a geometry selection. Then, right-click to see the Context Menu where you can click on the **Delete Tool**. You can also press the delete key on your keyboard. ![](/files/-MlG7uepDx8bETL_CP48) ## Edit When using many of the editing tools like Move, Array, Push-Pull Face, and Offset, you will see a blue dimension box. You can click this dimension after you finish your operation, and input a specific value. You can also simply start typing a numeric value to access the Edit Dimension dialog. Alternatively, you can hit Tab to bring up the Edit Dimension dialog, but Tab is no longer required with FormIt for Windows v17 and newer. ![](/files/Pn52NULo0aTZqmvKckri) ## Move Edges, Faces, or Objects First select the edge, face, or object. The move tool is automatically activated. Hover to see snaps and inference points to specify where you want to start your move operation, click to start. Now hover your mouse to see snaps and inference points to the location you want to move the object. Click again to place the object. ![](/files/-MlG7uerWEH2dTbG630z) # Dynamo ![](/files/Rom27KKcVUOvnvs0zVzn) [See FormIt + Dynamo in the FormIt Capabilities section](/formit-capabilities/formit-+-dynamo). # Energy Analysis with Insight ![](/files/RbujC0aoIq9QOabRvuhP) [See FormIt + Insight in the FormIt Capabilities section.](/formit-capabilities/analysis) # Faces: Extrude, Cut and Offset Push or pull a face, imprint new shapes on existing ones, or create new offset edges. ## Extrude To push or pull a face, select a face with a single click, then click and drag. The face will move back and forth, you can now move your mouse to snap and inference on other model elements. Click again to finish moving the face. Hold down the CTRL key to retain the original edges. ![](/files/-MlG7uk-GQG4q4hIhFTH) ## Imprint To imprint shapes, use a 3D Sketch tool to draw lines, arcs, splines, rectangles, or circles onto existing faces. This action creates new faces that can be pushed or pulled independently of the original face. ![](/files/-MlG7uk0XXzJxCltDgSg)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uk1OwrZ84J1X7w5) ## Offset To offset the face of an object: 1. First select the face you would like to edit, then right-click to view the **Context** menu. 2. From the **Context** menu, click on the **Offset Face** tool. 3. Move your cursor over the selected face and adjust the lines that display until you reach your desired offset effect. 4. Click anywhere to complete the offset. You can now independently push or pull the offset face. ![](/files/-MlG7uk2gfPMhryUdtoV)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uk3OWyb0KCiHH6a)\ ![](/files/-MlG7uk4CbObbrq3SvWq) # Faces: Flatten Use the **Flatten Faces** tool to force two or more object faces into the same plane. When two or more object faces are selected, you can select the **Flatten Faces** tool from the **Context** menu. You can also access **Flatten Faces** using the shortcut "**FL**." ![](/files/-MlG7uqlESv24xjr_RUc) **Flatten Faces** can be useful as a repair tool when a face that should be planar becomes unexpectedly faceted (with smooth edges between the facets), either when importing lower-fidelity data like [SketchUp models](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/using-formit-to-get-sketchup-data-into-revit#flatten), or after accidentally moving a vertex or edge which causes a face to get faceted or triangulated. You can also use **Flatten Faces** as a design tool for aligning or extending shapes. To do this, first, select a guide surface, then select additional faces to flatten to the plane of the first surface. Check out the video below to see the power and versatility of **Flatten Faces**: {% embed url="" %} # Faces: Tilt and Facet/Smooth ## Working with Faces: Tilt and Facet/Smooth To create more complex designs after sketching a shape or placing a primitive, you can use several contextual tools to modify your geometry. These operations include Tilt, Array, and Copy and Paste. ### Tilt Face To **tilt a face:** 1. Select a face and right-click to see the context menu. 2. Choose the **Tilt** icon from the context menu. 3. Define the tilt axis by drawing a line. 4. Click a third point to start the tilt operation. ![](/files/ImowJjUDqvSMrzZyRMK4)\ ![](/files/-MlG7v7tyjd-GvvB6_Bj)\ ![](/files/-MlG7v7u8cWa1YyJ2sNT) ### Facet / Smooth Faces If you hover over a face and notice dotted lines, this means the face is made up of smaller faces due to the face being warped. To **turn the dotted lines into model edges:** 1. Select the face or object that you want to change and right-click to see the context menu. 2. From the context menu, choose the **Facet Smooth Faces** tool. 3. Edges are automatically added where the face was previously smooth. This command works in the opposite way, also: you can select faces that are faceted and select the **Facet Smooth Faces** tool from the context menu to hide the edges and make the faces appear smooth. ![](/files/-MlG7v7vvEH7oNUKUFp3)\ ![](/files/-MlG7v7wONOTDMmImGMZ) # Groups Tree The **Groups Tree** palette provides a single place to manage all of the groups in the file. The tree view displays nested groups and the Status column shows which group is currently being edited and whether the group is from Dynamo or Revit. The Instance column displays instance IDs to help differentiate instances of the same group. * **Select**: Each instance is listed individually. Select an instance in the tree and the instance(s) are selected in the 3D scene. * **Edit**: To edit a group, use the pen icon at the top of the palette or right-click and choose Edit. * **Rename**: To rename a group, double-click the name or right-click and choose Rename. * **Delete**: To delete a group, use the (**-**) icon at the top of the palette or right-click and choose Delete. Select multiple groups to delete them all at once. * Tip: To select multiple groups one by one, use the Ctrl key. To select a range of groups, select a group, hold Shift, and select another group. This will add all groups in between to the selection. * **Ungroup**: Right-click a group and select Ungroup. * **Change Category**: To change a group's category, select the group and use the Category drop-down at the top of the palette. ![](/files/lCysPewTWMZBr96nC7hm) # Groups One of the most basic yet important techniques in FormIt workflows involves grouping. Groups allow you to keep your geometry from sticking together and allow you to set up parent/child relationships between copied elements so that if you update one element, both elements update. Learn more about groups [here](/formit-primer/part-i/grouping-objects). Groups can be created and edited in two ways: either from the context menu of a selected group, or from the main toolbar. ## Groups Interactions To **create a group**, select the elements you'd like to group together — this can include edges, faces, solids, or other groups — and right-click. Choose the **Group (G)** tool from the context menu. Imported images and satellite images cannot be grouped. To **select a group**, single-click the group. Note the dashed lines that appear when selecting a group — these lines indicate the group's total size. To **edit a group**, double-click the group. This launches an edit mode where you can only view and snap to elements outside of the current group, but cannot select them. You can also hide the elements outside of the current group by using the **H** keyboard shortcut. You can create **groups within groups:** these are called **nested groups** and can be created within the group edit mode. To move up one level in nested groups, click