topic Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling in Collaboration with other software

Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Anonymous — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 17:15:35 GMT

I have saved a selection in rhino as a .3dm file and imported it into Archicad 20 through 'merge' and the library. The object is however slightly scaled larger. I have tried re-import and it all results in a slightly scaled object. What more can I try to solve this issue?

Best regards,

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

runxel — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 12:30:08 GMT

Do the units (Rhino – Archicad) match up?

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Anonymous — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 17:49:54 GMT

Yes, they match, both being set to inches.

Thanks,
L

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Narska — Fri, 28 Feb 2020 23:37:50 GMT

I have the same issue, did you ever resolve this?

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Minh Nguyen — Mon, 02 Mar 2020 14:01:46 GMT

Hi Narska,

Thank you very much for your question!

We used to have this as a known issue with ARCHICAD 20. But, this defect has been fixed from ARCHICAD 20 build 4022. I am wondering which ARCHICAD version and build number are you using?

Thank you for your help!

Best regards,
Minh

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Anonymous — Thu, 04 Feb 2021 21:58:19 GMT

I am having the same issue with archicad 24 and 23 and I try to open a rhino file with archicad 24 or 23 and both archicads keep crashing.

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Bricklyne Clarence — Fri, 05 Feb 2021 21:42:18 GMT

Lotlock wrote:
I have saved a selection in rhino as a .3dm file and imported it into Archicad 20 through 'merge' and the library. The object is however slightly scaled larger. I have tried re-import and it all results in a slightly scaled object. What more can I try to solve this issue?

Best regards,

Save it as a .3ds format file in Rhino and then use the 3ds import addon in ArchiCAD to bring it in and you can set the size upon import if it doesn't look correct with the figures it tried to import it with.

This has been by go-to method for as long as I can remember as ArchiCAD's '3dm import' workflow is always just rife with these sorts of bugs, errors, headaches and mistakes.
(sometimes it simply won't import the geometry as is and just import some broken up mess and you can't make head or tails or)

It's disappointing to see these kinds of issues still exist with v23 and v24, but like I said, I almost never use that method.

(Another alternative is to convert it to a .skp file in Rhino (sketchup format). ArchiCAD's sketchup "merge" function is much better and gives you comparable results to the 3ds import plugin. IMHO.
The advantage with this method is that you can actually drag the .skp file directly into your ArchiCAD plan window and it will import the file automatically. Useful when importing objects from the Trimble warehouse.)

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Minh Nguyen — Wed, 10 Feb 2021 15:08:25 GMT

cpuello wrote:
I am having the same issue with archicad 24 and 23 and I try to open a rhino file with archicad 24 or 23 and both archicads keep crashing.

Hello,

Thank you very much for your report and I am very sorry about the issue!

Could you let me know exactly what is the problem when importing Rhino file to Archicad: wrong scaling or crashing? As I mentioned above, the scaling issue has been fixed in Archicad 20 Update 4022. If the issue is crashing, we will need the Rhino file in order to replicate the issue in-house.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon!

Best regards,
Minh

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Anonymous — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 03:52:58 GMT

I’m on ArchiCAD 22/Rhino 6 now, and the workflow doesn’t really seem too seamless.

ArchiCAD 22 does not support Rhino 6 natively so I am exporting as Rhino 5 everytime. Then I go over to ArchiCAD and import the 3dm as a library. The problem here is that ArchiCAD doesn’t seem to update the geometry afterwards, even if I export an updated model from Rhino to the same file name. I thought that ArchiCAD should detect changes in the library and then update accordingly, but it doesn’t. I want to update the model in rhino dynamically, so that I can plug it into my archicad file
I have downloaded the Rhino plug-in from the graphisoft website, but it does not support rhino 6 againgeometry dash
Should I appropriate the grasshopper-rhino-archicad-live-connection for this? I assume that ArchiCAD 23 should fix compability but is there a solution that works for you meanwhile?

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Minh Nguyen — Thu, 18 Feb 2021 09:46:39 GMT

murazikberniece wrote:
I’m on ArchiCAD 22/Rhino 6 now, and the workflow doesn’t really seem too seamless.

ArchiCAD 22 does not support Rhino 6 natively so I am exporting as Rhino 5 everytime. Then I go over to ArchiCAD and import the 3dm as a library. The problem here is that ArchiCAD doesn’t seem to update the geometry afterwards, even if I export an updated model from Rhino to the same file name. I thought that ArchiCAD should detect changes in the library and then update accordingly, but it doesn’t. I want to update the model in rhino dynamically, so that I can plug it into my archicad file
I have downloaded the Rhino plug-in from the graphisoft website, but it does not support rhino 6 againgeometry dash
Should I appropriate the grasshopper-rhino-archicad-live-connection for this? I assume that ArchiCAD 23 should fix compability but is there a solution that works for you meanwhile?

