CASE Interoperability Update

CASE's interoperability framework makes important design data accessible among different technologies.

It has been awhile since I have shared an update on CASE interoperability approach.  With new technologies entering into the fray, interoperability is as relevant a concept as ever.  In recent months, much of my focus has been on highlighting efforts around the Rhynamo node library for Dynamo. I am thrilled to see that the library has grown in popularity and is currently the second most downloaded Dynamo package.

In the wake of Rhynamo's success as an open source project, I have been actively continuing development of a broad range of CASE interoperability solutions which allow us to consult and support project-wide and firm-wide data management among a broad spectrum of design software.  In recent months, these solutions have found their way into the workflows of firms such as Adrian Smith+Gordon Gill, AECOM, HDR, DIALOG, and RTKL.

The goal of these solutions has been to address the many data transfer challenges as a building proceeds from concept, to analysis, to document production.  Grasshopper, Revit, RAM Structural System, SketchUp, Microstation, 3DS Max, and SolidWorks are just a sampling of the tools that have found their way into CASE's workflow planning services as of late.

Beyond providing technical tools for accomplishing better data transfer, our approach also involves mapping out key use cases for a team and to support the overall pipeline.

Here are some current use cases that I am interested in at the moment...

• Integrated practice... uses of interoperability to enhance collaboration among architecture and engineering disciplines for more seamless bi-directional coordination.
• Analysis workflows.... uses of interoperability as a methodology for model simplification and data extraction in analysis.
• Datafication and BIM migration... uses of interoperability for migrating legacy drawings/data into the BIM ecosystem.  Let's automate 2D to 3D to BIM!

Stay tuned for an extended and detailed CASE Blog post on these subjects... and always feel free to reach out to us if you are interested in these ideas.

In the mean time, check out some of the recent clips below...

Rhynamo - Refactored and Data-centric

The new version of Rhynamo exposes new data from 3DM files 

There is much more to Rhino files than NURBS geometry.  This latest release of Rhynamo extends the users ability to access different data and objects within a Rhino file from Dynamo... from general file information, to layers, or materials.  Geometry conversions will also return other important information about the object including GUIDs, layers, colors, and names.

In order to better develop this new functionality, the Rhynamo library has been refactored Rhynamo's for better organization... this will almost certainly break existing definitions that use older versions, but this is an important evolutionary step for this tool.  Older versions are still downloadable on the package manager for legacy use.

Visit the Rhynamo source to get the latest...

Geometry converters also return information about object GUIDs, names, layers, and colors.

Materials, layers, linetypes, hatch patterns, and camera view data is now available.

Rhynamo is Open Source!

Rhynamo:  An Open Source Tool for Reading and Writing Rhino files with Dynamo

On behalf of CASE, I am happy to announce that the source code for Rhynamo has been published to BitBucket.org.  Rhynamo is an open source project under the MIT license and is maintained by CASE.

Free builds of Rhynamo have already been made available through the Package Manager.

We are very excited to be contributing to the BIM and computational design community with this tool kit that enables tighter integration between popular design authoring tools.  We are committed to helping the AECO industry address their interoperability challenges.  Tools, like Rhynamo, are only one small piece of that puzzle.

A few notes about the project...

• The project his hosted on BitBucket.org... it's a great service, check it out!
• I highly recommend Source Tree as a tool for managing your repos
• Rhynamo is a C# project being developed with Visual Studio (I am using 2013)
• The project relies heavily on McNeel's OpenNURBS library.
• Because it relies on OpenNURBS, you do not need Rhino to work on the project (most of the time)
• Are you interested in learning Dynamo/Rhynamo?  Do you have questions about interoperability?  Reach out to us...

If you are going to be at Autodesk University in Las Vegas this week, be sure to check out what CASE is up to... and don't miss our party!

Visit the BitBucket Repo and Get the SOURCE!

https://bitbucket.org/caseinc/rhynamo

Get the Rhynamo Package!

Get Rhynamo now through the Dynamo package manager

Rhynamo is now an official Dynamo package... freely available to the public!  I am still putting the finishing touches on the source code repository (more on that soon!), but that shouldn't stop you from getting the latest build of Rhynamo to try out in your work.

