#Dynamo: Visual Programming for BIM#

The intent of this project is to provide a visual interface for building interesting parametric functionality on top of that already offered by Revit. Dynamo aims to be accessable both to the non-programmer and the programmer alike with the ability to visually script behavior and define your own nodes, but also the ability to write functionality using Python or by compiling .net code into dlls that can be linked at run time.

This project was started by Ian Keough. A complete rewrite of the underlying Dynamo engine was done by Stephen Elliott. Matt Jezyk contributed a ton of nodes as well as a wealth of input on pretty much all other aspects of Dynamo's design. Prior to Ian's joining Autodesk, others on the Autodesk team including Zach Kron, Tom Vollaro, and Lillian Smith provided a lot of very useful feedback.

Dynamo has been developed based on feedback from several parties inlcuding Buro Happold Engineers, Autodesk, and students and faculty at the USC School of Architecture.

The current version will run on top of Revit 2013 and Project Vasari Beta 2 and 3. It will be released as a new Project Vasari WIP soon but is available now experimental form on github.

###0.4.0###

June 2013

Known Issues

• Cannot use comma as a decimal separator
• Node Preview state is not saved with dyn file
• Transform Point does not respond to rotation input

Fixes

• Can now run Python scripts from disk location and embedded
• Autocomplete for Python now works in Vasari
• Deluany Tessellation node is working
• Preview 3d geometry in the view background refreshing properly
• Formula node can now copy paste
• Fixed crash bug with connecting node to itself. This also corrects the double click crash on a port.
• Fix XYZFromReferencePoint so that it returns an XYZ.
• Fixed behavior where lacing and element count would not coincide, sometimes leaving an element behind.
• CurveByPointsByLine no longer duplicates points.
• Fixes for Adaptive Component placement
• Better crash handling
• Fixed multiple crash issues around deleting elements created by graph
• Auto-Mapping (lacing)improvments
• Selection nodes improved save/open fidelity
• Experimental nodes for Isometric View and Section Box generation
• Fixed Crash Saving Image

New

• Wiring new inputs will push out old inputs
• Iron Python 2.7.3 bundled with install
• OffsetCurves node
• Update CurveByPoints node to allow for creation of reference lines
• Reference Curve Node
• More list management nodes: sublist, slice, flatten
• Preview geometry is now controlled on a per-node basis (right click menu)
• Compute curve derivatives
• Open file defaults to sample directory
• UI improvements and cleanup
• Cache previous position of Dynamo window, do not maximize on startup
• Add XYZStartEndVector, CrossProduct, Negate, and Average
• Normalize the vectors when creating a transform
• Lacing is set to "Longest" by default
• Angle Node that takes degree inputs
• Updates, fixes, and culling of Samples
• Nodes for CurveLoop from Curves, Curve List from Curve Loop
• Nodes for Revolve and Sweep for Solid Creation

###0.3.4###

May2013

Known Issues

• Cannot run Python scripts from disk location (embedded is fine)
• Delauny Tesselation node is always passing an empty list
• Preview 3d geometry in the view background is not consistently refreshing
• Formula node crashes when copy pasting when running in auto

Fixes

• Dynamo now works alongside Revit Python Shell and other conflicting addins
• Solar Radiation example works
• More stability

New and Updated Nodes

• Adaptive Components
• Formulas using N-Calc syntax
• Compute Face Derivatives
• Project Points on Curves and Faces
• Extract Solids, Faces, and Edges from elements
• Evaluation of Curves and Edges
• Selection of Imports, Host objects, Edges, Faces and Solids from Element
• Watch3d improvements
• Python node Autocomplete (in progress and only in Revit)

Functionality and UI

• Appearance Cleanup
• Preview geometry in Dynamo Background
• Category and Node Browsing Improvements
• Ability to pass lists into nodes (Lacing and auto-mapping of lists)
• New Node appearance
• Graph retains memory and parametric control of elements created in previous sessions

Engineering

• MVVM standardization

Samples

• Adaptive Component Placement
• Face Extraction from Solids
• Formulas
• Create Point Sequence
• Some existing sample cleanup

###0.3.0###

April 2013

Known Issues

• Dynamo cannot start with Revit Python Shell Installed.
• Dynamo continues regenerating revit elements after closing when "Run Automatically" is checked
• Face selection of loaded families move origin to Revit 0,0,0
• Solar Radiation Optimization Sample may lock CSV file and stop running