anywhere outside of the groups. To **exit group edit mode,** double-click anywhere outside of the group. You can **copy a group** to create a relationship between the original group and its copy: if you edit any copied groups, the same changes will affect all related groups. To **sever the relationship between copied groups**, select the group or groups you would like to make separate, right-click, and choose **Make Unique** from the context menu. You can also select Make Unique from the Groups toolbar. To **select all related groups**, hover over a group and press the Tab key. When all related groups become highlighted, click on the groups to select them. You can then perform an action on all groups at once. The [**Groups Tree**](/tool-library/groups-tree) provides a single place to view and manage all of the groups in a project. ## Groups Context menu and Toolbar access ## ![](/files/-MlG7uifUiMmxNJUSn_L) **Group Elements** To create a group from the Groups toolbar item, select one or more elements, select the **Create Group** icon, and then select the **Finish** icon. Alternatively, you can select **Create Group** from the Groups tool bar item, then select elements you would like to group and select the **Finish** icon. To **edit a group from the Groups toolbar item**, select the **Edit Group** icon and then click the group you want to edit. When you are done making edits, select the **Finish** icon. This tool allows you to choose the specific group you'd like to edit, even if it is deeply nested. **To make a group unique from the toolbar,** select the **Make Unique** icon in the Groups toolbar item. Additionally, you can select **Make Unique** from the Groups toolbar item and then select the group you would like to make unique and click the **Finish** icon. **To ungroup a group from the Groups toolbar item,** select the group you want to change and choose the **Ungroup** icon from the Groups toolbar menu.This ungroups your current selection, but does not ungroup any nested groups. Alternatively, you can select **Ungroup** from the toolbar, select the group you want to change, and then select the **Finish** icon. **To ungroup all groups nested below your currently selected group,** select a group with nested groups and choose **Ungroup All Nested** from the Groups toolbar. **To ungroup all groups in your model,** select the **Ungroup All** tool from the Groups toolbar. ## Groups and Revit If you're familiar with Revit **families**, then you are familiar with the concept of groups in FormIt. FormIt groups have features you can use to transfer them intelligently into Revit. **FormIt Group Categories** You can specify the **categories** for groups in FormIt so that your FormIt groups become families of the same categories when you import them into Revit. You can assign categories to your FormIt groups by selecting a group, entering **Group Edit** mode, and using the **Properties** panel to choose categories. You can also assign categories in the **Groups Tree** panel. **FormIt Group Names** You can also use the **Properties** panel to specify a name for your FormIt group. This can be helpful in navigating your own model, and when you import your model to Revit you can easily filter elementsusing the name of the group. Note that **nested groups in FormIt are not imported into Revit as nested groups**. This prevents deeply-nested Revit families. # Import and Export Data ## Importing Data The following file formats can be imported. * **OBJ**: OBJ 3D mesh files are imported as a single FormIt Group. No materials are imported. * **DWG**: 2D and 3D DWG files are imported as a single FormIt Group. Object colors are supported. * **STL**: STL 3D mesh files are imported as a single FormIt Group. * **SAT**: SAT solid model files are imported as a single FormIt Group. * **SKP**: SketchUp files are imported. Groups and Components are imported as FormIt Groups. Layers and materials are supported. [**Find out more about how to work with imported data**](/formit-primer/part-i/import-export-and-content-library) ## Exporting Data FormIt can export the following file formats: AXM (FormIt file), DWG, SKP, FBX, SAT, STL, DAE, DXF, OBJ (with a separate .MTL file), PNG images. When exporting individual files, you can choose to export **All Objects**, **Visible Only**, or **Selected Only**. ![](/files/b6we4Oxdwggi2x4MgCmN) # Layers Use Layers to control the visibility of FormIt objects. See Layers in action by following the [FormIt Primer](/formit-primer/part-i/control-visibility-with-layers). ## Creating and Naming Layers In the Layers panel, you can create and name your Layers by clicking the "**+**" icon. ![](/files/QBqHoavS8j6j7I4Vs1Sf) You can double-click the name to rename the Layer, or toggle the visibility of its objects by checking and unchecking the left box. Use the right checkbox to lock and unlock layers. A Locked layer will still be visible but not selectable or editable. ## Managing Objects on Layers Select objects in the canvas, then use the drop-down at the top of the Layers panel to indicate which Layer the selected objects should be placed on. ![](/files/-MlG7uvq3CvoUEuX0ln6) FormIt does not have the concept of a "default" or "working layer." All new geometry will be created on "No Layer" and you'll need to reassign objects to Layers after they're generated. You can right-click a Layer and choose "Select All Objects On Layer" to select all the geometry currently assigned to this Layer. ![](/files/-MlG7uvrT-RwvGss8_V2) You can also reorder the Layers in the panel by dragging and dropping them to a new position. Note that this has no impact on geometry visibility - this is purely an organizational tool in the panel. # Levels and Area After creating geometry in FormIt, you can apply Levels to indicate where floor elevations are, and to generate area calculations. Take a look at the [FormIt Primer ](/formit-primer/part-i/adding-floors-with-levels)to see Levels in action. ## Creating and Configuring Levels You'll find the Levels panel on the right side of FormIt for Windows: ![](/files/-MlG7ujjFZQukTRYIoE0) ### Create and Delete Levels * Create a new Level by clicking the "+" button. * Create a series of Levels by clicking the "++" button. * This will allow specifying how many Levels to create, and the vertical distance between them. * Select one or more Levels and click "-" to delete them. ### Rename, Set Elevations, and Renumber Levels * Rename a Level by double-clicking on the name, or by right-clicking and choosing "Edit Name". * Adjust a Level's elevation by double-clicking on the number, or by right-clicking and choosing "Edit Elevation". * Click the Refresh icon at the top to renumber Levels. * This is useful if you've added or removed levels, and the default naming scheme is out of sync (i.e. Level 1, Level 2, Level 5). * This button will ignore any Levels with custom names, but will renumber any Levels with the name following the "Level 1" syntax. ## Applying Levels To apply Levels to an object, you'll need to select the object and head over to the Properties panel. Note that to apply Levels to an object, the object must be solid, with no back face or watertight issues. [Learn how to check your model for watertight and back face issues](https://formit.autodesk.com/blog/post/repairing-solid-models). With a solid object selected in the canvas (in this example, a simple building shell), the Properties panel will show a "Use Levels" checkbox. * If the FormIt sketch already has Levels defined (see above), then checking this box will use all Levels that would intersect this shape (ignoring any that would be too high or too low). * If the FormIt sketch does not have Levels already, checking this box will create enough default Levels.