In MicroStation SELECTseries3, the Mini toolbar is a type of context menu that displays when you move the pointer over a Marker or a Callout.  The Mini toolbar appears semitransparent at first. Then when you move the pointer ahead over the Mini toolbar, it becomes opaque allowing you to select the tool icons.  The tools in the Mini toolbar will change depending upon the Callouts or Marker selected and the active model type.

One of the purposes of using the “Apply Plan View” tool with the Annotations option selected in the Mini toolbar is to apply any DataGroup Annotations that were generated by Architecture Rules in the Drawing or Sheet model, directly to the Dynamic View Clip Volume displayed in the 3D model.  This is a convenient way of seeing exactly what the actual drawing or sheet will look like, superimposed over the 3D model. 

When you select the Apply Plan View tool with the Annotations option selected, the sheet model that contains the drawing view and annotations is automatically referenced into the 3D model.  Here you can check the drawing title and annotation, such as ID numbers for Windows, Doors, Spaces, etc., without leaving the 3D model.

The green building schema , refers to as “GBXML” was developed to better facilitate the transfer of building information stored in cad building models , enabling smoother integrations between building design models  and a wide verity of engineering analysis programs and tools.

In this session we will illustrate how a 3D BIM model created in Bentley Architecture can serve for energy analysis by sharing its data via gbXML for use in energy analysis programs.

The AECOsim Energy Simulator is used for creating, loading and saving AECOsim Energy Simulator building projects. New projects can be created by starting a new, blank project, by using saved project templates, by saving projects as a new project, or by importing a gbXML project file.

The AECOsim Energy Simulator maps the gbXML elements types to their corresponding AECOsim Simulator Elements Types as illustraited below.

When importing RAM RSS files that contain a defined Story whose name includes a forward slash, Floor Manager will now retain the slash in the newly created Floor name. New Floors cannot be created with a forward slash, as this is still an invalid character for MicroStation Models and Drawing Extraction definitions, but when an RSS file is imported the slash is retained in the Floor name. In AECOsim Building Designer you can also now open the Structural Drawing Center when these definitions exist where a Drawing will be created for all defined Floors in the active Building. In the past, if there were any Floors with invalid characters in the name, the Drawing Center could not be opened. New Floors with the forward slash “/” will have a Drawing generated with a space in its name in place of the slash.

Since it is common for RAM SS users to use forward slashes in Story names, this is a major plus since it allows Floor names to match the Story names used in RAM SS and is one less thing to worry about.

The Solar Exposure Calculator produces both solar radiation and shadowing analysis over a user-defined time period.  This is important in designing buildings for optimum heat loss (or gain) as well as placing photovoltaic panels for energy generation. The Solar Exposure Calculator performs an analysis of the amount of solar exposure that is received during a user-specified time period. It accumulates both the total time (and shadowed) time as well as the solar energy or Insulation (Incident Solar Radiation) received. 

This is a model prior to the Solar Shadow Calculation, note the specified moment of time in the dialog box.

Here is that same model after the Solar Generation Calculation is completed.

The Solar Gradient Scale at the upper right of this display is used to visibly quantify the amount of insolation (incident Solar Radiation) acting on the model.

The Solar Shadow Generator produces geometry that represents the boundaries of solar shadows at a given time allowing the solar impact to be definitively evaluated at that moment. This information is used for evaluating design alternatives and presenting conceptual designs. By generating the shadow geometry for a proposed design at specific times.

NOTE:  Solar Exposure Mesh elements do not display in versions prior to Micro Station V8i (SELECT series 3).

A series of tools is available to aid the user in “converting” their existing discipline-specific dataset content to AECOsim Building Designer’s updated DataGroup schemas and single unified dataset. 

Utilities associated with AECOsim Building Designer are loaded into MicroStation's Utilities drop-down menu when AECOsim Building Designer is started. These utilities reside as submenu items under the “Building Designer Utilities” menu, and include tools for upgrading DataGroup schemas, Families & Parts, Compound Cells, PAZ and BXF files.

The Utilities

• DataGroup Transformation Utility – This utility is designed to migrate existing custom DataGroup data. It facilitates the move and/or transformation of business DataGroup data from one catalog to another. This enables you to update existing custom content from one schema to another, and reclassify content from one DataGroup catalog to another.

• DataGroup Catalog Upgrade Utility – This utility upgrades and converts preexisting data to the current DataGroup System so that this data can be used in AECOsim Building Designer. This process produces DataGroup Catalogs from existing parametric frame files for doors, windows and casework.

