CAD, BIM & 3D

This post reflects on work that I carried out, elaborated during my guidance of a few Master thesis students, to better integrate BIM models into Unity. This will be a multi-part post. This makes each article a bit shorter to read, but allows more in-depth information overall. Hope you like it. Please comment with feedback and further improvements. Basic methodology Unity can import geometry from FBX and Collada (DAE) files primarily. There are a few other formats, but these are the preferred ones. When integrating CAD or BIM files into a realtime environment, you have to convert the geometry. During my Unity teaching and the writing of the book Unity for Architectural Visualization ( buy from Packt ), I’ve come up with a basic diagram explaining geometry exchange between CAD and BIM software and Unity. Throughout these posts, we’ll go more into detail. We start with ArchiCAD, but will tackle Revit in a follow-up post. Promised!

Disclaimer: I was asked (politely) by somebody from Cometdocs if I would be interested in reviewing this iOS app. This is my personal review and there was no financial compensation, but the software vendor was willing to provide additional information where needed. From PDF to CAD drawings This isn’t my first blog post on this subject and probably won’t be the last either. http://cad-3d.blogspot.com/2014/03/able2extract-converting-pdf-back-to-cad.html http://cad-3d.blogspot.com/2013/05/from-pdf-back-to-dwg.html Despite the fact that 2D CAD drawings are widely used and shared, many of them only in the form of a non-editable PDF. Or so the CAD drafters assume. Regardless of your motivation to return an exported PDF into editable format, I assume here that it is not to circumvent any copyright protection measures. Cometdocs PDF to AutoCAD (dwg) Cometdocs has several PDF related apps available in the App Store. Here we specifically look at PDF to AutoCAD (dwg) ( https://itunes.apple.com/...

Disclaimer : I received an offer from Packt Publishing to review the book “ 3D Printing with RepRap Cookbook ”, written by Richard Salinas. Packt Publishing is a print-on-demand service, from which I already bought several books, ebooks and for whom I also authored my Unity for Architectural Visualization book and the Building an Architectural Walkthrough with Unity video course. I received the eBook version free of charge, but the review is solely my own, personal opinion.   https://www.packtpub.com/hardware-and-creative/3d-printing-reprap-cookbook Intro In contrast with my previous review on 3D Printing with SketchUp , this book is more independent of the software, but focuses on particular hardware. I don’t have such a machine within arms reach, but I do have access to a local Fab-lab where several CNC, lasercutting and 3D printing machines are available for visitors. So what does this book offer? It is a quite extensive book at 346 pages. The layout and quality is similar to...

Disclaimer : I received an offer from Packt Publishing to review the book “ 3D Printing with SketchUp ”, written by Marcus Ritland. Packt Publishing is a print-on-demand service, from which I already bought several books, ebooks and for whom I also authored my Unity for Architectural Visualization book and the Building an Architectural Walkthrough with Unity video course. I received this eBook version free of charge, but the review is solely my own, personal opinion. About 3D Printing There has been a rise of attention to 3D printing, especially with more accessible printing facilities, such as Shapeways or i.Materialise (which is only 10 minutes by bike from where I work), but also with cheaper 3D printing hardware, that you can even order as a pre-assembled kit or to build from (almost) scratch. On the other hand, where you needed to rely on more traditional CAD software, such as Rhinoceros, AutoCAD or MCAD software, most current CAD and even BIM software support the STL file forma...

When looking at the Graphisoft site, in the list of books, I’m always disappointed by the lack of ArchiCAD specific books. There are a few mentioned, but they are for older versions, usually (down to version 9 still, which is when the whole Publishing workflow was still in the external PlotMaker software). This is not usable today. The first book in the list, however, was a recent eBook, by Nicola Petkovic: it consist of 4 separate books. And that is what I’ll discuss in this blogpost. Master Class - Step by step guidebook You can order them separately or as a bundle, with discount. There is also the option to buy it as a hard-copy. Masterclass 1 (beginners level) - basics, tools (wall, slab, door, window, stair…), Priority-Based Connections, editing, basic floor plans and layout… Appendix 1 for Master Class 1 (Intermediate level) - plan & layout, building materials & PBE, window- and door markers, 3D sections/cutaway, Zone tool in 2D and 3D Appendix 2 for Master Class 2 (Inter...

This is a loaded topic. Every time people start to compare Mac and PCs or ArchiCAD and Revit, they start arguing. My point is merely making a neutral overview over the most important new features from both applications and how they compare to what is missing in the other or what has been available already. As an ArchiCAD user, I have to admit I’m more experienced with ArchiCAD but I have used Revit, took classes and know a thing or two (three… four) about CAD and BIM software from my years of experience. So I don’t apologise, but rather feel that I have something to say about it. By the way, this post has also been included with CAD Digest Selection. Autodesk Revit 2015 Graphisoft ArchiCAD 18 Existing/ Updated : Integration of Mental Ray rendering and Cloud-based external rendering New : CineRender Rendering engine based on Cinema4D After the old Accurender was replaced with Mental Ray, Revit gained the same rendering quality and materials as AutoCAD, 3ds Max and M...

I have recently completed a video course on the use of Unity in architectural visualisation. This course has almost 3 hours of content and is available from Packt Publishing. More information and ordering Some words about what I find important in this course (and I'm seriously biased, as the author). Small, easy-to-digest modules Starting from the provided templates, I was tasked to follow a very strict format: small videos of about 3 to 5 minutes, 5 videos in a section and 8 sections in total. There was also a quite strict content format to follow: title, content, actual tutorial section (including problem and solution) and than a summary in the end. While this restricts a bit the amount of information you can cram into the timeslot, it ensures that the learning outcomes are clear and focused. On the plus side, the educational quality of the end result improved considerably. On the minus side, the amount of topics that could be handled and their depth was limited. It...