What
Use intelligent, connected BIM (Building Information Modeling) workflows to help make your infrastructure projects more resilient, productive, and profitable.
Who
Bridge designers, Engineers, BIM bridge modelers.
How
Revit is intended for building design, but it is a versatile and universal tool. This workflow shows how to successfully use Revit to design bridges.
1. In Revit, import information about the direction of the road. (The direction is the same as the axis or alignment.)
Bridge design usually occurs within an existing road network. However, Revit is not intended for road design, so you must import information about the direction.
2. Import information about the alignment of neighboring roads and any other geospatial information about the location of a future bridge. Use one of these two methods:
- Import a CAD file containing a 3D curve that represents the alignment, corridors, and so on.
- Use the Dynamo plug-in to read an Excel file or a comma-delimited text file. An Excel file stores no geometry data, so the alignment is written as a series of points defined by X, Y, Z coordinates.
3. Revit’s standard tools might be insufficient for effective and fast bridge design, so the Dynamo plug-in becomes very important. Dynamo supports several approaches to bridge design. This workflow uses Dynabridge, which is free of charge. You must download it from the Dynamo Package Manager. Use Dynabridge to:
a) Model the superstructure for the bridge.
b) Modify bridge geometry parameters.
c) Use Revit standard tools to model elements such as abutments and piers.
d) Use the powerful BIM tools in Revit to generate 2D documentation, calculate quantity takeoffs, and include reinforcements.
Why
BIM in bridge design has a long list of benefits. Quantity takeoff, a bill of materials, and 2D documentation generated from a coherent 3D model are just a few of them.
What next?
If you’re new to Dynamo and want to learn more, see the tutorials and videos at New to Dynamo. To see Dynabridge work in action, watch Bridge Modeling with Dynabridge 0.0.6: The New Version.