• Dataset Upgrade Utility – Users of Bentley Architecture, Bentley Building Mechanical Systems, and Structural Modeler may have customized their datasets. This utility upgrades customized datasets to be compliant with AECOsim Building Designer’s schema revisions.

• Part Rendering Upgrade Utility – This utility upgrades part files that use rendering materials defined in palette files (*.PAL), to materials define in DGN libraries (*.DGNLIB). This is accomplished with a mapping table that is delivered with the dataset.

• Space Part Upgrade Utility – This utility upgrades legacy DataGroup catalog files for spaces, including the ObjectMaterial property which defines the Family and Part used by each space type.

• PAZ Part Mapping Utility – This utility enables the replacement of Family and Part assignments in PAZ files created with Parametric Cell Studio.

• BXC Part Mapping Utility – This utility enables the editing of Compound Cell names, cell descriptions, levels, and Family and Part assignments using custom macros within a Microsoft Office Excel spreadsheet.

• Dataset Part Validation Utility – This utility checks the active workspace for missing parts in Parametric Frame Builder files (*.BXF), Parametric Cell Studio files (*.PAZ), Compound Cell library files (*.BXC), and Compound Part files.

As you may know, the Items tool is a very useful tool but in AECOsim you can also export elements to Excel.  This tool has been enhanced in the AECOsim Building designer with the option to export specific element(s) from the Design Model.  The Items tool can be accessed from the Primary Tools box or by choosing File > Item Browser. 

- Exporting elements to Excel:

a) To export specific elements, select the item(s) and choose ‘Show Details’

b)  Right-click on the highlighted row(s) and choose “Export to Excel” from the dropdown menu  

- The ‘Items’ tool also includes useful features:

Tree Manager > This provides options for how Items are displayed in the Items-Dialog Box.

 Refresh Active Tree > This will reset the “active” Items so that only the active or selected Item is displayed.

Details > This displays information for a specific item that’s selected in the Items Dialog Box.

 Transparent > Changes the View Display style to Transparent.

 Highlight > This identifies the element selected in the Items dialog and will highlight that element in the 3D model

 Zoom> This zooms-in on the element selected in the Items Dialog Box in the 3D Model.

Isolate > This Isolates the element selected in the Items Dialog Box in the 3D Model.

Select > Selects the element(s) in the 3D model that are highlighted in the Items dialog box.

Items Display Settings > Controls the view zoom options when selecting items in the Items dialog box.

Search > Search for items that are not easy to find in the Items dialog box, this tool can be useful when working with an extensive list of elements in the 3D model.

Almost everyone uses the delivered Help files at some point, but many never get beyond the Contents tab, or possibly the Index when looking for something specific. 

However, the next two tabs represent the real power of the Bentley help file format, and can go a long way in helping you to find and recall what you’re looking for.  Let’s start by using the Search tab.  In this case we’re going to look for “hand rail”.  Notice that it returns five topics, the first of which has no results until about half way down the page, where that first instance is the word “railing”. 

The reason “railing” is the first word found, even though it’s not exactly what we’re searching for, is because we are also searching for related words due to the “Match similar words” option:

If we turn this option off and re-list the results, we now have a total of three topics, the first of which includes only the words “hand” and “rail”.

But suppose we didn’t want to find all instances of either word, but only the complete phrase…  This is as easy as adding opening and closing quotes around the words.   Now we’re down to two topics that include only the complete phrase.

Here is another example of the last three variations above, this time using Cached Dynamic Views as our search text.

We can also search for text that is only part of a topic’s Title and not in the body of the article.   For example:

As you can see, the Search tab is a great way to find what you’re looking for by allowing you to search in a very broad or granular fashion.   Here’s a topic I’ve used a few times:

Since I occasionally need to refer to this particular topic it would be great if I could find it without retyping.  Fortunately, the Search tab also remembers your most recently used search terms, and offers those in a convenient drop-down list:

However, this list can get full very fast if you’ve done a lot of searches, particularly if you’ve only modified the search terms slightly each time around.   Luckily we have one last tab in the Help file – Favorites.   And as its name implies, you can save your current search results for later use.

Once saved, you have a few additional options via a right-click pop-up menu:

Hopefully this article has helped to remove some of the mystery of how to best find what you’re looking for in our delivered Help files.   Granted, you still need to know the terms that you’re looking for, but by understanding how to adjust the breadth of your search you should be able to zero in on the results much quicker.

Tool Icon Identifier 

The STR Report Spreadsheet tool searches your model and populates the spreadsheet template with material and quantity data using a predefined format.  Reports include both Structural Members and Bentley Building elements. The columns are headed by Family, Part, Section Name, and other pertinent data associated with the element. You may notice a small red triangle at the top of many of the columns. These red triangles are comments embedded in the spreadsheet and are definitions of what each column contains.