New or Updated nodes

• Watch 3d geometry preview
• Expanded Curve drawing nodes
• Transforms
• Vectors
• More Analysis capabilities
• Delaunay Tessellation
• Dynamic Relaxation
• Leap Motion interface
• Drafting view
• Syntax coloring for Python Node Editor
• Random Number generator
• Simplex Fields
• Read Image from File node
• Arduino node is more robust
• UDP node for responding to input over network
• UV Grids
• Surface Domain nodes
• More math nodes (modulo and exponent)
• Height node
• Dynamic Relaxation improvments

UI:

• Custom Node creation from Selection
• Multiple Outputs from custom nodes
• Cut and Paste
• Box and Multi Select
• Search/Browse: Scalable browsing, more robust search
• Lacing: Data Matching for Lists
• Application Menu standardization
• Spline or Polyline Connector option
• More legible and compact node display

Engineering:

• Code Cleanup
• Expanded code Documentation
• Code Separation (Disentangle UI, Engine, Revit code)
• API reflection: Ability to automatically generate nodes from the API
• Automated testing for improved stability

Samples:

• Dynamic Relaxation
• Curves
• Arduino
• CSV driving point creation
• Tesselation
• Transforms

###0.2.0###

November 2012

New or updated nodes:

• Added slider value display when slider is moved
• Added XYZ utility nodes (XYZ Zero, XYZ Basis, XYZ Scale, XYZ Add, Evaluate Normal, Evaluate XYZ)
• Added XYZ Number Extractor nodes (XYZ -> X, XYZ -> Y, XYZ -> Z)
• Added Reference Point By Normal node
• Fixed Arduino node, it now works with new framework
• Added Execution Interval (Timer) node
• Added Spatial Field Manager node and Analysis Results node
• Added Level node and Level by Selection node
• Added Planar Nurbs Spline node
• Added Divided Surface node
• Added Divided Path node
• Updated Lofted Form node to handle surfaces vs solids and solids vs voids
• Added Chomp, Dice, LaceForward and LoacBackwards definitions for working with 2D arrays.
• Added new string utility nodes
• Added a CSV file writer and basic file writer nodes
• Added a Watch node
• Added Dynamic Relaxation node (still experimental)

UI:

• Added abilty to create Notes in graphics window
• The built-in samples in File/Samples have been reorganized to use subfolders
• added File/Save command
• Pressing the Dynamo Ribbon button in Revit/Vasari while Dynamo is already running now simply makes Dynamo window visible again
• It is now possible to move around the graphics screen with the arrow keys.
• If second monitor is available, Dynamo will maximize to it.

###0.1.0###

June 2012

• User Interface - side panel to allow you to search and then drag and drop new nodes in to place
• User-created nodes - you can make 'sub-nodes' and then reference them elsewhere, these act like writing a reusable function in a programming language
• Python Scripting node - we have integrated a python scripting node into
• Math, logic and other nodes - many new nodes added to support evaluation, iteration and looping

Dynamo For Vasari Beta 2 WIP: Integrating Dynamo into Project Vasari and extending Dynamo to support integrated analysis and performance-based design.

Those portions created by Ian are provided with the following copyright:

Copyright 2013 Ian Keough

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at

http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.

###Avalon Edit### http://www.codeproject.com/Articles/42490/Using-AvalonEdit-WPF-Text-Editor
http://opensource.org/licenses/lgpl-3.0.html

###Kinect for Windows### http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/kinectforwindows/
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/kinectforwindows/develop/sdk-eula.aspx

###Helix3D### https://helixtoolkit.codeplex.com/
https://helixtoolkit.codeplex.com/license

###Iron Python### http://ironpython.net/
http://opensource.org/licenses/apache2.0.php

###MiConvexHull### http://miconvexhull.codeplex.com/
http://miconvexhull.codeplex.com/license

###NCalc### http://ncalc.codeplex.com/
http://ncalc.codeplex.com/license

###NUnit#### http://www.nunit.org/
http://www.nunit.org/index.php?p=license&r=2.6.2

###Prism### http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg406140.aspx
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg405489(PandP.40).aspx