(12' floor-to-floor height) to intersect the entire shape, and will automatically apply those Levels to this object. ![](/files/-MlG7ujmX7LHwONjlu_7) ## Levels + Revit When Levels are applied to FormIt geometry, those Levels will be sent to Revit when using the [FormIt Add-In](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit). In Revit, you can use the FormIt levels to create Mass floors, Floor by Face, and floor plans associated with the FormIt Levels. # Lines Use lines to divide faces and construct geometry. Keyboard: L ![](/files/-MlG7uoypPFS4hqynj2C) You can draw lines on the X, Y, or Z axis and also on existing geometry. When you snap to an axis, a colored line extends beyond the line you are drawing indicating which the axis you are drawing on. You can see the length of the line as you draw, and you can manually enter a specfic length by pressing **tab** and enter a value. Line colors by axis: To specify a length, simply type a dimension value, and an Edit Dimension dialog will appear. Hit OK or press Enter to accept the value. * X = Red * Y = Green * Z = Blue ![](/files/-MlG7up-Y9jC5Iy2p7BX) # Materials Make your FormIt models pop with Materials that support reflection, gloss, and bump or normal maps. ## The Materials Panel ![](/files/R2SmvH5aGgVwzOs6KO9b) In the materials panel, you can choose from a wide variety of Material Samples, navigate between linked Material libraries, and, as of FormIt 2021, access and use the Material contents of other FormIt (.AXM) files. ### Material Library Sources In FormIt 2021 and newer, the Materials panel has a drop-down interface to choose from available Material Library sources: In-Sketch, Material Samples, and [linked libraries](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/materials#linking-material-libraries). ![](/files/-MlG7v2ND4Ru4ByOV3DN) #### In Sketch Shows the Materials saved to the current FormIt sketch. #### Material Samples Shows a list of available sample Materials. These offerings are stored on a cloud-based server, so please note: * An internet connection is required when accessing Material Samples categories for the first time. * When accessing a category for the first time, it will be downloaded and then cached on your computer, so that future sessions won't require a download. * The FormIt team may occasionally update the offerings in Material Samples. When that happens, FormIt will automatically delete and re-download the categories to get the latest. ![](/files/-MlG7v2OXyVcii_wcMBV) **Linked Libraries** Other directories and locations will appear after [linking Material libraries](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/materials#linking-material-libraries). ### Create, Delete, and Eyedropper ![](/files/-MlG7v2QYS-m55R6D2fv) **Create a new Material** by defining its color, texture, bump or normal map, cutout map, transparency, and reflection/gloss settings. ![](/files/-MlG7v2RgC9DEZyKAOMz) **Delete** selected Material(s). ![](/files/-MlG7v2S9hPNsOM7zuJF) **Eyedropper** a Material painted in the scene, and immediately start painting with it. * Click the Eyedropper tool, then click a face painted with a Material * The material that's found on the face will be highlighted in the panel, and the Paintbrush tool will become active with that Material loaded. ### Refresh, Link Libraries, and Purge Unused ![](/files/-MlG7v2TapzB6YOn-mus) **Link Material libraries** from local directories. Directories containing JPG, PNG, or AXM (FormIt) files will display content. See [Linking Material Libraries](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/materials#linking-material-libraries) for more information. ![](/files/-MlG7v2U_ackUrmbCea0)**Refresh** the current directory. Only enabled when viewing a locally-linked directory (not In Sketch or Material Samples). ![](/files/-MlG7v2V6xiIf_cy3dlX) **Purged unused** Materials from the current FormIt sketch. Unused Materials can accumulate naturally through the process of iteration, but they can add significantly to the file size if they use high-quality textures. Unused Materials appear with a grey-colored name in the In Sketch list. Click the Purge Unused tool to delete all unused Materials. You'll see a prompt first, so you can cancel if you have second thoughts. This button is only enabled in the In Sketch list. ### Linking Material Libraries FormIt 2021 and newer offers the ability to link the Materials panel to local directories (libraries) containing Material content, including folders of JPGs, PNGs, and/or FormIt files: ![](/files/-MlG7v2W4mr9yWvRj7bk) ![View individual Materials from a FormIt file, or JPG/PNG files in a directory.](/files/-MlG7v2XinHsIdW-uUKK) * **JPG/PNG files** will display as Materials, which can be painted directly into the current FormIt sketch. * Clicking on a thumbnail converts the image file to a FormIt Material on the fly, and copies it to the current sketch. * FormIt will return you to the "In Sketch" directory to see the Material you've just copied to the sketch. * **FormIt files (\*.axm)** will display as folders with a FormIt icon. * Clicking on the FormIt file folders will display all FormIt Materials saved to that file. * Note that FormIt must load part of the file to get the Material contents, so larger files may take longer to display Materials in the panel. ### Material Interactions **Paint a Material** by single-clicking clicking the thumbnail. You'll be placed into the Paintbrush tool, where you can now hover over geometry in the FormIt canvas and click faces or Groups to paint them. Once you're in the Paintbrush tool: * Paint faces and Groups by single-clicking. * When painting Groups, the Material will cascade into the nested geometry and will cover any surface or Group painted with the Default Material. * Paint entire solids by double-clicking a face to select everything attached. You can also select faces and Groups first, then single-click a Material thumbnail to paint the selection with that Material. **Edit a Material** by double-clicking on the thumbnail, which will bring up the Material Editor (see below). **Rename a Material** by double-clicking the name. **Identify a Material** painted on geometry by selecting it, and looking for the highlight and icon indicating what Material(s) are painted on the selected geometry. ![](/files/-MlG7v2YfUcToZKrVTML) **The Default Material** can be used to effectively "clear" a face or a Group of any Materials. Any geometry not painted with a Material is implicitly painted with the Default Material. ### List Management Adjust the size of the thumbnails by adjusting the width of the column (click and drag the vertical line to the right of "Material"). Filter for specific Materials by typing in the "Filter..." bar. Materials with names that display in a grey font indicate that those Materials that are not used in the current sketch. ## Create and Edit Materials ![](/files/-MlG7v2ZnWLiDe7gNAdM) When you create or edit a Material, you'll see the Material Editor dialog, where you can customize: * **Color** * **Image Maps** * Click the thumbnail to choose a new map. * Click the Save icon to save the map for editing in another application. * Click the Delete icon to delete the map from this material. * **Texture from an image file** * JPG or PNG * **Bump or normal map from an image file** * JPG recommended * Great for adding depth effects to Materials. * You can use freeware like ShaderMap to generate bump/normal maps given a texture. * **Cutout map from