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Filters and visualization in Locations

This article covers using filters and colors in Locations to visualize various data.

Filters use properties from the BIM model and are automatically updated as the model is revised.

We cover these features in the article:

  • Filters (personal and group filters)
  • Colorize
  • View objects

Table of contents

  1. How to use filters
  2. How to use colorize
  3. View objects on drawings

 User rights

All users have access to Locations and can create and save filters.

Project administrators and project planning managers can create filters for everyone in the project or specific work packages.

Group admins can save filters for everyone in their user group.

Colorize and View objects are only available if your project uses Box Pro or Field Pro.

How to use filters

Filters are only available for the BIM model and not drawings. You can use the View objects to create filters on 2D drawings, this is covered in detail below.

All users can create personal filters and group admins can create group filters.

Start by going to Locations and open a BIM model in one of the 3D views. All filters you have access to can be found under Filter in the toolbar.

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There are multiple ways to create filters when viewing the BIM model.

  • Create a filter using the Filter button
  • Create a filter by clicking an object in the model

When you click Filter you can free text search, add a specific filter, or create an advanced filter. The file and category parameters are always available in quick access.

In this example, we create a filter for the door category. When you select a parameter for the filter, the 3D view changes to reflect your filter.

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You can filter your results even more by adding multiple parameters to the same filter. You can do this by clicking Add filter and selecting different parameters. The available parameters depend on your BIM model.

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You can also quickly make a filter, by selecting an object in the model. This will show the properties of the object. Hover your mouse over a property and click to filter for the property. You can do this for multiple properties.

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When you are done with your filter, you can click Save to save the filter for later. If you are a group admin in your user group, you can save filters, so they are visible to everyone in your user group.

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If you are a project administrator or project planning manager, you can save it for everyone in the project or to specific work packages.

Saved filters are shown in Filter in the Saved filters area.

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How to use colorize

Colorize lets you quickly color-code the BIM model based on a specific property. You cannot manually select which colors to use, as Dalux automatically assigns colors.

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You can combine Colorize with Filter to create a color-coded visualization of just the elements that you need.

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When you are done with your filter, you can click Save to save the filter for later. If colorize is enabled when saving the filter, it will automatically activate when the filter is loaded again.

View objects on drawings

You can see color-coded model objects on the building drawings.

Note

View objects require a BIM model in the project. You can view the objects on either the auto-cut or drawings that have been mapped to 3D.

Start by going to Locations and opening a Drawing. Then click on View objects in the toolbar.

This feature functions like 3D filters. From the menu, you can select a property to filter, which will then be displayed on the drawing.

You can load any saved filters (also filters made in 3D) from this menu.

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When a property has been selected, the color coding will be shown on the right. At the top of this menu, you can change which parameter the color coding should use.

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When you are done with your filter, you can click Save to save the filter for later.

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Read more

If you want to learn more about using bookmarks, read this article: 2D and 3D bookmarks in Locations.

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