The private beta was very successful with over 300 people testing Rhynamo and providing very valuable feedback.  There is still work to do to improve the tool, but now that we have been actively using it on our own projects at CASE, we feel it is ready for the greater BIM and Computational Design community to start making use of it.

So give it a try!  Rhynamo is designed to work with the latest builds of Dynamo (0.7.4 or later).

• Be sure you get the latest daily Dynamo build (I am using 0.7.5) to use the tool!  
• You can download Rhynamo right now using the Dynamo package manager.
• Rhynamo also comes with a few example files and a read me so you can get oriented.

Rhynamo - An Open Source Project

Coding Rhynamo from my hotel room at The Standard in Los Angeles

If you who were paying attention to my Twitter feed During ACADIA, you may have caught that I made a special announcement regarding Rhynamo, the OpenNURBS file reader/writer for Dynamo:

As of December 1, CASE will release Rhynamo as an open source project.

What does that mean? It means that we will continue to be releasing and developing free builds of the tool so you can continue to use Rhynamo in your work. It also means that brave coders out there will have the opportunity to leverage the Rhynamo source code to customize their workflow with OpenNURBS and Dynamo and develop new integrations.

Rhynamo only attempts to address a small piece of the larger design and production workflow. However, I believe that tools like Rhynamo provide us with a road map for what we, as users, should be expecting from our ecosystem of tools:

• We need more fluid exchanges of data throughout the design process
• We need higher levels of compatibility between authoring platforms
• We need open file formats and APIs that let us customize our workflow

Projects like McNeel’s OpenNURBS and the Dynamo project should not be exceptions…they should be the rule.

I still have some code commenting, clean-up, and feature development to do ahead of December before release the project into the wild... but for those of you who are already relying on Rhynamo in your workflow, rest assured that the tool is not going anywhere and will continue to be developed into 2015.

I also want to thank the more than 300 testers who signed up to try out Rhynamo in the past two months.  Their contributions have been very appreciated and I hope they continue to play along as we enter into phase 2 :)

More info to follow....

Reading in a Rhino file containing a Hexagonal paneling system

Mapping complex Rhino panels to Revit Adaptive components

Creating a Dynamo surface and saving geometry as a Rhino 3DM.

Completed during the ACADIA 2014 Hackathon, this shows Rhynamo sending 'live' commands to Rhino.

Introducing RHYNAMO: Apply for BETA Testing!

Demoing Rhynamo for the Central States BIM workshop

I just finished up a string of presentations at the Central States BIM Workshops hosted here in Omaha.  I announced a private beta for a new Dynamo node library:  RHYNAMO.

Rhynamo is a plug-in that lets you read and write the Rhino 3DM file format within Dynamo.  This opens up a lot of interoperability potential between Rhino, Grasshopper, Dynamo, Revit, and more. I am excited to get more folks to try this out!

Apply for the Rhynamo Private Beta here...

 

Rhino Meets Dynamo

I've had some fun with the Rhino file format in recent days.  You may remember some of the work done with the Import OpenNURBS CASE App.  To further this idea, I wanted to create a more fluid workflow with 3DM files and the world of Revit.  To achieve this, it only made sense to delve into the world of Dynamo customization and build new nodes for reading and writing the Rhino file format.

With Dynamo we can read Rhino-based information into the Revit environment... AND write Rhino files directly out of Dynamo.

These are still WIP nodes internal to CASE.  To get a sense of other stuff we have been doing with Dynamo, check out some of my workshop posts.

 

2014 Outlook: Interoperability, Performance, and Computational BIM

First off... Happy Holidays to the readers and visitors of this blog!  The Proving Ground has been going strong since 2007 with steady growth in visitor traffic. I have a lot of computational cakes in the oven as we go into 2014... so keep tuning in!

In this past year as a consultant, I observed a trend towards greater investments in technological capabilities among practitioners in parallel with higher economic optimism.  Indeed, McGraw-Hill Construction expects that the BIM adoption rate among architects to hit almost 75% in the US with anticipated 2014 investments in training, interoperability, performance analysis, custom software, and collaboration infrastructure.

So what am I looking forward to in 2014? What can you expect to see from CASE to further the cause of helping architects use technology to build better buildings?

