
Rhino – Grasshopper – ARCHICAD Connections
Rhino – Grasshopper – ARCHICAD Connections connect the best design tools for the different design stages. These tools fill a gap in the design process between early stage design and Building Information Modeling. They offer solutions for seamless, bi-directional geometry transfer as well as a way to translate basic geometrical shapes into full BIM elements while adding algorithmic editing functionality.
Solutions
Grasshopper — ARCHICAD Live Connection
Generate and manipulate BIM elements in ARCHICAD directly from Grasshopper
This tool enables Rhino/Grasshopper and ARCHICAD to communicate directly in order to create and manipulate a BIM model in full or in parts through Grasshopper’s visual scripting interface. Designers whose work is currently based on either Rhino/Grasshopper or ARCHICAD can leverage its functionality to their advantage. The live, associative and bi-directional nature of the connection enables users to build versatile workflows and utilize the connection in multiple scenarios.
In projects where the design is primarily determined by using the Rhino-Grasshopper toolset, users can apply the GH-AC Connection to convert the design into a full BIM model and still retain some of the algorithmic editing capabilities. In other cases, Rhino/Grasshopper (or other Rhino plug-in) can be used to complement an existing BIM project with algorithmic functions or freeform modelling environment in any stage of the design process. In these situations, the framework or reference geometry for the part designed in Grasshopper can be taken directly from ARCHICAD itself.
See ARCHICAD, Rhino and Grasshopper in Action
To see the real-time, bi-directional workflows between ARCHICAD, Rhino and Grasshopper in action, watch these videos presenting different real-life workflow scenarios!
Creating a Free-form
Shading Device
This video clip presents how to create a free-form shading device for a multi-story building using Rhinoceros, Grasshopper and ARCHICAD.
Creating a Parametric Tower
This workflow video presents how to create a parametric tower using Rhinoceros, Grasshopper and ARCHICAD.
Rhinoceros Import/Export Add-ons
Exchange models in Rhinoceros native file format
Designers may choose to work with a "reference model workflow" by exporting and importing models between ARCHICAD and Rhinoceros using the native Rhinoceros (.3dm) file format.
Rhinoceros — GDL Converter
Create native ARCHICAD objects in Rhinoceros
With this toolset, designers can save a selected part of a Rhino model in a native ARCHICAD object file (.gsm or .lcf) format. Depending on the complexity of the model and its intended use in ARCHICAD, users can choose to generate a single object (.gsm) from Rhino or library container file (.lcf) containing multiple object parts.
To see how to import Rhinoceros models into ARCHICAD as native GSM objects (.gsm or .lcf files) please view this video.
Single Object Import
This video clip presents how to to import small‐sized single objects or groups of small objects created in Rhino to ARCHICAD in .gsm file format.
Please visit the Learning site to watch recorded webinars about the bi-directional workflow connection presented above, as well as for more information about GRAPHISOFT products!