an image file** * PNG * Great for Materials that have selective transparency, like chain-link fences or perforated panels. * **Name** * **Horizontal and Vertical Scale** * When enabled, the Lock Aspect button will ensure the horizontal and vertical scale respect the texture's aspect ratio. * Stretch a Material by adjusting horizontal scale independently from vertical scale. * You can override the horizontal and vertical scale per-face using the Adjust Material Placement tool (see below). * **Transparency**, **Reflection**, and **Gloss** ## Adjusting Material Placement When painting a Material on a face, FormIt takes a best guess as to the best orientation: * Vertical faces will orient with the texture's top oriented along the Z-axis. * Horizontal faces will orient the texture lengthwise along the longest side of the face. Use the **Adjust Material Placement** tool to override the default Material placement, as well as the Material's scale on specific faces: * Select a face or faces painted with a Material * If the face is inheriting its Material from its parent Group, you'll need to paint the face directly first. * Access the Adjust Material Placement tool through the shortcut MP or from the right-click context menu: ![](/files/A4ICytDq8TSF67jtEZ3u) Use the on-screen controls to interactively move, rotate and scale the material textures directly on the face: ![](/files/-MlG7v2aAamPL4vPQe-q) ![](/files/-MlG7v2bHmc43SaADzEs) To reset any of the changes to the material placement, simply paint the face again with the original material, from the Materials panel. ## Material Translation to Revit Materials will transfer to Revit when using the [FormIt Add-In](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-revit) for Revit 2018 or later. # Measure Angle The Measure Angle tool is located on the [Tool Bar](/formit-introduction/tool-bars). The Measure Angle tool is used to measure angles between vertices, edges, faces, and volumes. You can also use the Measure Angle tool to drive dimensions of geometry. * From the **Measure** toolbar menu, select the **Measure Angle** tool or use the keyboard shortcut **M A** and select a starting point. * Click and drag the handle to the starting vertex. * Use the arrows to measure the angle between one point to another. * To change the geometry, click on an edge or face and enter a new angle value by clicking on the displayed angle. * Your changes or measurements display: # Measure The **Measure** tool is located on the [Tool Bar](/formit-introduction/tool-bars). You can use the **Measure** tool to measure existing geometry in a model. You can also use the **Measure** tool to assign dimensions to geometry. 1. Select the **Measure** tool. 2. Select two points to measure the distance between them. 3. Select a face or edge you want to adjust, click the displayed value and add a new value in the dialog box that displays. ![](/files/-MlG7v-Sdrsn6xatmIDP)\ ![](/files/wo9yjc7lFmCw575kQC9S)\ ![](/files/-MlG7v-VtvylC9wJzaWX) # Meshes Starting in v17.0, FormIt offers a new type of geometry: Meshes. Meshes are lightweight representations of standard FormIt Objects, and are great for improving the performance of high-polygon geometry like furniture or 3D entourage like people, trees, cars, and signage. Meshes are also great for complex DWG geometry that might otherwise affect FormIt's performance. Objects can be converted to Meshes, and Meshes can be converted back to Objects without losing any data. Some file types are automatically imported as Meshes, like OBJ, STL, and DWG. Learn more about converting between types, and other benefits and limitations of Meshes below. ## Converting Objects to Meshes Any combination of vertices, edges, faces, or solid bodies can be converted to Meshes. Simply select Objects, and either use shortcut OM (Objects to Meshes) or right-click and select Objects to Meshes in the Context Menu: ![](/files/-MlG7v6Kk0det7EPxEkL) Once the Objects have been converted to Meshes, you'll see a confirmation message at the top of the screen: ![](/files/-MlG7v6Lfb0yjeKceXAO) **When converting Objects to Meshes:** * Edges that were smoothed on the Objects will remain smoothed in the resulting Meshes. * Material orientations on the Objects will remain unchanged in the resulting Meshes. * A Mesh is created for every material applied. For example, if you convert a single cube painted 6 different colors, you'll get 6 different Meshes. * Converting back to an Object will re-seal the individual meshes back into a solid body. * Selecting a solid body will convert and replace the entire body with a Mesh, but selecting individual edges or vertices owned by a solid will create a new Mesh on top of the existing geometry, without affecting the original body. * Converting a set of edges or vertices will create a single Linemesh (a mesh made of edges) or a single Pointmesh (a mesh made of points), which means you won't be able to select individual edges or vertices once they've been combined into a single Mesh. Convert them back to Objects if you want to adjust the position of a single element. **Converting Grouped geometry to Meshes:** * Meshes become even more powerful when you can convert an entire Group and all of its nested Groups into Meshes. * Groups and their nested contents can be converted to Groups by using a plugin: * Look for the Plugin Manager icon on the right side of the application: * ![](/files/-MlG7v6M_XiCAjHW1Uoi) * Find the "Mesh + Unmesh All" plugin, and click the checkbox to install it: * ![](/files/1RnsN4VC08DCKPheUsxV) * The Mesh + Unmesh All plugin will load. Simply select a Group containing Objects you want to convert to Meshes, and click Mesh All. * ![](/files/CMMe6H9Gij8tbukFLwxf) * When converting nested Objects or Meshes with this Plugin, you'll see an update message at the top of the screen telling you how many Groups and instances of Groups were affected by the operation: ![](/files/x8h0bpxZohfHvhrHacih) ## Interacting With Meshes **Because of their lightweight nature, Meshes have certain limitations and behaviors:** * You won't be able to edit the individual faces, edges, or vertices of a Mesh. * However, you can repaint Meshes and move individual Meshes created as a result of different materials applied to faces (see above). * Snapping to Meshes is limited to the faces and vertices of Meshes. For performance, snapping and inferencing will not work with edges of Meshes. * However, DWG files converted to Meshes (a different type of mesh known as a Linemesh) will retain the ability to snap to and inference to Mesh edges. * Meshes cannot have Levels applied to them. * Meshes will not report watertight or backface issues. Convert them back to Objects to see whether they are watertight or not. * Objects that were watertight before conversion to a Mesh will remain watertight when converted back to an Object. * Meshes cannot be used in advanced modeling operations, like Solid Join/Cut, 3D Shell, 3D Offset, Fillet, Loft, Sweep, or Cover. Otherwise, Meshes will display and behave like any other FormIt Object: placed in Groups, assigned to Layers, visualized in Scenes, used for Analysis, etc. **You'll know you're interacting with a Mesh if the tooltip reports "On Mesh" or if the Properties Panel reports a Mesh:** ![](/files/3p063X0YQIeOC4m2Hmyo) ![](/files/QUgf8YK6hgVW9dTdJlBn) **Some file types are automatically imported as Meshes to improve performance:** * STL and OBJ files, which could contain dense geometry like pointclouds from other applications, are automatically imported as Meshes. * DWG files, which could contain millions of small edge segments