As a preview, here what you can expect to see on this blog moving into 2014...

Interoperability

Getting the tools to work together will continue to be a big piece of the technology puzzle for firms going into the New Year.  New tools will be continue to enter into the process... but how they all fit together as an ecosystem will not always be clear.  Designers are going to need to be equipped with new workflows and expertise in data management to get the most value out of the project information.

2013 was a breakthrough year for CASE on the interoperability front.  We have created consulting-based frameworks to address design to production, reduced rework, and improved cross-platform collaboration.  We have consulted on interoperability-related issues for projects including healthcare facilities, high rise towers, and sports venues.

Next year, CASE will continue to evolve interoperability offerings with support for more software platforms, workflows, file formats, and building systems.  Expect to see the expansion of our Rhino to Revit workflow, innovation with the IFC file format, and novel uses of web services as a Building Information medium.

Performance

CASE's DIVA Daylight Analysis curriculum.

Let's face it... the use of analysis within design practice is still a black art.  Some tools are about as intuitive as a DOS prompt (or are the DOS prompt). Others approach the depth of a cartoon where colors replace tangible results.  In the case of Energy Analysis, models are often built on many assumptions requiring expert domain knowledge.  The rework of models to keep pace with design iteration remains a painstaking and cumbersome task.

Yet the fact remains that analysis is becoming a greater component of design practice.  Clients are beginning to expect better performing buildings with upfront proof and designers are beginning to see the advantages of measurable design attributes to validate decisions.

In 2013, CASE ran numerous analysis-related workshops and rolled out a formal training curriculum for DIVA for Rhino.  A number of our Project Consulting engagements also featured analysis-related technologies as part of the scope of work.  We worked with teams to set up iterative systems to capture and compare solar and daylight results.  We also created data visualization tools to help designers communicate  analysis results to clients and other project stakeholders.

In 2014, CASE's work on the analysis front will continue.  We are now an authorized trainer OpenStudio by the National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL).  You can expect to see Open Studio, EnergyPlus, and Radiance become a larger part of our offerings for architects and MEP engineers.  Alan Jackson and I have also set a goal to establish more streamlined approached for developing energy analysis models for use in the earliest stages of design and engineering.  Working prototypes are already underway for Rhino and Revit and we are looking forward to sharing our approach with you in the New Year!

Computational BIM

Dynamo Workshop at Facades+ in October 2013

There is a growing need within design practices to marry the worlds of Computational Design with BIM.  While CASE has never really thought of these two things as separate domains, there is certainly a conceptual gap in how practices have embraced these categories.  Indeed, it is within this gap that much of my own interoperability interests have been focused.

2014 will see Computational BIM grow into maturity.  We will see uses of computational design where downstream information considerations are much more pronounced.  BIM processes will become less linear, more iterative, and tied more directly to design and performance goals.

Meanwhile, CASE will continue to operate at this interesting intersection of technologies with resources for knowledge and services for clients.  We have recorded an extensive Introduction to Grasshopper curriculum of over 120 Grasshopper learning videos, many of which will be available on Skillshare in partnership with Architizer.

Going into 2014, We are also anticipating that Dynamo will become an important tool within the Computational BIM workflow.  In just the last three months I have workshops for Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill, NBBJ, AECOM, and Facades+.  Next year, Michael McCune and I already have TexFab on our calendars and together we will be running Dynamo workshop!

2013 was an exciting year and I hope that 2014 will be even better!

As always, feel free to reach out!

• CASE Website
• The Proving Ground on Facebook (help me get to 3000 likes by the end of the year!)

Cheers!
-Nate

CASE Learning: Rhino + Grasshopper + DIVA Workshops

We have been delivering exciting training and workshop opportunities since CASE first opened its doors.  We are pleased to announce that Sept. 16-20 will mark the first of many new CASE Design Technology Workshops aimed to provide individuals in the AEC industry with the knowledge and tools for a better BIM workflow. This inaugural collection of professional Rhino-based courses is focused on popular design technologies used for conceptual exploration, idea development, and early analysis.