There are two distinct colors in the columns of data — white and yellow. You can edit the data in the white columns, which represents the type of data. For example, you can change a steel beam to a steel girder, or you can change the section name from W10X12 to W18X35. The data in the yellow columns cannot be edited.

Weight Values

There are two weights displaying on the report sheet. The first is in Column m and is the weight (length X unit weight). For this example, the spreadsheet takes the length of the member and multiplies it by the weight per unit length. For instance, if you have a 10–foot beam and the unit weight is 45 pounds per foot in Column n, then the weight in Column O is 450 pounds. In Column r, the weight (volume X density) is calculated. The value in Column r is almost always less than the value in Column m.

 Real time editing w/ Model Coordination

 You can add or delete members using the spreadsheet and the Update STR Model from Spreadsheet command. For example, you can copy a steel beam that exists in the spreadsheet, paste it into a blank row, and then change its X, Y, and Z coordinate points after using the “Update STR Model from Spreadsheet” command, the new member will appear in the 3D Model. If you were to delete a row from the spreadsheet and then use the “Update STR Model from Spreadsheet”command that member will be deleted in the 3D Model

Slab Modification is now done using the Modify Slab dialog. This dialog can be found by using the universal 'Modify Properties of Selected Elements' tool (3D Modify Tool Box>Modify Properties of Selected Elements) and selecting the Slab you desire to modify.

You can also activate the tool by selecting the Slab, Right-Clicking, then selecting Modify Slab.

The Modify Slab dialog box displays the catalog entry name for the selected slab.

The property values displayed are those from the selected slab.

All fields in the Apply/Edit column are checked and property values are enabled for immediate edit.

More on this can be found within the AECOsim Building Designer HELP by searching within the Search tab for Modify Slab dialog box.

In order to run AECOsim functionality within Generative Components you will need to download and install the Generative Components Extension, not the standalone version.

During the installation you will be prompted to select which application you would like to apply the Extension. Select AECOsim Building Designer, and then Next.

Once the install is complete launch Generative Components and you should find Building Designer within the pull-down.

NOTE: BIM integration for older versions of Generative Components would require the use of the “BIM Features for GC Extension”, in which Part and Families are made available with use of DLL files. More on this can be found at: http://communities.bentley.com/products/products_generativecomponents/w/generative_components_community_wiki/bim.aspx 

When Importing a RAM Structural System file (.RSS) into AECOsim Building Designer, the process allows you to automatically generate Saved Views of each floor along with Sheet Models with each Saved View attached.

To access the RAM Import command:

Note: In order for the process to automatically generate the Saved Views and Sheet Models the desired Drawing Definition Templates must be selected in the Drawing Setup tab.

Make selections accordingly before importing the RAM file into AECOsim Building Designer then click the Import button.

The Saved Views are automatically created and can be found in the Saved View dialog box which is part of the Primary Tools box:

To access the Sheet Models created during the import go to the models list:

Or choose File > Models.  Below is an example Column Report Schedule Saved View attached to a Sheet Model, as- generated by the RAM Import process:

There are few ways to access the Place Section Callout tool: From the Building Designer Task Interface simply go to the Main task group and select the Place Section Callout Icon as shown below,  choose the same icon from the Drawing Composition task group, or choose Building Designer > Drawing Composition  > Place Section Callout from the pull-down menus.  The Callout tools can also be opened as a standalone toolbox by choosing the “Open ‘Create Views as Toolbox option.

When selecting the tool to place a Section Callout the appropriate dialog box will open.  Here make sure to select the desired “Drawing Seed” in order to create a Drawing View:

After placing the cut in the desired area in the model (image above), click OK and the Drawing View will be generated:

Every callout tool can perform the creation of a Drawing View when the appropriate Drawing Seed is selected.

AECOsim Building Designer V8i should not be installed on the same workstation as an existing AECOsim Building Designer V8i v08.11.xx Technology Preview (“beta”) release.  Installing AECOsim Building Designer V8i over an existing AECOsim Building Designer V8i v8.11.xx installation can cause incompatibilities and data loss. You must uninstall the beta release, and then install the commercial release.

To Create a Deployment Image

In an Explorer window, double-click the AECOsim Building Designer V8i setup executable.

The AECOsim Building Designer V8i Installer dialog opens.
Select the “Extract installation package only” option and turn on the “Create Deployment image” check box.
By default, the installation package will be extracted to C:\BentleyDownloads\AECOsimBuidlingDesigner_v08.11.09.xxx, as shown in the “Extract to this folder” field.

