BIMmTool for Archicad 28 Collaborate or SSA + Forward & Technology Preview

[Illes Papp]

Dear Technology Preview Members,

We’re pleased to announce a new collaboration with BIMm Solutions GmbH. Following the release of Archicad 28, users with an SSA + Forward or an Archicad Collaborate Subscription will be able to access BIMmTool Lite, a comprehensive Point Cloud Handling Feature Set, as part of their subscription.

Key features include:

• New point cloud import
• Support for various point cloud formats
• Scalable resolution with preset options
• Ability to import large unstructured point clouds, including preview and story splitting function
• Point cloud switching functionality
• Distance-dependent resolution
• BIMmNavigator
• IVION point clouds

These features enhance productivity, streamline project management, and facilitate seamless collaboration across teams.

Additionally, as Technology Preview users, you can test even more advanced features with the BIMmTool Pro version. BIMm Tool Pro includes model-to-point cloud comparison as well as the Scan 2 BIM function, which transforms drawn details into BIM elements. The Pro Feature Set is available with the Technology Preview until October 25. After the official release of Archicad 28, it will be available for separate purchase directly from BIMm Solutions GmbH.

During the Technology Preview, the BIMmTool Pro version will be available in English, German, French, Italian, Japanese, and Polish. After the release of Archicad 28, both the BIMmTool Lite and Pro versions will be available in all Archicad-supported languages.

We invite you to download and test the add-on, available through the following link:

Graphisoft Technology Preview Program 2024 - Graphisoft Community

For further details and guidance, refer to the online BIMmTool add-on Knowledge Base:

https://kb.bimm-solutions.com/books/bimmtool-operation-manual

Please download the add-on and share feedback! Should you have any questions or require further information, please do not hesitate to comment or post in this thread.

[Illes Papp]

BIMmTool Lite will be available for Subscription, Forward/SSA users; and Pro version will be separately available for purchase directly from BIMm Solutions.

The Pro version on top of the Lite functionality offers:

• Extra level of point cloud density from 25 mm up to 2 mm.
• Orthophoto functions
• Point cloud comparison
• Scan 2 BIM functions

I hope this is of help to see the details better.

[Illes Papp]

The account registration issue should be fixed now.

Those who already tried to create an account and did not receive the email to set their password, can reset their password with the following link and should then be able to use the BIMmTool:
https://license.bimm-solutions.com/user/forgot/password

[Mike_Warr]

This is brilliant, I've had a lot of customers talk about the need for archicad to be better equipped to handle point clouds. 

I just wish we could reference them in the layout book as they could potentially provide great context to drawings. 

[Francois_MCD]

Hi @Mike_Warr, yes with the BIMmTool you can actually now place a point cloud on Layout as reference via the "Orthophoto" function. I'm just not sure if this is available in both the Lite & Pro versions though.

[Botonis]

The Pro version on top of the Lite functionality offers:

• Extra level of point cloud density from 25 mm up to 2 mm.
• Orthophoto functions
• Point cloud comparison
• Scan 2 BIM functions

[torben_wadlinger]

Password reset worked. Licence works. Thx.

[torben_wadlinger]

Had some time to test it. The ui has some glitches and the workflow is a little bit weird but at last it’s better than the original stuff. If I had a wish (or two) I would wish to have a better ui integration and native support for recap. 

the main part is on Graphisoft to get rid of this strange handling of point clouds as an object.

[shi]

Recap being an Autodesk product, it seems not very likely to get it integrated into something

we use Recap only to get to our e57 files with much lesser resolution, for an industrial project with > 20 point clouds (each part of the building being scanned separatly)

[Francois_MCD]

Yes @shi you're right about Recap. I've dropped it long ago for CloudCompare. Not for the cost difference, but Recap is extremely limiting in import & export formats. CloudCompare on the other hand has an extensive compatible file list which includes .E57 & .XYZ for direct import to Archicad. CloudCompare now also supports .DP format used by ei. Dot3D & RTAB-Map, both extremely capable mobile scan apps producing super dense, accurate & large point cloud files from mobile iPad Pro (built in LiDAR) and Android & Windows devices with externally attached Intel RealSense depth cameras.

I recently scanned this project (complete exterior: image below & interior 2 floors) with Dot3D on my iPad Pro 11' in just 3 scans and loaded the .DP files (ie. exterior 602MB) from the app, direct to CloudCompare and exported the .E57 without reducing the points (exterior only: 5.86GB, 2047 scan frames, 477 million points) to test in AC28-Tech Preview & BIMmTool. The Dot3D app on iPad captures amazing point clouds and the density is way more than what we need for architecture, but this fact helps with improved accuracy compared to any other app I've tested on the iPad. BIMmTool does a great job of extending Archicad's ability to handle such large point clouds larger than the native 4GB limit.

And here is the 3D model in AC28-Tech Preview.

I'm grateful we had the ability to test BIMmTool along with AC28-Tech Preview because it has quite a steep learning curve. I tried before to evaluate BIMmTool but the time was always too short.

I'm not fully done with understanding how I must change our workflow & template, but confident that the capabilities of BIMmTool to handle unlimited point cloud files will be a benefit to us as we do Scan2BIM projects nearly every week.

I am keen to see how the processing & modeling of the next project goes which was 24 scans exterior & interior.

[torben_wadlinger]

Yeah, I have a similar process: export from scanner-software to Recap, cleaning, maybe re-registration, export as e57, reduce filesize via CloudCompare-CLI. But even with the reduction of point distances to 5mm my projects are huge, so I have to break down the e57's to smaller pieces to be able to handle them in Archicad.

This project has approx. 40 K m2, 24 single scan-jobs and about 300 GB of raw data. Modelling in Archicad was - let's say: challenging. Native Recap-Support with loading and un-loading of single scan-positions would have made modelling much easier (and cheaper!).