1. Revit Materials Living in a Material World Elise Moss Adjunct Faculty Laney College

2. How are Materials used in Revit? For Rendering For Scheduling To control hatch patterns To control appearance of objects

3. Revit manages Materials Revit divides materials into TWO locations Materials in the Project Autodesk Asset Library You can also create one or more custom libraries for materials you want to use in more than one project You can only edit materials in the project or in the custom library – Autodesk Materials are read-only

4. Materials have FIVE ASSET definition tabs Materials have FIVE asset definitions – Identity, Graphics, Appearance, Physical and Thermal Materials do not have to be fully defined to be used- YOU DONT HAVE TO DEFINE ALL FIVE ASSETS Each asset contributes to the definition of a single material MATERIAL IDENTITYGRAPHICS APPEARANCE PHYSICAL THERMAL Assets are the ingredients that make up the Material

5. Assets act separately from materials You can define Appearance, Physical, and Thermal Assets independently without assigning/associating it to a material You can assign the same assets to different materials An asset can exist without being assigned to a material BUT a material must have at least THREE assets (Identity, Graphics, Appearance) Assets can be deleted from a material in a project or in a user library, but you can not remove or delete assets from materials in locked material libraries, such as the Autodesk Materials library, the AEC Materials library, or any locked user library. You can delete assets from a user library – BUT be careful because that asset might be used somewhere!

6. You can duplicate an asset and re-define it You can only duplicate, replace or delete an asset if it is in the project or in a user library

7. Reading the Material Editor This material only has three assets assigned – Identity, Graphics and Appearance. You can add additional asset definitions by clicking the + button. This Appearance definition is being used by eight materials. A zero next to the hand means that only the active/selected material uses the appearance

8. Adding an Asset Definition Clicking on the + shows a drop-down of the remaining assets you can add to a material By default, any material has THREE assets defined: Identity Graphics Appearance

9. The Identity Tab The most useful for me is filling out the keynote information Product Information is useful for material take-off scheduling Using comments and keywords can be helpful for searches The value in the Description field can be used in Material tags.

10. Material Tags use the values from the Identity tab Description field

11. To Add a Class Just start typing in the Class text field to add a custom class definition. The custom class will appear in the drop- down list. Keep in mind that any changes you make are only valid to the active project unless you copy the material to a custom library

12. Keynotes It is helpful for students and users to become familiar with the way keynotes are assigned Once the keynote is located, it is auto-filled in the dialog box. The keynote value is automatically copied from the keynote database. The user has to enter in the desired Mark/Callout.

13. The Graphics Tab Graphics control how the material looks non-rendered, such as: The color that displays in a shaded view. The color and pattern that display on the surface of an element. The color and fill pattern that display when the element is cut (section view).

14. The Graphics Tab Shading – Determines the color and appearance of a material when view mode is SHADED. If you have Use Render Appearance Unchecked – then the material will show a color of the material when the display is set to Shaded If Use Render Appearance is checked – then the material uses the Render Appearance Color when the display is set to Shaded

15. Comparing Checked to Unchecked SHADED REALISTIC UNCHECKED CHECKED

16. Graphics tab – Surface/Cut Pattern Surface Pattern will be displayed in all the following Display settings: Wireframe/Hidden/Shaded/Realistic/Consistent Colors Cut Patterns appear in section views

17. Another Place for Fill Pattern The Coarse Scale Fill Pattern is used in floor plans to designate different wall types, flooring, slabs, or materials – these should correspond to any legends used. It is defined in the Type Properties for the object – not in the Materials. Display setting must be set to coarse to see hatch/fill pattern The Coarse Scale Fill pattern is used to designate materials in legends

18. The Appearance Tab Appearance controls how material is displayed in a rendered view, Realistic view, or Ray Trace view.

19. Different Material Types can have different Appearance Parameters

20. The assigned class controls what parameters can be assigned to the material – if you create a custom class, it will use Generic parameters

21. Physical Tab This information may be used for structural and thermal analysis of the model You can only modify physical properties of materials in the project or in a user library

22. Thermal Tab The Thermal tab is only available in Revit This information is used for thermal analysis and energy consumption

23. Material Libraries organize materials by Category/Class You can only add or remove categories from custom libraries

24. Material Structural Classes Material structural classes are organized into the following types: Basic Generic Metal Concrete Wood Liquid Gas Plastic This family parameter controls the hidden view display of structural elements. If the Structural Material Class of an element is set to Concrete or Precast, then it will display as hidden. If it is set to Steel or Wood, it will be visible when another element is in front of it. If it is set to Unassigned, the element will not display if hidden by another element.

25. When assigning a material Material already in Project? Assign the Material YES NO Material in Asset Browser? Copy Material to Project Create a new material from a similar material or use GENERIC NO YES

26. Creating a new material Material will be used in more than one project? YES ADD MATERIAL TO CUSTOM LIBRARY NO CREATE NEW MATERIAL IN PROJECT

27. Identity Tab Check list when adding a new Material Will Material Tags be used? If yes, then add desired description for material tag Will keynotes be used? If yes, then assign keynote Will material be used for cost estimating? Add cost and manufacturer information Add comments and keywords to help with material searches

28. Graphics tab Checklist What color do you want to see in shaded views? What hatch pattern do you want to use to identify the element/object type?

29. Appearance Tab Do you want to render the material using Color Image Metal

30. When do you use Color only? For paints For ceramic surfaces For plastics

31. Just Because it is a Color doesnt mean Boring By adding finish bumps, a relief pattern and tint, you can add interest to any color Dont be afraid to experiment – the more you play, the more you learn

32. When do you use an Image? To convey a sense of 3D/depth For plants, wallpaper, decals, murals, wood, tile, etc. Revit supports image files of the following types: BMP, JPG, JPEG, and PNG.

33. Use Maps to enhance Images

34. The Different Types of Maps Reflectivity – controls what appears in reflective surfaces – like metals Transparency – controls the transparency of a surface – like glass or water Cutout – adds a see-through appearance – apply to chain link, screens, catwalks, or fences Self-illumination – makes the object appear to glow – use on LED screens, billboards, or televisions Bump- gives the appearance of bumpiness or noise – use on cobblestones, lawns, fabric, marble, or stone

35. To select/assign an image to a material Right click on the image and select Edit Image, then browse for the desired image file

36. Added a Checkered Cutout to this fabric

37. Steps to create a new material Locate a material similar to the one you want, if you can (otherwise, use Generic) Duplicate the material Rename Modify the Identity, Graphics, and Appearance Tabs Apply to the object Preview using Realistic or Raytrace Adjust the definition as needed

38. Locate a similar material. Right click and select Duplicate

39. Rename

40. Fill out the Identity Data

41. Assign Colors and Hatch Patterns

42. Edit Image and then select a new image Click on the link and browse for a new image to be used

43. Edit the Information and preview the image

44. Select a new Bump image or adjust the other map images as needed

45. See how the new material looks in the model

46. Be Familiar with the different panels in the Material Browser Project Materials Material Libraries Asset Manager

47. Toggles the display of libraries Controls what you see in the dialog Opens/Closes the Material Editor/Asset Browser

48. Material Libraries You can create your own custom library of materials to be shared across projects or use someone elses custom library

49. Questions? Elise Moss smoss@peralta.edu