To change the location to which the installation package is extracted:
In the “Extract to this folder” field, enter the drive and path to a different folder.

      or

Click the Folder icon to the right of the field and browse for a different folder.
Click OK on the AECOsim Building Designer V8i Installer dialog.

When the package gets extracted to the AECOsimBuildingDesigner_08.11.09.225 folder, you have a choice to select “Create Deployment” which will create an image installation or “Setup.exe” to install the product
In the AECOsim Building Designer V8i setup wizard, all the components required by the application appear with a status of "Required".

This setup wizard remains open in the background.
(Optional) Click the Advanced Settings button.

The Advanced Settings dialog opens.  This is where you can make the required settings in the Advanced Settings dialog and click OK.  Proxy settings for internet connections may be different at each location and it is necessary to have an internet connection during the installation of AECOsim Building Designer and/or (MicroStation V8i SS3) since the installer searches the internet for necessary pre-requisite components.

Ok the Advanced Settings and Click Create.
In the AECOsim Building Designer V8i Setup dialog, click Next and the installation will begin.

The End-User License Agreement page opens.

After reading the license agreement, click the "I accept the terms in the License Agreement" check box if you understand and agree to the License Agreement Terms and Conditions. Click Cancel if you
decline the License Agreement Terms and Conditions.
   *Note that agreeing to the license agreement is required in order to install the product.

Click Next.

The Destination Folder page opens. This page shows the folders where the product will be installed.
(Optional) To change the directory where the deployment image will install the product, click the Change button below the “Install AECOsim Building Designer V8i To” field.

In the “Change Destination Folder” page that opens, browse to the drive and folder you want to install the product in,then click OK.
(Optional) To change the directory where the deployment image will install the workspaces, click the Change button below the “Install Workspaces To” field.

Click Next.

The Configure Shortcuts page opens.

(Optional) Select one or more of the following check boxes to indicate the location(s) where you would like a shortcut to AECOsim Building Designer V8i created when you install from the deployment image:

Start Menu  (selected by default)
Quick Launch toolbar
Desktop     

Click Next.

The Choose Setup Type page opens. Here you can select whether you want the deployment image to install a Typical or Custom setup.

Typical — installs the product with the most common features and NO customizations.
Custom — lets you select which features you want to install.

To do a typical installation, click Typical. When the Ready to install page opens, click Install.

or

To customize your installation, click Custom.
The “Product Features” page opens. Here you can select which features you want to install from the deployment image. There are six categories of features: Required Files, Workspaces, Application Documentation,
Utilities, File Association, Building Sample Projects and ProjectWise Desktop Integration.

The File Association category allows you to associate file types with AECOsim Building Designer V8i. For example, if you select the AECOsim Building Designer V8i design files subcategory, the installation will
associate the application with dgn, dgnlib, rdl, cel, hln, and sht file extensions.  Click the plus sign (+) next to a category to see the features in it.
The amount of disk space required to install a feature appears when you select the feature.  Click the down arrow next to a category or feature to select how you want it installed. You also can choose not to install a category or feature.

Click Install.

Click Finish to exit the AECOsim Building Designer V8i Setup Wizard.

A new settings tab has been added to the Import From Analysis Program tool´s RAM Structural System mode to handle data mapping for imported Structural members whose Material data property is not Steel or Concrete. The “Other” tab applies DataGroup data to imported timbers, composite decks and non-composite decks.

                                       AECOsim Building Designer RAM Analysis Import dialog

The “Other” tab appears only for RAM Structural System. The “Steel” and “Concrete” tabs appear for both RAM Structural System and Oasys GSA analytical translators. The STAAD.Pro and SFrame translators use the Import Options tab for manipulation of Steel and Concrete data.
Use the available drop-down lists to select from the loaded DataGroup catalogs´ Type and Instance assignments for the imported members as shown below.

