Insert and work with ReCap point clouds in Revit

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You can easily insert a ReCap point cloud into Revit.

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This data can be used, for example, to author a Building Information Model to represent existing building geometry,

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which is the starting point for many renovation projects.

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Here are a few things to keep in mind when using point clouds in Revit:

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When inserting a point cloud, the Positioning option in the Link Point Cloud dialog allows you to choose how the point cloud is positioned

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in the project.

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For instance, choose Auto - Center to Center to place the center of the point cloud bounding box

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at the center of the bounding box of the model.

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If you have already set up a shared coordinate system,

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such as from a Civil 3D drawing,

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you will have access to the visualization options that the point cloud will follow.

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In the Visibility/Graphics Overrides dialog, Point Clouds tab, you can access the Color Mode options.

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The point cloud display is linked to the configuration of the view.

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For example, if you have a plan view with a 20 centimeter width that is located 1 meter above the level elevation,

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the point cloud follows this and only displays those points.

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The display configuration can be different for each view in your Revit model,

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so that the point cloud can be turned off in one view and visible in another.

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Here is an example to show some of the capabilities when 3D modeling with point clouds in Revit.

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To insert a point cloud, from the Insert tab of the ribbon, on the Link panel, click Point Cloud.

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In this example, the Positioning is set to Auto - Center to Center,

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because the point cloud is not georeferenced, then the desired RCP file is selected and opened.

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Once the point cloud is inserted, you can select a view in the Project Browser to adjust the relevant settings,

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such as changing the Elevations.

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In the Properties panel, next to View Range,

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click Edit to adjust the offsets to display only the points in the specified range.

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You can also use the Modify tools to change the orientation of the point cloud.

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In this case, a camera is added, a section view is created, and then modeling is begun based on the point cloud.

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The level of detail is high, due to the point cloud,

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and you have access to a lot of information that can help you with modeling.

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This makes it easier to model complex objects, such as vaults.

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You can be confident that your 3D model is accurate by comparing it to the point cloud.