I have what I think is quite a task to undertake and just wondering if it can be done…
If I download a family from somewhere (This can be any family from anywhere), is it possible to map existing parameters in Revit to the family file?
For example, lets say I download an Air Terminal from somewhere and the terminology they used was “Neck”, but in my project I call that same parameter “Diameter”… Is there a way, using Dynamo, to bring up a list of both parameters (Existing parameters and parameters from the family) and map them to each other? So saying “Neck” = “Diameter” rather than having to recreated the “Diameter” parameter in the new family?
Is something like this possible?
It is technically possible to map the parameters, BUT that doesn’t necessarily mean that the parameters will be compatible or that it will work with a given family. It’s much more complicated than you’ve described. If the parameters are different parameter types… it won’t work. If the family parameters already use formulas… it won’t work. If the family uses a lookup table… it won’t work. Parameter naming can be vague or inaccurate. If you don’t know what the parameters are specifically used for it’s not a good idea to map them to something else.
Maybe that’s OK with your workflow. Maybe you run the script to automate things and if it doesn’t work you go back and do it manually. That’s up to you and what you’re trying to accomplish, but these are the things you’ll have to keep in mind.
Thank you for the response, some of those things I had thought about, while others definitely not (Lookup Tables).
Do you have any suggestions on how to go about doing this in your experience? This process is causing a bit of a bottleneck in the overall chain and we are trying to find ways to overcome it and speed up efficiency. Our library is very big and ever changing, so getting at least a bit of automation in place would help a lot.
I should also say that this is all based on the assumption that you need your standard parameters to drive the geometry of the family. If you only care about getting your parameters in a family so that you can use them in schedules, then you can obviously just use project parameters and call it a day.
I am with you all the way up to step 4, that seems fairly straight forward.
When it comes to the equations however, I would not know how to handle that… Can these be set from within Dynamo or does that need to be done in Revit for each family?
Would I have to manually enter formulas into each downloaded Revit family when I want to run this or can I get that done with Dynamo as well?
And yes, if your second reply was the situation this would all be much easier