Bentley is pleased to provide the 'Introduction to AECOsim Building Designer core functionality' document and QuickStart videos for our AECOsim Building Designer products. You will find links to videos available on YouTube and supplemental PDFs for each chapter or video.

http://www.bentley.com/en-US/Products/AECOsim+Building+Designer/quick+start+guide.htm

Architectural Videos

Conceptual Mass Modeling: Creating a new model, Negotiating the operating interface, Solid and surface modeling

Making the Mass Model Intelligent: Floor selector, Creating intelligent floors, Push pull modeling, Creating concept drawings

Adding Floor Slabs: Placing slabs, Slab penetrations, Hypermodeling with display styles

Creating a Site Model: Geo-coordinates, Importing a Google Terrain Model, Imprinting 2D line work on the Terrain Model, Referencing alternate file types

Modeling Exterior Walls: Breaking up the model, Creating walls from spaces, Modifying walls, Placing compound walls

Creating a Master Model: Creating a floor composite, Creating floor plan drawings and sheets, Navigational hypermodeling between models

Display Styles: Working with view window display styles, Solar shadows

Space Planning: Import program, Place space layout, Create thematic map

Modeling Interior Walls: Create walls from spaces, Place walls, Modify walls

Modeling Doors: Place doors, Modify doors, Door tags

Modeling Ceilings: Place grid ceilings, Place light fixture, Place diffusers

Modeling Vertical Circulation: Place stair, Stair properties, Stair constraints, Place handrail

Modeling Building Content: Place schematic casework, Place casework, Place plumbing

Clash Detection: Finding a clash, Clash resolution

Creating Construction Documents: Enlarged floor plans, Wall sections, Hypermodeling with links between models and drawings

Schedules and Quantities: Generating quantity reports, Creating a window schedule, Link to drawing

Rendering: Camera, Materials, Lighting, Environments

Structural Videos

Structural: Placing a steel column, Placing a steel beam

Mechanical Videos

Mechanical: Placing ductwork, Placing diffusers

These fittings in the program are the same and have the same data group properties only with respect to size. The difference is what the program places with respect to the type of ductwork that has been placed.

Consider the example (above), when rectangular duct is placed, and when the tool is selected for transition “Rect to Round “is selected, the program responds properly and places the proper fitting( Upper) But with Round ductwork the program responds differently.  When round duct is placed and  when the tool is selected for transition and “Round to Rec “is selected, the program responds by placing the same fitting, but the square flanges of the fitting is connected to the round end of the duct. The fitting is placed backward.  (see illustration above)

The proper way is that the fitting is placed in example, (Below), This choice involves a few more steps.  The fitting has to be rotated and place on the ductwork with the flanges facing outward to allow the fabrication and connection of rectangular ductwork. (see illustration below)

AECOsim Building Designer discipline (as well as Bentley Building Electrical Systems) offers the option to change a symbol’s labels position when that label’s placement falls directly over or in close proximity to other drawing elements. See the example below where a light switch’s label is positioned very close to a door.

To accomplish this task, from the Electrical Annotation task group, select the “Align Label” tool from the Labels task list.

 Start the command and select the desired symbol. To change the label position for any number of symbols, select them first with the Power Selector before starting the Align Labels command.

Make sure to select the symbol, and not the label itself. The Attribute Alignment dialog will appear. From this dialog you will have several position choices Top, Bottom, Left or Right, Select your desired Alignment position which would be most suitable then select Alignment, and the select the OK button. (See example below)

 Label position changed

Note: It is also possible to use the Micro Station Move command to manually change label positions.

After placing a railing in your 3D model you can modify the railing’s components as follows:

-Right click on an existing railing and select “Modify Railing” from the pop-up menu.

-After the Modify Railing dialog box will opens, click on the “Railing Construction Settings” button.

This will open The Railing Construction Settings dialog box, where you will have the options to select which of the railing’s components will be modified.  As each tab is selected the railing component will be highlighted in the 3D preview window indicating which of them will be modified.  The railing settings (or tabs) are based on Rails, Posts, Balusters and Ends.

Once your modifications are complete, click ‘OK’ to commit these changes.

Smart People,  I have a question that I have been through and through with and I

have a portfolio due tonight.  Thanks in advanced.

So anyways how do you put a railing on a stairs?  No problem when it is horizontal, but I can't get an angle

in the railing.   My grippers allow me to increase railing height, width, post distance, and flip, but no angle.

So I started working with ACS but still puts the object on its own ACS weather I use relative or not.  Went to

my Bentley Architecture Book and they are just showing a horizontal railing they don't show the rail at the angle

or how to get it at an angle.

It has to do with the ACS I just know it.  But when the second ACS comes in it is always taking over. 

Enlighten me.

Thanks Again

Brent

A new “Filled Spaces” setting is available in the View Attributes dialog – Building panel – Architecture tab.  When the “Filled Spaces” setting is on, all Spaces in the building Dynamic Views are filled with the Space´s element color.  This option was previously only available in Bentley SpacePlanner when defining a “Thematic Map”.  The “Filled Spaces” option is only available in a Building Dynamic View via the Reference Presentation dialog.

                                                          The Filled Spaces setting on.

                                                            The Filled Spaces setting off.