on high-quality curves, are automatically imported as Meshes. ## Converting Meshes Back to Objects Simply select Meshes, and either use shortcut MO (Meshes to Objects) or right-click and select Meshes to Objects in the Context Menu: ![](/files/-MlG7v6SCxEAwGSiVIp8) Once the objects have been converted to Meshes, you'll see a confirmation message at the top of the screen: ![](/files/-MlG7v6T-pteEhPCC8Gz) **When converting Meshes back to Objects:** * Any Objects that were previously solid/watertight before converting to a Mesh will be rejoined into a watertight solid when converting back to an Object. * Converting a series of edges (for example from a DWG file) or a series of vertices (for example from a pointcloud) to a Mesh and back will automatically put the unmeshed Objects into a Group. * This prevents the new edges or vertices from merging with other geometry which could have adverse effects and impact performance. * Simply can Ungroup the resulting Group to release the edges and/or vertices. **Converting Grouped Meshes back to Objects:** * See the instructions above to use the Mesh + Unmesh All plugin to convert Groups and their nested Meshes back into Objects. # Mirror Use the Mirror tool to create a mirrored duplicate of an object. To mirror an object: 1. Double-click to select a single object, or single-click to select a group. 2. Right-click and choose the Mirror tool from the context menu, or type the keyboard shortcut, **MI**. 3. A plane displays and shows the axis the object will be mirrored on. The plane can be moved or rotated to customize the axis of the mirror. 4. When you are done adjusting the plane of your mirrored object, click anywhere outside of the selection. ![](/files/-MlG7v7UcpuKVUMJRA1S) ![](/files/-MlG7v7VaHOcpyqr9v5r) # Model Statistics The Model Statistics palette provides a way to view statistics of your FormIt model. Overall model statistics are displayed followed by statistics for each Group, identified as a History. Enable the Model Statistics palette by going to the Window menu and checking the box next to Model Statistics: ![](/files/vUKp0AZPCRwMLZNwUu5i) ## Getting Statistics To generate statistics, click the Refresh button:
If you want to see changes in your statistics after making some changes in your model, you can Refresh again. If you open a new file, you will need to click the Refresh button to generate the statistics for the new model, even if you are Watching (see below). ## Watching If you want your model statistics to update as you edit your model, click the Watch button:
Note that using Watch can cause model performance to slow, especially in large models. ## Using Statistics Once statistics are loaded, you'll see a variety of information that can help illustrate the complexity of the model you're working with:
# Model Tree The Model Tree provides a way to view the topological hierarchy of your FormIt model. Enable the Model Tree by going to the Window menu, and checking the box next to Model Tree. ![](/files/-MlG7ukXjYgChXPPkGgO) Inside the Model Tree, each Group is identified as a History, since each Group has its own command history, or Undo/Redo stack. Within each History, you'll see a list of nested Groups, instances, or geometric objects like bodies. You can also view non-geometric attributes (string attributes) attached to FormIt objects using the Model Tree. [You can place string attributes on Groups created by the SendToFormIt node using Dynamo](https://formit.autodesk.com/page/formit-dynamo#dynamo-formit-nodes). ![](/files/-MlG7uk_O-8Xjf0A8Npd) # Modifying Faces, Edges, and Points Things get really interesting when you start to push and pull the objects you have placed. Single click will allow you to select a single vertex, edge, face, or Mesh. ## Modifying Faces 1. Single-click a face 2. FormIt automatically puts you in the Drag Face or Extrude tool. 3. Click somewhere to identify a starting point for the operation. 4. After you click, you can snap to other objects to align this face. 5. As with move, you can click the **temporary dimension** or simply start typing a value to define the amount of movement. You can also delete a face by using the **Delete** key, or by right-clicking and invoking Delete from the context menu. You can also delete a face by using **Right click > X button**. ## Modifying Edges 1. Single-click an edge 2. FormIt automatically puts you in the Move tool 3. Position your mouse over a point in space that you want to start the Move operation from. 4. Click, and now you can drag the edge to modify the shape. ![](/files/-MlG7us88X-xHd076vK0) ## Modifying Points 1. Single-click one of the corners of one of the cubes. 2. Similar to an edge, you drag the point along one of the axes to redefine the shape. [NextNon-Uniform Scale](broken://spaces/-LUD0SaYwlwiIwTSyXLn/pages/-LZ7KB2-UL0_X2R5OEIL) ![](/files/-MlG7us9eirEzx-h2WuP) # Non-Uniform Scale **Use Non-Uniform Scale to stretch objects in 1, 2, or 3 dimensions.** Select any combination of Edges, Faces, Solids, Meshes, or Groups, and access Non-Uniform Scale using the keyboard shortcut **NU** or from the Context Menu option: ![](/files/-MlG7uzJO93A0F3ECfcG) **Once active, you'll see a series of grips that can be used to non-uniformly scale the object in 1, 2, or 3 axes simultaneously.** For clarity, only the grips facing the camera will be drawn. Orbit around the object if you need to adjust a grip on the other side. ![](/files/-MlG7uzLg2Mh0ObKt0jq) Once you click a grip, you'll see a series of editable text boxes where you can adjust the scale by percentage or distance: ![](/files/-MlG7uzN6WOnkMD3D0SL) **Once the dimension boxes are visible, you can:** * Start typing a number to automatically edit the percentage box and specify a scale factor. * Entering a negative number will reverse the direction of the scale. * Or click to temporarily set the grip location, then click the box containing the dimension to scale by distance. * Click off into space or hit ESC to finish the Non-Uniform Scale operation. **Scaling at one of the corner edge grips will respect the aspect ratio of the adjacent dimensions:** * Start typing a number to edit the percentage value. * Or click to temporarily set the grip location, then click one of the two dimension boxes to scale by distance. * Click off into space or hit ESC to finish the Non-Uniform Scale operation. ![](/files/-MlG7uzPAc7I6CKdYM26) **Similarly, scaling at one of the corner grips will respect the aspect ratio of the entire shape, and effectively uniformly scale:** * Start typing a number to edit the percentage value. * Or click to temporarily set the grip location, then click one of the three dimension boxes to scale by distance. * Click off into space or hit ESC to finish the Non-Uniform Scale operation. ![](/files/-MlG7uzR2rDJ_uItMDf8) # Offset Line Draw parallel, or offset, lines using the Offset Line tool. This is useful to create 2D shapes that can later be extruded to look like 3D walls. ![](/files/-MlG7ulpJymew_hDDq7n) The **Offset Line** tool works like the [**Line** ](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/line-tool)tool: * Click to set the first point and then move your cursor and place the subsequent points, snapping to existing geometry or to inference axes. * A preview of the resulting shape is shown. The second and third points determine the plane for the rest of the points to follow, so the result is planar. * Continue adding points, and **Escape** or double click to finish the tool. * Any self-intersections will be cleaned up and merged, leaving you with one extrudable face. ![After placing 2 points