AutoCAD and ADT Tables in Revit

[phyllisr]

There is no way I can decide where to post this question so here's hoping the moderator has a better idea. Maybe AutoCAD 2006 is a better location? Anyway, is there a way using either ADT or AutoCAD 2006 or the import settings in Revit such that the gridlines in a table will not display?

We have been experimenting with tables imported as a link to avoid the problem we face with the AutoCAD MText editor when importing. Text wrapping in a table is recognized wherein tabbing and text wrapping and formatting in MText is not. My clip example illustrates both. Has anyone determined a way to force the grid line to disappear? Unfortunately, even when I set the table so there are no grid lines, the "non-plotting" grid lines are still on the object layer. I cannot therefore exclude that layer on import or I also lose the text. We are using ADT 2005 and I have not found a way to do this.

If anyone can figure this out, I will buy you dinner at AU this year. Attached is my test RVT file and both linked drawings.

(No, I do not plan to use the link for an index - it was just a convenient test of things I already had. I understand view lists and drawing lists. This is for other purposes.)

PBR

[aggockel50321]

It'll add additional steps to your process, but try this.

Looking at your test table.dwg and test text.dwg, they're both acad blocks.

Try exploding the table and text blocks in acad, place the table grid on a separate layer, & then import. YOu can now turn the grid off in Revit

As for the text block, the formatting characters will no longer show.

[phyllisr]

Your solution works very well but misses the goal. The advantage of linking the table in the first place is so we can continually edit and change in AutoCAD without resorting to older DText methods (the result if you explode the original AutoCAD files). Tables allow alignment, text wrapping and more that we want to maintain and edit throughout the project. DText means editing hundreds of individual objects and moving multiple elements multiple times to maintain alignment. It also requires using the old %%U to underline. Exploding the table or exploding MText to DText does nothing that using Revit text will not do. The clip is a better example. I also attached the DWG file I was linking to create the clip image. You can see why we might not want to edit this with either DText or in Revit.

So I do not have to buy you dinner but if someone else finds the answer, you can still come. Though if you have enough influence to encourage Autodesk to make a better Text Editor in Revit (or maybe something like a table), I will buy you dinner anyway.

PBR

[Steve_Stafford]

If the goal is to organize data into columns and rows you could add project parameters to a project and create a schedule that displays these. For adhoc data a user would need to be able to create these parameters and build a schedule. For routine repetitive data these could be in a template already and all the user has to do is edit data.

I realize this doesn't involve the table feature in AutoCAD or AutoCAD at all so no dinner...:sad:

Added image: Project Parameters are assigned to the Drawing Sheets category (have to pick one) and uses a yes/no parameter to make it easy to filter for just those I want in the schedule. If there are a lot of these sorts of tables you'll end up with a long list of parameters and the naming of these will loom large as a management issue for your staff.

[tonyisenhoff]

How are you going about adding the additional rows in once you've created the schedule?

I can do something similiar with Key Schedules... What are you using?

Tony

[Steve_Stafford]

...How are you going about adding the additional rows in once you've created the schedule?...uh...good catch! The schedule image shown is a drawing list so the choices available are based on how many sheets there are. Assuming there are a bunch of sheets you should have enough rows to use and filter out the rest.

That said, schedule keys are a better way to go since you can just add new rows. Just need to arm wrestle over which category you use :wink:

[tonyisenhoff]

Yea - You have to be careful and pick something that you don't use...

Another thought - You could possibly add an underscore or something to group "Your" parameters separate from the out of the box ones.

Tony

[simon.david]

Hi, just been reading your posts regarding tables and text in Revit

I too am wanting Revit to do/use the Autocad stuff we all use in ADT, my concerns with linking stuff from AutoCAD as it seems a bit like a cheat and we are not finding ways for Revit to do these things.

I am trying to make a full Construction Docuement Set of Drawings contained entirely in Revit, therefore making Revit my priamry CAD tool.

Are these issues we need adding to the wish list and just accepting we have to link back to ADT all the time? for at least the time being?

I don't think any of us (Or our Bosses) want/need to run 2 CAD packages to work on one job.

= My 2 Cents

[phyllisr]

I am trying to make a full Construction Document Set of Drawings contained entirely in Revit, therefore making Revit my primary CAD tool.
It has been a while since I posted this question and have I have learned a great deal since then.

First, the only ADT content (specifically AEC objects) we bring into our Revit projects are those required for working with consultants. I use a variety of techniques depending on what I get. I have some strategies in place for legacy ADT projects for long-term clients but have not tested thoroughly yet.

Second, there is a difference between AutoCAD and ADT. We are moving away from any AutoCAD (even details) as we move forward but this does not cause the same headache as ADT. To use some details not worth recreating in Revit, I created a Revit Standard.dws file and we run the Standards Checker to strip down our layers and plotstyles to a simple level. Instead of linking these AutoCAD files to a project, we are creating Detail Families and Detail Groups by exploding the import and further modifying lines. Eventually, we will dump AutoCAD details all together.

Third (and this gets to your point directly), I still find the text editor in Revit clunky and unfriendly. For awhile, until this is improves in future releases, I expect we will lean on AutoCAD tables and the more sophisticated MText editor. With some experimenting and process planning, I have a slick, quick method the leverage both. We only use this where we cannot use a key schedule (general notes are great with this method) or the custom keynote families (and schedules) I created. We are all quite enamored with using Excel (TXT and CSV files) to create/modify/edit family types.

The only "approved" DWG links and imports are Site Plans (for a variety of complicated reasons) and some text for specific reasons. Attached is a PDF with a clip from Revit (linked AutoCAD file) and a clip from AutoCAD with MText and Tables (even with the AutoCAD import into Revit, I get a better quality PDF). As time permits (and when I create this mini-tutorial for my own users), I will share with all how I got the tabs and manual line breaks correct.

Finally, the whole thing is much easier (editing keynote family types included) if you have pretty solid Word and Excel skills.

We may not be 100% Revit in all our projects yet, but the goal is 95%. Once the Revit text editor is improved, 100% it is.

Good luck,
PBR