Hello,

Thank you very much for your question and I am very sorry for the experience!

I guess you used this method to import 3dm files as library object in Archicad 22?
https://helpcenter.graphisoft.com/user-guide/77280/

If that's the case, unfortunately, as the object is placed in the Embedded library - which is unique to each project file - we won't be able to "update" the 3dm file placed here if there is any changes in the original 3dm. Not to mention, once the 3dm is imported into Archicad, it is converted to become a native Archicad object, thus having no connection to the original file.

From your description, I believe using Archicad 23 and Grasshopper-Archicad Live connection addon would fit your workflow better.

I am very sorry for the inconvenience! Please let me know if you have any further questions!

Best regards,
Minh

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Rryan — Tue, 22 Feb 2022 18:32:13 GMT

Hello Minh,

This is an old thread but still valid. Issues with importing manufacturers files still very much exists.

Software: AC 24 - v3008. Rhino 7

Downloaded a 3D dwg from manufacturer. Opened in Rhino, saved Rhino 3DM version 5. File --> Libraries and Objects --> Import Rhino 3DM file as GDL object in AC.

Verified units in AutoCAD and Rhino matched and were correct per manufacturers dimensions, but import in Archicad scales the object up. I am not able to resize or scale the object after its been imported to the correct dimensions. Nor do I want to explode into morphs to do so because geometry is quite complex. So why is it scaling?!

I also tried to merge the 3DM. Same result.

Import methods I've tried:

DWG/DXF - Even though the file contains 3D, it only imports in a 2D symbol - no option to import 3D..?

3DM - Ideal and cleanest import for 3D. But scaling issues exist and no way to resize, without exploding into morphs.

3DS - Not ideal. Objects exploded to polygons - increased file size, and I prefer to work with simplicity of flat planes or nurbs, not triangulated polygons.

Sketchup - Looks terrible in plan/elevation. No control afterwards without exploding into morph. Please consider automatically showing object profile only not every single polygon. We've had to fake linework over the object then hide object in 2D views.

Revit - Pretty much a worthless tool without the ability to modify parameters. Unless you also have a Revit license and enjoy creating RFA files for each of your types. Has there been any effort by Graphisoft to be able to modify parameters?

Importing is a key feature of Archicad that needs to be resolved. Revit has so many object available and we have basically nothing, forcing us to figure out how to integrate. And it certainly still does not seem seamless to me, either.

All I've found is a look how simple it is to import video that doesn't really work. There could be much more documentation on integrating miscellaneous filetypes. For example, where does it say that you need to downsave to Rhino 5 to import as GDL? I had to save 5 different versions of the Rhino file and try to import to figure it out.

I'm at a loss because no matter which way I try to import I have problems. I can no longer test different methods to find none of them work, and in need of some advice.

I can't attach the .dwg or .3dm file here, otherwise I would. Happy to send supporting files via email.

Please help.

Thank you!!

Ryan

Re: Importing a Rhino file into Archicad causes scaling

Minh Nguyen — Wed, 23 Feb 2022 08:31:52 GMT

Dear Ryan,

Thank you very much for sharing the experience and I am very sorry for the issue!

With the 3DM file that you sent privately, I found that this file does not have a unit assigned to it (if you check the unit under Document Properties, the unit is "No Unit"), thus Archicad failed to import the object with its correct scaling. I suggest giving a unit to the file, saving it in Rhino 5 format, and importing again. The scaling should be correct by now. I would recommend merging the model instead of importing it as GDL object, as your 3DM object is quite complex.

Regarding Rhino format compatibility: yes, you are correct. Archicad 24 and previous only support Rhino 5 format. With Archicad 25, we added support for Rhino 6 and 7 format, so now you can import them without any problem. We mentioned this in a few places on our website, but I agree that this information should be more visible. I'm very sorry for the trouble that this is causing!

One very important thing: I saw that you are still using the release build for Archicad 24. I strongly recommend updating to the latest build, which includes many important bug fixes.

Last but not least, in the future, I highly recommend reaching out to your local support for such support questions. They will be able to help you quickly in your time zone at your convenience, thus you will receive much quicker answers for your questions.

Thank you very much!

Best regards,

Minh