and dragging the 3rd point](/files/-MlG7ulrMlcgPJ1UKMy6) The input line is drawn in red, and by default is placed in the center of the offset lines. You can change the alignment of the offset lines and their thickness by hitting the **Tab** key. This will invoke the **Tool Options** dialog: ![Options for the Offset Line tool](/files/-MlG7uls6Oq6cNJ0AIj0) Change the **Alignment** to **Left** and the **Thickness** to 6", for example, and the offset lines will be drawn to the left of the input lines, 6 inches apart. ![](/files/-MlG7ult239IbQkhJhRH) ## Useful Tips You can draw a closed shape by snapping to the first point placed. The resulting corner will be cleaned up automatically: ![](/files/-MlG7uluWcN_zWdgb_QO) You can freely draw the input lines on top of each other. When the tool is finished the resulting intersections are cleaned up. ![](/files/-MlG7ulvh9iqhjyLqrqm) ![](/files/-MlG7ulwX7vONcpUkfZZ) Inherently, the Offset Line tool must generate geometry on a plane, so the first few points determine the plane that the remaining points will follow. Start drawing on the side of a cube, for example, to use the plane of that face. After three non colinear points are placed the input plane is fixed for the remainder of the input. Note, that when drawing on a face the resulting shape is inserted into the face, splitting it into multiple faces. To prevent the insertion, the face you draw on must be part of a [Group](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/tool-library/groups). ![Drawing on a vertical face](/files/-MlG7ulxE_kfZm7FF4bu) ![After the tool is ended, the lines are inserted and the split faces can be further manipulated](/files/-MlG7ulyj6GWgkPlHHs8) You can also use the Offset Line tool to trace from a plan drawing. Import the plan as an image. * Resize the image so that the plan has the proper scale. This is described in more detail [here](https://windows.help.formit.autodesk.com/building-the-farnsworth-house/work-with-images-and-the-ground-plane). * You can use the [Orthographic Camera](/tool-library/orthographic-camera) to trace in an orthographic [top view](/tool-library/orthographic-views). ![](/files/-MlG7ulzJttXKwRjiuXZ) ![](/files/-MlG7um-wSo6vrTcNfhz) # Orthographic Views View your model in various orthographic views, including top, sides, and bottom. ![](/files/-MlG7utItcmdA3kJxZzM) You'll find orthographic views in the View menu, by clicking the Orthographic icon in the floating navigation toolbar, or by using the shortcut V O. Click the Top View icon in the floating navigation toolbar to access several view options. ![](/files/8FLBztbwUs9BqXtlw51i) **Some helpful hints when working with orthographic views:** * When switching between orthographic views, FormIt will maintain the zoom level for consistency. * When switching elevation views (front/right/left/back), FormIt will maintain the ground height for consistency. * You can hold Shift while Panning in an orthographic view to lock the Pan movement to the horizontal or vertical axis. * Orthographic view directions are based on the world axes. You can realign the axes, which will change the orientations of all the orthographic views: * Use shortcut SZ, or right-click in space (not over any geometry): * Set the origin, and set the grip on the red axes to align it with a meaningful direction **Orthographic views work in conjunction with other FormIt features:** * Save elevation views as Scenes so you can return to them later. * Control visibility of geometry that might get in the way of elevation views using Layers. * Add Section Planes to create section-elevations. # Orthographic and Perspective Camera FormIt 2023 includes multiple orthographic and perspective camera options. You can find the Orthographic, 2-Point Perspective, and 3-Point Perspective buttons in the floating navigation menu: ![3-point perspective (top), 2-point perspective (middle), and orthographic (bottom) camera view buttons](/files/JFITuWNjgT596HNLJAD3) ### 3-Point Perspective * This is the default perspective camera. At certain camera angles, vertical lines will appear to converge near the top of the camera. * The camera position set in this mode will define the clipping plane for the orthographic camera. * Ctrl + zoom in this mode will allow zooming at a constant rate, without slowing down as the camera approaches objects. ### 2-Point Perspective * This camera is similar to 3-point perspective, but it ensures that vertical lines stay vertical. * At certain camera angles, geometry may appear distorted to keep vertical lines vertical at all times. * The camera position set in this mode will define the clipping plane for the orthographic camera. * Ctrl + zoom in this mode will allow zooming at a constant rate, without slowing down as the camera approaches objects. * 2-point perspective is also a working mode, so you'll notice vertical lines remain vertical even as the camera changes - this can distort the scene at certain camera angles ![](/files/WRuman7wwg1avWquf0G2) ### Orthographic * An orthographic projection mode useful for diagrams, 3D detail drawings, and other non-perspective graphics. * The camera position set in either of the two perspective modes defines the clipping plane for the orthographic camera. If you see your scene getting clipped unexpectedly, switch to a perspective mode, and zoom out, then switch back to orthographic mode. ### Using the Modes The camera modes are all full working modes, with access to navigation and drawing tools in any mode you prefer. The menu allows you to easily toggle between the different cameras. ![Toggling the three different camera modes: 3-point perspective, 2-point perspective, and orthographic.](/files/1VvKpdJQ5eWGkG8gHxWR) Once you've selected a camera, any other camera tools will respect the current mode. For example, **Align Camera to Face** will align the Orthographic Camera to the face, resulting in an orthographic elevation view. If you navigate manually to a pre-set Orthographic View, like Top View, or Front View, the Orthographic Camera will snap to that position, making it easier to access those pre-set views. ![](/files/-MlG7v1Iul1YbXht3nS3) ### Axonometric In addition to Orthographic and Perspective Camera options available in the Navigation Toolbar, FormIt offers an Axonometric Camera available only from the View menu (Windows only):
Selecting this option will put the camera in Axonometric view:
### Oblique FormIt also offers an Oblique Camera only available in the View menu (Windows only):
Selecting this option will put the Camera in Oblique view:
# Placing Primitives 1. In the [Action Toolbar](https://github.com/FormIt3D/autodesk-formit-360-windows-help/tree/c377e7b8a3b8e43e684321d0b7de867608d317a3/tool-library/tool-bars-extended.md) click to open the **Primitives button** and [select](/tool-library/select-edge-face-or-object) the cube. ![](/files/o1yC2v1VWqVQHqdaCcjZ) 2. Then drag and **click to place** the cube. ![](/files/-MlG7v-OvrZj1U5DzqeD) 3. While dragging the cube it will be shown with default dimensions. You can change those dimensions **while dragging** by hitting the **Tab** key. This will bring up a **Tool Options** dialog where the dimensions can be edited. ![](/files/-MlG7v-PT6eXA8tVvOzP) 4. After entering new values and hitting **OK**, the cube will be displayed with the new dimensions. # Place Vertex 1. In the [Action Toolbar](https://github.com/FormIt3D/autodesk-formit-360-windows-help/tree/c377e7b8a3b8e43e684321d0b7de867608d317a3/tool-library/tool-bars-extended.md) click to open the **Sketch button** and [select](/tool-library/select-edge-face-or-object) the vertex.
