Unable to import AutoCAD 3D solids into Revit

[ivsim]

I gather some of you might have experienced the same problem....3D solids modelled in AutoCAD not imported into Revit. Lines are just fine....

Is it something that Revit is generally unable to do or rather,.....I've got the feeling that it's probably a setting I have missed to click, so I shall greatly appreciate it if any of you could forward me to some previous Revit forum thread or some Help issue from the manual that deals with the matter.......thank you!

[aaronrumple]

Only surfaces.... not ACIS solids....

[PeterJ]

Into families or into a project? They work fine in families in my experience.

[ivsim]

It's actually an AutoCAD detailed modell of a project that was meant to be imorted into Revit where elevations and various sections could be generated..., just decided to try, so Revit played here an additional role, a very cruical though,.....anyway, thanks a lot,....

BTW, Peter, do you think there's any workaround to solve this problem here....? I'd very much appreciate!

[Scott D Davis]

Create a generic family, import the 3D solids into the generic family. Open a new project, place the family. Now you can cut sections, etc. through it.

[hand471037]

Also, if you just have to have the model within Revit (without bringing it in as a Family) you can open it in AutoCAD, use the Quick Select filter thing to select only 3 Solids, and explode them ONCE. This will turn them into a collection of 3D Faces, something Revit has no problem seeing.

[Jit]

Hi All

I have tried this but once you explode a solid it becomes a region and Revit still does not see it. Am i doing something wrong ?

I used acad2000 to try this.

many thanks

[goodpeace]

Scott, may be your Revit is Revit 7.0....???

No matter where you are the result is (even after explosion): "Import detected no valid elemnts in the file's Model space. Do you want to import from the Paper space?"

Solids' import are impossible!!! Solids (AutoCAD 2000 Drawing) into Revit 6.1
Very frustrating...

Tell me, please, there is a way to make it possible!

[mmulvey]

Here's the solution - works <<most>> of the time...

In ACAD do a 3DSout on the solids, then bring them back (into a new DWG if you want) using 3DSin - this converts the solids to meshes which Revit CAN read.

I said it "mostly" works because I found that for reasons I never could understand, only part of the model would come in sometimes. The work-around if this happens is to do the 3DSout/in on part of the model (bringing it in to a new DWG, then do the same with the remainder (one particularly complex model was split into four parts). This will also allow some better materials control within Revit.

ACIS solids and the tools to slice and dice them are at the top of my Revit wishlist.

[Scott D Davis]

Scott, may be your Revit is Revit 7.0....???

No matter where you are the result is (even after explosion): "Import detected no valid elemnts in the file's Model space. Do you want to import from the Paper space?"

Solids' import are impossible!!! Solids (AutoCAD 2000 Drawing) into Revit 6.1
Very frustrating...

Tell me, please, there is a way to make it possible!
oops! sorry bout that.....(wish i had enough pull to see 7.0!) I forgot about mmulvey's trick posted about 3dsout. You are correct, Revit can't actually deal with autocad solids. You must go through the process of converting to meshes throught he 3dsout process.

[goodpeace]

Thanks mmulvey! Converting to *.3ds and back is a solution... but all these lines of facets are very unpleasant.

I think I found the answer of your "for reasons I never could understand, only part of the model would come in sometimes", here it is:

"3DSOUT cannot convert a selection set containing more than 65,535 vertices. If necessary, simplify the geometry using the Auto-Welding option" (from help file)

that's why I suppose your split of a comlpex model helps! You simply reduse the vertices.

[ivsim]

Well, to the AutoCAD model importers, I suggest we drank a cup of cold water and kept our fingers crossed till the next 6.2 or the new 7.0 Revit version....when every type of AutoCAD modelled geometry, no matter, how complicated or simple it may be, would be a matter of a few clicks..... Thank you for the nice discussion! :)