This week-long event will kick off series of courses that can be taken all together (for the hardcore learner) or individually (based on your interest). The workshops will take place at the CASE HQ in NYC where computers and software will be provided. Space is limited, so don’t waste any time to inquire about availability!

Additionally, if you are interested in an exclusive professional workshop for your practice, don't hesitate to reach out and we can work with you to put something on your calendar!

If you’re interested in signing up for one or all of the courses, contact learning@case-inc.com and provide the following info:

• Contact info (Name, Phone, E-Mail) 
• Discipline (designer, architect, engineer, etc...) 
• Organization (company or university) 
• Course(s) of interest (see list below)

September Courses

RHINO 101: Rhino is a popular NURBS-based 3D modeling tool. This is a 2-day introduction to 3D modeling Rhino 5.0. The course will cover basic modeling capabilities used for conceptual design and schematic development. CASE will cover how to use Rhino to develop architectural geometry in the context of an iconic architectural precedent.  Learn more here....
Duration: 2 days; Sept. 16-17
Cost: $1200 per person

GRASSHOPPER 101: Grasshopper is a computational design plug-in for Rhino. This is a 2-day introduction to computational design with Grasshopper 3D. The course will familiarize designers in how to use Grasshopper as a design development tool. Participants will define geometry, develop architectural systems, and implement data mining techniques. Learn more here....
Duration: 2 days; Sept. 18-19
Cost: $1200 per person

DIVA 101: DIVA is an environmental analysis tool for Rhino. This 1-day introduction will guide designers through the different solar, daylight, and energy analysis capabilities of DIVA. Participants will set up analysis models, create visualizations, and extract environmental metrics on design models.  Learn more here....
Duration: 1 day; Sept. 20
Cost: $800 per person

Tell your friends :)

CASE Learning: Rhinoceros 101

At CASE, a central part of what we do is educating our clients in new design technologies and processes.  This summer we have created brand new curricula for some of our favorite software with a focus on architectural idea generation and design development.  Our new learning content is anchored in rigorous exercises while also providing opportunities for the participant to explore variations on design concepts.

We are rolling out 3 new CASE-ified workshops geared towards professional designers who are looking for some new weapons to add to their arsenal. In the next three posts, I will be showcasing what these new workshops are all about... as they say in Jurassic Park, "hold on to your butts."

If you are interested in a workshop, don't hesitate to reach out!

Rhinoceros 3D

Rhino has become the Swiss army knife of design tools.  At an early stage of the design process, Rhino can be used as an iterative tool for exploring concepts.  In later stages, Rhino can serve as a powerful tool for developing geometry and rationalizing complex systems.  The program supports a wide variety of file formats making it an ideal "go between" program with a high level of compatibility for more advanced fabrication and building information software.

Our approach to teaching Rhino focuses on how it can be used as an architectural design tool in support of conceptual and schematic development.   We have chosen to anchor the exercises in the context of the Swiss Re Tower in London.  As an iconic piece of contemporary architecture by Foster & Partners, the tower is well suited for Rhino-based exercises for beginning users.  The tower concept also allows participants to study variations of the concept while they learn the program.

In our workshop we first introduce new users how to create and manipulate surface geometry.  Some common surface creation techniques such as Loft, Revolve, and Sweep make an appearance in these early exercises.  Additionally we cover how to manipulate these surfaces using control points and implicit history.

Utilizing surface controls to develop the geometry.

Following these initial explorations in form, we then proceed to 'dissect' the building by developing systems such as floor plates and the core.  We show new users how to utilize trims and booleans while introducing popular commands such as "contour" to quickly develop derivative objects.

Utilizing booleans and trims to develop floor profiles and create the iconic atrium spaces.

During the workshops, we also cover a few popular Rhino plug-ins such as Paneling Tools.  We use these plug-ins and add-ons to study variations of the exterior facade and structure systems.

As the workshop progresses, participants are introduced to techniques for modeling complex systems and patterns.

Popular plug-ins, such as Paneling Tools, are introduced for quickly developing the architecture.

We recognize that having efficient techniques for communicating the design to clients is an essential skill when working in a 3D modeler.  While the model is being developed, the workshop also covers presentation-related topics such as basic Rhino visualization, viewport customization, and creating layouts.  

Customizing the Rhino viewport is an effective means for producing quick diagrammatic images.