2. **Click to place** the vertex. 3. Note that you can place a vertex on an edge to split the edge. Otherwise, the vertex will remain visible as a standalone vertex, if it's placed on a face or in space.
1. # Plugins Use the Plugin Manager to install useful plugins from the FormIt Team, or learn how to [**build your own FormIt plugins**](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/HowToBuild.html)**.** ## The FormIt Plugin Manager The FormIt Plugin Manager works as a hub for discovering and managing Formit plugins. The Plugin Manager is loaded automatically when FormIt starts, as long as FormIt has access to the internet. You can access the Plug-In Manager by clicking its tab icon on the right side of the application window: ![](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/images/PluginManagerTab.PNG) ## The Plugin Manager categorizes different types of plugins: * **Installed plugins** * **Recommended plugins** * Plugins that the FormIt team recommends to expand FormIt's core functionality and unlock new workflows. * Community-developed plugins will appear here after being approved by the FormIt team. More details to come on this in the future. * **Public plugins** * Plugins built by the community, but which have not been reviewed or approved by the FormIt team. ## The Plugin Manager is designed using a series of expandable and collapsible interfaces, which makes managing plugins and their repositories easy: * **Managing Plugins:** * Click on a plugin name to see its description. * Toggle the switch to install or uninstall it. * The plugin will manifest as a toolbar at the top of the application, a panel on the right side, or a dialog in the middle, depending on the plugin type. * If you're [developing your own plugin](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/HowToBuild.html), you can add its private URL into the field at the bottom and hit (+): ![The FormIt Plugin Manager](https://formit3d.github.io/FormItExamplePlugins/docs/images/addNew.png) ## How Plugins Work * Plugins are web-based and available in FormIt for Windows and FormIt for Web. * Plugins are comprised of a series of files and folders hosted on GitHub, or on a local server when building your own. * External plugins (plugins not hosted locally) require an internet connection to initially load, which means: * External plugins will not load if no internet connection is detected when FormIt starts. * Once loaded, some external plugins can continue to work in offline mode for that session, but others might break until connectivity is restored. * External plugins load the latest code on the server at every run, so their functionality will update whenever the author pushes a change. * Plugins are loaded asynchronously, which means the order of the plugins in the FormIt interface may change with each new session. * The Plugin Manager uses registry keys on Windows to store your installed repositories and plugins. * If you need to reset your Plugin Manager to its defaults, delete the following registry key: * Computer\HKEY\_CURRENT\_USER\Software\Autodesk\FormIt 360\Plugins * Note this will uninstall all user-added repos and plugins, resetting the Plugin Manager to include only the built-in repos and plugins. # Polygon Use the Polygon tool to draw a regular n-sided polygon in space or on another object. ![](/files/LVs1jhh8DJjnUwyqfdoO) Start the polygon and click to choose the center point. Specify the radius by drawing the second point, typing in a dimension, or hitting **Tab** to bring up **Tool Options**. ![](/files/-MlG7uxDx5DFfM336xOC) **Tool Options** allows you to change the number of sides and specify a particular radius. ![](/files/-MlG7uxEzrRzdNY6fEYH) # Properties The **Properties Palette** displays information and data relevant to a selected object in the Formit Workplane. Using the Properties Palette, you can edit the group of an object, assign an object to a layer, and change the material of an object. ![](/files/-MlG7v4OBN3Yr_A80C9Z) ## Editing from the Properties Palette In FormIt 2023 and newer, you can modify properties of a vertex, edge, face, and volume via the Properites palette: #### Editable vertex properties:
#### Editable edge properties:
#### Editable face properties:
#### Editable solid properties:
# Railing Along Path ## Powered By Dynamo In FormIt 2021 and newer, you can generate a railing along a path, and quickly customize the results in-place. Railing Along Path is powered by Dynamo, which means the resulting railing is easily configurable to get the results you want, and re-running the logic will update the geometry in-place. ![](/files/mtvhtC34xsl6CO2CpxIG) ## Starting Railing Along Path * Go to the Dynamo panel in FormIt for Windows, and ensure you're in the Dynamo Samples directory * Click the Railing Along Path sample * On the left side of the screen, you'll see a prompt to "Select path for railing" * You should select only a series of contiguous edges, or a Group containing only a series of edges. * Once you've got the path selected, click the "finish" button, or hit Enter/Return. * The Dynamo panel will indicate it's processing the changes. When it's done, you'll have a Dynamo-generated railing in a FormIt Group, ready for modifying (see below). ## Iterating In Place After running Railing Along Path, you'll notice its results are set to default values. Maybe these work for you, but you can heavily customize the railing to suit your needs. When Railing Along Path runs, it creates a new Group containing the results, and FormIt will automatically select the Group and show the available options for that Railing Along Path instance. You can always return to the Railing Along Path properties by selecting the Group and switching to the Properties panel, or by editing the Group which will automatically show Properties. ![](/files/zu6pDamn3ShKk12Ex0aZ) ### Railing Height The overall height of the railing. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Post Spacing The spacing between main vertical posts. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Add Posts at Path Vertices When **true**, posts will be added at each vertex of the selected path, and the calculation for the next post positioning resets at that point. For example, if you selected a series of 3 edges, a post will appear at each of the two inner points. This is useful if the vertices indicate a change of direction (like going up stairs or turning corners) where a post would naturally occur. When **false**, posts will only be added along the path starting from one end, and measuring the distance along the path, ignoring vertices along the way. This is useful if you've selected an arc, spline, or circle, where the vertices are not important, and you want the post spacing to ignore them. ### Reverse Path Direction When calculating the positioning of the posts, the direction of the chosen path will determine which end of the path will start the post spacing measurement. In cases where the post spacing results in leftover space on an undesirable end of the path, you can change this value to **true** to flip the curve, and start the post spacing measurement at the opposite end. ### Post Width + Depth The size (in plan) of the rectangular vertical post profiles. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Handrail Width + Height The size (in section) of the rectangular handrail profile. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Baluster Orientation When true, balusters will be oriented horizontally, like cables. When false, the balusters will be oriented vertically, for a more traditional aesthetic. ### Baluster width + Depth The size of the baluster's rectangular profile. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Baluster Spacing The amount of space between each baluster. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Bottom Rail Start Height The distance between the bottom of the railing, and the bottom rail that supports the balusters. Uses the current FormIt units. ### Run After editing the options, click the "Run" button to run the underlying Dynamo graph, and generate new results. This button will turn blue when parameters have changed, so you know it needs to be clicked to see the updates in the final geometry.‌ ### Edit Embedded Graph Clicking this will launch the Dynamo graph editor environment, so you can view and edit the underlying Dynamo graph to more quickly change parameters and see live updates, or to inspect/adjust the logic. # Rectangle You can use the **Rectangle** tool in the **Create Sketch** toolbar menu to quickly draw a rectangular face. Extrude the face to create a rectangular volume. Keyboard shortcut: R Use the axes to ensure you're drawing in the correct direction: You can draw rectangles on the X, Y, or Z-axis. As you draw, you can specify a dimension by simply typing in a value, which will bring up the Edit Dimension dialog. Hit Enter or press OK to accept the dimension. To draw a rectangle, click to set the first point in your sketch. Line colors by axis: * X = Red * Y = Green * Z = Blue ![](/files/-MlG7uxzZ2T0aODzLM-B) ![](/files/-MlG7uy-5hUC9QqzOoXx) When you finish drawing the rectangle, it becomes a face that can be extruded to create a volume. # Revit ![](/files/p9ny4FPGNKg88vosVGH8) [See FormIt + Revit in the FormIt Capabilities section.](/formit-capabilities/formit-+-revit) # Rotate Object You can change the orientation of objects using the Rotate tool in the Context Menu. 1. Select an element you want to rotate and right-click to launch the Context Menu. 2. From the Context Menu, select the Rotate tool. 3. When the protractor graphic appears on your mouse, click to set the plane for rotation. 4. Use the blue grips to specify the start point of the rotation, and reset the axis if necessary. Use the arrows or the editable dimension box to set the rotation angle. Note that you can alse use the **Q** keyboard shortcut to access the rotate tool after selecting an element. ![](/files/-MlG7ux8wj0P0fcT90rl)\ ![](/files/-MlG7ux9fp-LdaW1tCPP) # Scale Object You can use the **Scale tool** to adjust the size and orientation of objects. 1. Select an object you want to adjust. 2. Right-click to launch the **Context Menu**. 3. From the Context Menu, select the **Scale tool**. 4. Use the scroll wheel on your mouse to scale the geometry up or down. ![](/files/-MlG7v02Ma3RilXY1LAT) ![](/files/-MlG7v03sHFllkzdiDnb) # Scenes ![](/files/J9uHkKersl08LcbR2rRc) Use scenes and animations to help you steer walkthroughs and tell a visual story. You can save a scene viewpoint and its related visual and layer states. Add an animation and nest scenes under it to modify transitions, pauses, and camera speed. ![](/files/3rIMWH4o4fnukhLRn1vq) ### Create a scene: * In the Scenes palette, click to add a scene. * While the scene is selected, you can edit its properties at the bottom of the Scenes palette. Update the scene by clicking. * To edit animation cameras, click . 1. In this mode, you can change the camera position and direction by clicking and dragging the gray circles. 2. Reset the camera position to be behind your viewpoint by clicking . * Double-click a scene to view it. * To reorder scenes, click and drag them up and down. ### Create an animation: * Click to add an animation. * Click and add at least two scenes inside the animation. * Set up each scene by following the “To create a scene” directions above. 1. You can choose to include or exclude a scene from the animation by using the Include in Playback checkbox under Scene Properties. * Edit pause time, transition time, and camera speed by using the controls under Scene Properties. * View your animation by clicking . ### Export an animation: * Open the File menu and select Export. You can choose to export to your local device or to Autodesk Docs. * In the Export File dialog, scroll down in the File Type Options panel and select As Video. * You can change various settings of the video file in this dialog. 1. Select the Blend Scene Transitions option to blend frames between scenes that use different visual styles or layers. This option is great for animations that focus more on layer states or visual styles rather than camera movement. * When you're ready, use the Export button, enter a file name and save location, and click Save. ![](/files/3C9IdP2WfTGPjsEzukFg) # Section Planes Use **Section Planes** to cut into your FormIt model, revealing interior spaces and structural elements. Learn about Section Planes in the [FormIt Primer](/formit-primer/part-i/section_planes). # Selection ## Direct Selection To **select a vertex, edge, or face**, hover over the object, then single-click to select it. ![](/files/-MlG7vABD7NoxXlUKEaK) To **select an entire object**, or an object and anything attached to it, double click the object. ![](/files/-MlG7vACeIyL_ghk_8Lr) You can also hold Ctrl or Shift, and add or remove elements from the current selection. ## Selection Filtering For area or lasso selection (see below), you can filter the selection based on type. This is especially useful when you've got a mix of geometry types in close proximity, and you want to use area or lasso selection to cast a wide net, but retrieve only a certain type of geometry, while excluding others. ![](/files/pePi69Y0jb77pOl4TiqJ) ## Area/Window Selection To **select multiple pieces of geometry simultaneously**, use the window selection tool. Make sure you have nothing selected, then click and drag your mouse from left to right, or from right to left, to capture multiple pieces. ![](/files/-MlG7vAHSeEPLI_cu9qf) ## Lasso Selection For **more precise control** when selecting multiple pieces of geometry simultaneously, use the lasso tool. You can select it from the context menu after right-clicking over the empty canvas. Then draw a boundary around your desired selection area. ![](/files/-MlG7vAJd40NDah_GaKt)\ ![](/files/-MlG7vALy8h6_DVA0SyI) --- [Next Page](/llms-full.txt/1)