W2 Viewpoints & Animations Navisworks Manage

W2 Handouts: Viewpoints & Animations

For this week tutorial you need to open a 3D sample file from Navisworks
programme file folder.

a. Go to the application button (or home button) and click the command.
b. Select Open from the dialog box – see print screen below; select Sample Files.

c. Choose any of the 3D sample file i.e. enviro-dome.nwd; ice stadium.nwd or

snowmobile.nwd.
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Source: Refer to GD for the Navisworks tutorial resources

Viewpoints

1. Viewpoints – are the snapshot of the views created in a scene. There are
taken from the model as displayed in the scene view. You can use the saved
view points for the following purposes.
a. To manage and review the changes in a project.
b. To create viewpoints animations
2. Open a 3D sample model from Navisworks folder file location.
3. Use the tools in navigation bar or from the Navigate Panel (in the Viewpoint
tab) to navigate.
4. Click to select Save Viewpoint from Viewpoint tab for each snapshot; The
Saved Viewpoints window (or floating panel) will appear in the model
working area.
5. To create a folder to group all the saved viewpoint; right click on any
location within the Saved Viewpoint window; select New Folder and name
this folder; drag and drop all the saved viewpoints to the folder you just
created.

To Create an Animation

1. To create an animation from the saved viewpoints; right-click any location of

the Saved Viewpoints window and select Add Animation (rename it); select
the folder that contains saved viewpoints, drag and drop to the empty
animation you have created.
2. To run the animation, you have created from the saved viewpoints from the

Viewpoints tab  and click the play button.

3. You can delete and re-arrange the scene in the animation simply go to the
animation folder to delete any viewpoints you don’t want.
4. You can also edit i.e. change the duration, by right-click the saved
animation and then select Edit. In the edit Animation dialog box, you can
change the total running time, select Loop Playback, or change the
Smoothing option.

To Export an Animation

1. Animations can be exported out of the Navisworks, either as an AVI files, or

as series of statice images i.e. JEPG, PNG or Windows Bitmap.
2. In the Save Viewpoints window, select the animation to be exported.
3. Select the Output tab and in the Visual panel, click Animation. Alternatively,
on the Animation tab, click Export animation on the Export panel.
4. In Animation Export dialog box, for Source, select Current Animation.
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5. To control how the 3D model appearance – by changing the Render Styles,

Background and the lighting of the model.
6. In the Viewpoint tab select the Mode > the model always shows a full render.
Now select each of the mode to see the differences.
a. Full render – the model is rendered with smooth shading including any
materials that have been applied with the Autodesk rendering tool or
have been brought from the native CAD file. i.e. Revit files. Full render
can slow down the performance when working with Navisworks.
b. Shaded render model – it displays the geometry using shaded
surfaces without textures.
c. Wireframe – view styles and the wireframe exist together. It uses
triangulations to represent surfaces and solids.
d. Hidden line – the model is render in wireframe but only the outline and
facet edges of surfaces that are visible.
7. Background of the model – right click of the background model.
a. Plain -
b. Grey -
c. Horizon –

Sectioning

Source: https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/navisworks-products/learn-
explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2019/ENU/Navisworks-Freedom/files/GUID-FEEA00D6-CEFA-
47B5-8E6D-CFDF4E33428B-htm.html

8. Autodesk Navisworks enables you to turn on sectioning for the current

viewpoint and to create cross sections of your model in a 3D workspace. The
sectioning functionality is not available for 2D sheets.

9. A cross section is a cut-away view of a 3D object that enable you to see

inside it. You can turn sectioning on and off for the current viewpoint by

clicking Viewpoint tab Sectioning panel Enable Sectioning .

When the sectioning is turned on, the Sectioning Tools contextual tab is
automatically displayed on the ribbon.

10. There are two sectioning modes available from the Sectioning Tools tab
Mode panel: Planes and Box.

11. Planes mode allows you to make up to six sectional cuts in any plane
while still being able to navigate around the scene, enabling you to see inside
models without hiding any item. By default, section planes are created
through the center of the visible area of the model.

12. Section planes are stored inside viewpoints and so can also be used within
viewpoint animations and object animations to show a dynamically sectioned
model. See Saved Viewpoints Window for more information on viewpoints,
and Record and Play Animations Play Back Animations for more information on
animations.
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13. Box mode enables you to focus your review on specific and limited areas
of the model. As you move the box around, only the geometry within the
defined section box is displayed in the Scene View.

14. By default, section planes are mapped to one of the six primary directions as
follows:

Plane No Plane Name Default Alignment

1 Plane 1 Top
2 Plane 2 Bottom
3 Plane 3 Front
4 Plane 4 Back
5 Plane 5 Left
6 Plane 6 Right

15. You can select a different alignment for the current section plane. There are 6
fixed alignments and 3 custom alignments to choose from:

• Top - aligns the current plane to the top of model.

• Bottom - aligns the current plane to the bottom of model.

• Front - aligns the current plane to the front of model.

• Back - aligns the current plane to the back of model.

• Left - aligns the current plane to the left of model.

• Right - aligns the current plane to the right of model.

• Align To View - aligns the current plane to the current viewpoint
camera.

• Align To Surface - enables you to pick a surface, and place the current
plane ‘on’ that surface, with its normal aligned to the normal of the triangle
picked.

• Align To Line - enables you to pick a line, and place the current plane
‘on’ that line, at the point where you clicked, and aligned so that its normal
is on the line itself, facing towards the camera.

16. To add a section plane set.

a. Go to Viewpoint tab  Enable Sectioning command .

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b. A Section Tools tab will appear - see screenshot below.

c. The 3D model will show a sectioning view by default. As we don’t know

where is the location of the sectioning plane. We need to click on Fit
Selection command to find out; you will then see a gizmo with a

section plane .
d. Go to the Plane Settings panel  Alignment dropdown. You willsee
different sectioning views (as in 15).

e. Let select Align To Top plane; the section plane will appear at the top
of the model.
f. Hovering the curser along the gizmo. One of the axes will be becomes
yellow colour. You can click on the yellow axes, hold and drag up and
down to reposition the plane.
g. Similarly, you can use other Alignments to cut section you want to
view in your model.
h. You can use Rotate command in the Sectioning Tools tab to rotate the
gizmo for a 360 degree sectioning view of the model.
i. You can also use Move command in the Sectioning Tools tab to move
the gizmo.
j. You can combine two sectioning planes to make them move together
by clicking on the Link Section Plane.
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k. You can Alignment the sectioning plane to a particular surface of the

model. Select Alignment to Surface and then click on the surface you
want to align. You can transfer to another surface by clicking on other
surfaces.
l. You can also use Box mode to have sectioning views and change the
Box size with the Scale command tool.
m. Remember you can save each sectioning view by clicking on the Save
command in the Sectioning Tools tab.