4/5/2018 Adaptive Components in Revit - Modelical

EXPERTISE
ADAPTIVE COMPONENTS IN REVIT

Objectives
1. Learn what is an adaptive component

2. Learn how to create adaptive components

3. Learn when is better to use adaptive components instead of other regular families

Assumptions
1. User will be using revit 2015

2. User has correctly installed Revit´s Family Templates

3. User knows how to create families.

Description
Adaptive components are mostly used when we need to adapt a family to different positions in space following
parametric rules.
Special feature is that while in regular components (families) the geometry of the family is in relation to one
unique insertion point, in adaptive components is in spatial relation to more than one insertion point, so that it
grows differently depending on the specific position of those points.
There are two types of adaptive components:

Adaptive components
Components panels pattern based

The key aspect of the adaptive components is the definition of the adaptive points. The geometry drawn by
snapping to these flexible points results in an adaptive component. Adaptive components can be used in
pattern panel families, adaptive component families, conceptual massing environment, and projects.

1. Advantages of adaptive components

Adaptive components are a powerful tool because they allow us to create dynamic adaptive components in
Revit. This means that we can have infinite forms of a family without having infinite types of a family with
changing parameter values. Each instance will adapt according to the position of its adaptive points.
Because of the adaptive component smart nature its applications are endless.

2. Disadvantages of adaptive components

Adaptive components do not have any 2D or 2½D capability - there is no Annotation tab in the adaptive family
editor.

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No text within Adaptive Components

No symbols
No symbolic lines
No detail components
No filled or masking regions within Adaptive Components

Procedure
1 Choose family template
The Family Template that we should use is “Metric Generic Model Adaptive.rft”. This one is quite different than
the rest of family templates.

2 Make adaptive points

Adaptive points are modified reference points that are used when designing an adaptive component in the
conceptual design environment.

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You create adaptive points by modifying reference points in a generic adaptive family. When a reference point
is made adaptive, it is a placement point by default and they will be numbered in the order in which they will
be placed when the component is loaded. Geometry drawn using these adaptive points results in an adaptive
component.

If you need to change the order of the numbering you can pick on a number, change it, and the others will
adjust accordingly.

3 Create geometry
Before modelling any piece of geometry, we have to know that each adaptive point has an X, Y and Z work
plane.

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To start creating a surface, make sure 3D snapping is turned on and draw a Reference Line from point to point.
To do this, pick the Create/Modify Tab > Model Lines / Reference Lines and from the options bar turn on 3D
Snapping.      

What is the difference between choosing Model lines / Reference Lines?:

Model lines: They are actual lines or edges that will appear in the model when the family is loaded into the
project.
Reference lines: They are reference elements that have no visual entity when loading the family into the
model, but are a good basis to create geometry. Besides they have four associated workplanes, two
intersect in the longitudinal dimension and define the line. Other two are perpendicular to the line at its
ends.

Choose in each case the line that best fits to the purposes of the component.

Draw model lines in the order of the reference point numbers and make sure that the lines are linked to the
adaptive points.

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Sometimes  we can find it difficult to link properly the lines to the points. In that case we can proceed to do it
by selecting points in pairs, and choosing the “Spline through points” tool. The line will be automatically
attached to the points.

If we select only two points we will get a straight line.

If we select three or more points we will get a spline (curve) through the points.

When you have a closed curve, you will be able to convert it into a surface or a solid form. Selecting the curves,
you will be able to modify them and clicking in the Form tool you will be able to transform it into a surface or a
solid geometry.

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Depending on the input data we will be able to create different types of geometry based on the adaptive
points.
If we draw and place a circle in the cross plane at the end of one of the reference lines, and then select that
profile simultaneously with the reference lines, we will get a sweep:

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Although in Adaptive components (same as in Conceptual Masses) we do not find the “Geometry Tools”
buttons (such as Extrusion, Sweep, Blend, etc.) as we would in regular families, the “Create form” tool uses the
same logic. For different data inputs:

Closed loop > We get a surface or an extrusion

Path and cross section profile > we get a sweep
Path and various cross section profiles > we get a sweep blend
Two parallel  but different profiles > we get a blend
An axis and a profile > we get a revolve
We can get same solid and void forms and make boolean operations.

4 Reporting parameters
When we create a parameter in an adaptive component we have to take into account that if the parameter is
giving information related to the adaptive geometry it must be a reporting one.

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A reporting parameter is a parameter type that has its value driven by a particular dimension in the family
model. Reporting parameters extract a value from a geometric condition and use it to report the data to a
formula or as a schedulable parameter. The reporting parameter can read the dimension of a geometry from
an adaptive component, so it will give different values for different adaptive components. But if the parameter
is not a reporting one, when we read the information of the parameter the value will always be the default (the
one that was first given when creating the Adaptive component).
We should set a reference plane that contain the dimension line that we are going to do before creating the
parameter.

5 Apply the Adaptive Components to the project

Once created the adaptive component and the schedulable parameters we can load the family in the project.
There are two different ways of placing an adaptive components in a project: selecting a reference plane or a
reference geometry although it is not of a great importance since we are going to place points that are going to
be snapped to 3D vertex in the actual geometry of the model.

To place an adaptive component you have to select/draw as many points as adaptive points have the family.

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If you pick any geometry reference as a point, then the adaptive component will be related to that geometry
(for instance the middle point of the base of a wall, a vertex,...). Each modification of the geometry (the wall)
will affect to the adaptive component.

6 Nest an adaptive component in a family

This option will be advisable when we need to do a family repeating an adaptive component several times.

7 Nest a family into an adaptive component

Nest profiles: We often use profile forms to create 3D forms. When creating an adaptive component that
follows an extrusion of a 2D profile, is really useful to nest the profile (it would be a generic model face
based) as a family with all the parameters that we will need to change. If we didn´t nest the profile, and
directly draw the profile using reference lines we we would have to link all the dimensions to the adaptive
point, which is a complex process.

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Nest 3D families: we can nest whole 3D families as parts of our adaptive component. They should be then
place upon a workplane either the workplanes of adaptive points, or other adaptive workplanes (those of
reference lines), so that the inserted family changes position according to the placement of the adaptive
points.
Nest adaptive components: of course we can work in cascade and insert adaptive components into other
adaptive families components.

When we nest a family into an adaptive component we can nest also the nested family parameters (See Nested
Families Guideline).

Tips&Tricks
Adaptive components are mostly used when we need to adapt a family to different positions in space
following parametric rules.
To define the points which an adaptive component need to be created is advisable to use Dynamo.

Bottom-line
Adaptive components allow us to create families that flexibly adapt to many unique contextual conditions.
They are really a powerful tool for 3d modeling but adaptive components do not have any 2D or 2½D
capability, this means we cannot do texts, symbols or detail items.

Associated Files
Parameters Guideline
Families Guideline
Nested Families Guideline

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