Next up.... Grasshopper 101!

CASE Interoperability: Syncing Materials

More than just numeric parameters can be coordinated between different models...

This video demonstrates syncing Materials between Grasshopper and Revit. The Revit project contains some pre-defined Materials to display the colors. The Revit family has a Material instance parameter which is synced with the Grasshopper data. The scenario implies that analysis data can be leveraged to inform Revit Materials or be used to coordinate other parametric material applications within Revit.

Interested in working with these capabilities? Contact us at: info@case-inc.com

PREVIEW: CASE Interoperability - Managing Changes

Tracking and reacting to design changes between different platforms can be a very difficult task with current interoperability solutions.  This video demonstrates how the CASE interoperability tools can manage geometry changes across different platforms.  The video also shows some significant interface changes which further streamline the workflow and make updating models fast and easy.  ...anyone catch the login forms? >:)

We are actively working with with firms to consult on projects and deploy these tools.  Feel free to contact us if you are interested in collaborating!  http://www.case-inc.com/contact

Arch 223 Spring 2013: Assignment 02

The second assignment for the Spring 2013 semester is in...

Like Assignment 02 from the Fall, the students were tasked with remixing the "Gothic" style of architecture using digital tools and a little elbow grease.  This semester, I also had them try out some animation tools in both Rhino and Blender 3D.  Instead of boards, they submitted slide presentations... which culminated in a surprise Pecha Kucha-style presentation on the due date.

Looks like they are having fun... as are the TAs, Matt and Dan :)

Student: Phuc Trinh

Student: William Pokojski

Student: Justine McCarty

Student: Phillip Wiebe

Arch 223 Spring 2013: Assignment 01

Here are some results of the first assignment from the Spring 2013 undergrad crew...  This was their first exposure to using Rhino... and for many their first time using 3D modeling for a design exercise.

The basic premise was the same as the first assignment from this past fall.

Well done, class!  (and the usual props to Lab TAs Matt Neaderhiser and Dan Williamson)

Student: Austin Goosen

Student: Josh Puppe

Student: Paige Nelsen

Student: Ally Pilmaier

Student:  Phuc Trinh

UNL Arch 223: Assignment 02

More kick ass work from my Arch 223 students...

This assignment was to "remix" Gothic geometry.  Not much conceptual criteria beyond that as the focus of the course technical process.  I wanted them to focus on creating modular design logic with an emphasis on technical modeling craft, and drawing quality.  Rhino was used as the modeler. (and again... no Grasshopper!)  Some students opted to try out Blender Cycles rendering as well .

The TAs are also doing a great job... props to Matt Neaderhiser and Dan Williamson for running the labs and bringing the best out of these students.

You can also check out some of Assignment 01 here...

The next assignment will enter the world of BIM... stay tuned :) 

Student:  Aaron Powell

Student:  Allen Phengmarath

Student:  Carlos Servan-Alverez

Student:  Jati Zunaibi

Student:  Sarah Schlegelmilch

Import OpenNURBS for Vasari is here!

CASE is excited to announce the Beta release of Import OpenNURBS for Autodesk’s Vasari Conceptual Modeling Software.  The Beta is available for a limited time through the CASE Apps Add-in manager found at the CASE Apps website.

The Import OpenNURBS add-in facilitates early-stage interoperability by allowing designers to import conceptual geometry from Rhino into Autodesk Vasari.  Unlike importing and linking with other file formats, Import OpenNURBS will translate geometries as native Vasari elements to give designers the flexibility to further develop their designs using Vasari’s modeling and analysis features.

The Vasari Add-in reads the OpenNURBS file format (Rhino 4.0 3DM) and uses custom algorithms to reconstruct geometry using Vasari API methods.  Currently, the Add-in supports a broad range of OpenNURBS geometry.  At this stage, some geometry support has yet to be implemented but we are committed to expanding the functionality as new capabilities become available for OpenNURBS and the Vasari API.

We hope you enjoy testing the new Import OpenNURBS Beta for Autodesk Vasari... and we hope you can provide us with valuable feedback about the tool!

Try it.... test it... break it!  Then let us know what you think :)

Interoperable Geometry (Part 3): Surface Forms

...and then there are surfaces.

