Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Understanding Types of Lighting Fixture Families
Prior to creating a lighting fixture family, it is important to know how it will
be used in your projects. The first thing to consider is how the fixture will
be hosted in your model. Lighting fixture families can be hosted by specific
building elements such as walls or ceilings or by any three-dimensional face
within your model. You can also create lighting fixture families that do not
require a host. Each hosting option determines how the geometry of the
fixture is to be oriented in the family file. It is also important to realize that
a family created with one type of hosting template cannot be exchanged for
another, even though they may be of the same category. For this reason,
planning, naming conventions, and training for staff are all important.
There are family template files (
.rft
) for different types of hosted lights.
You can also use one of the generic family templates and later categorize
the family as a lighting fixture. When you use a lighting fixture template,
a reference plane for the elevation of the light source is already included.
Using a generic template will require you to add a reference plane for the
light source if needed.
Nonhosted Lighting Fixtures
Nonhosted lighting fixture families are useful in areas that do not have a
ceiling or for freestanding lights. They can be given an offset to the level at
which they are inserted to show them above the floor. They are also useful
for wall-mounted lights, when you need to show a symbol on your drawings
instead of the actual fixture. The symbol can be nested into your fixture
family without concern for the annotation orientation because the fixture
will always be vertical. One example of this use is a wall-mounted exit light.
Figure 20.1
shows an exit light family that has a nested annotation. The
geometry of the fixture is modeled to appear correctly when placed adjacent
to a wall, while the annotation is nested to display in plan views.