Reconstructing Rhino surfaces within Revit is a tricky science.  Revit's Conceptual Massing API exposes a number of useful higher-level form creation tools for surfaces and solid geometry which can be used to recreate some types of surfaces.  However, the mathematical representations of Revit surfaces may vary from Rhino's NURBS representation making challenging to produce completely accurate reconstructions of Rhino surfaces using automated native API rebuilding.  Additionally, the construction geometry used to derive the Revit Form (Hermite Splines, for example) are also ripe with their own interoperability challenges.

Much like the Spline example in the previous post, we can use reference points on the original Rhino surface to control the how accurately the Revit Form matches the original NURBS.  The greater the number of  points, the more accurate the construction geometry and the resulting Revit Form will be.

Interoperable Geometry (Part 2): Spline Control

Simple things matter in the world of 3D modeling and BIM...

For the foreseeable future, designers and engineers will be using a variety of different tools to meet their needs so it is important to understand the fundamental differences in the tools.  Many questions arose from the past post on how to resolve the differences in the spline interpolation algorithms used between Rhino and Revit.

When a user draws an interpolated curve in Rhino, the user specifies the Greville points (or "edit points") to produce a NURBS curve representation.  When a user draw a Spline in Revit (using Curve by Points), Revit will use a Hermite spline interpolation algorithm to draw the curve.  Revit also uses this same Hermite spline algorithm for representing imported splines from programs such as AutoCAD.

The next version of CASE's Import OpenNURBS Add-in implements a technique for producing accurate curve translations between Rhino and Revit.   The importer will let users multiply the number of interpolation points that are used to calculate and draw a Revit Spline curve.  By increasing the number of interpolation points along the Rhino curve, Revit is able to produce matching spline curve geometry with less chance for deviation...

Here is a graphic example of that process...

Interoperable Geometry (Part 1): Curves

Discussions about interoperability have become extremely pervasive in the computational design and BIM communities. As they rightly should, users expect their software applications to support one another through integrated workflows where information can fluidly pass from one system to the next..  Unfortunately, given the complexity of our industry and its technological infrastructure, we still have a ways to go before we achieve seamless integration between systems and across platforms... but that doesn't mean we should give up!

Which brings me to geometry....

Being in the midst of developing the next release of CASE's Import OpenNURBS Add-in for Revit (which will include broader curve and surface support through conceptual massing), I thought it would be helpful to contextualize that effort by providing some short infographics which explain specific geometry challenges across the Rhino and Revit platforms.

Even at the lowest levels of representation, the two systems handle geometry differently which makes it especially challenging to ensure correct and reliable translation.  The graphic below shows a comparison of NURBS and Interpolated curves created in Rhino and Revit which share the same control points and weights.  The variations in how the two systems compute the curves are made obvious by the deviations...  Even NURB Splines are translated with variations.

UPDATE 1 - Interpolation Algorithms:  I just wanted to clarify that I attribute these variations due to a difference in spline and interpolation algorithms.  Architectural Geometry (Pottmann et al) has a nice section on Freeform curves with a nice diagram showing different interpolation algorithms.

UPDATE 2 - NURBS Splines and Knots:  After some further investigation into the NURB Spline, the variation in curvature is due to a difference in how knots are computed in Rhino and Revit.  According to the SDK, Revit determines knots based on NumberOfControlPoints + Degree + 1.  Rhino, on the other hand, uses NumberOfControlPoints + Degree -1.  This means that there is a difference of 2 knot values between the tools. For accurate results, an interoperability method must also account for this variation.

Thanks, Matt Jezyk and the Autodesk team for confirming some of these technical differences!

Import OpenNURBS, Samples and Tutorial

Hot off the release of the CASE Import OpenNURBS Add-in for Revit, I have created some 3DM sample files you can use to test drive the tool.  I have also put together a DesignReform tutorial to get you started with the Add-In!

• Sample Rhino 3DM files:  The sample files contain all kinds of curve geometry which you can import into the Revit environment as model curves.
• DesignReform Tutorial:  A short tutorial for getting started with the Import OpenNURBS Add-In.

Here are some shots of the tool being put to work...!