Electric Lighting Help Guides
LightStanza offers a robust way of modeling electric lighting from concept to construction drawings. LightStanza is flexible so there are several workflows design and engineering teams can use. Some teams will prefer to place fixtures in Revit, while others want to augment Revit, SketchUp, and Rhino drawings with fixtures. Drawings that start in Revit format are best supported right now.
Keyboard Shortcuts
- When clicking + dragging luminaires with the mouse:
- Holding CTRL will let you move on the z-axis (up and down)
- Holding SHIFT will deactivate the snap feature so you can make more fine-grained movements
- Holding SHIFT will also deactivate snap when you are rotating a luminaire with the rotation arrow handle
- When placing a luminaire:
- Holding SHIFT will deactivate snap. You can also deactivate snap using the “magnet” icon in the top toolbar
- When selecting luminaires:
- Holding SHIFT will allow you to select multiple luminaires
- While luminaires are selected
- Use the arrow keys to move the selected object(s)
- right/left = move on x (red) axis
- up/down = move on y (green) axis
- ctrl + any arrow key = move on z-axis (up and down)
- shift + any arrow key = move a smaller distance on whatever axis (default without holding shift is 1′ per key press)
- DELETE – will delete
- Use the arrow keys to move the selected object(s)
Many Workflows
LightStanza allows users to layout and calc fixtures in a space, building, or exterior in a variety of ways:
- Fixture layouts in Revit: for users who want to do most of their lighting design directly in Revit
- Fixture layouts in LightStanza:
- Synced to a Revit model: for users who want to read in portions or all of their Revit base drawings, do their layouts online, and sync their results back to Revit
- Using a Revit model on a computer without Revit: for users who do not want to remodel but also do not have Revit.
- In spaces or an exterior area created online (with or without an imported 2D base-map): for creating simple 3D geometry online and limited support for legacy CAD projects
- From an imported Rhino, SketchUp, or IFC model: LightStanza will manage any type of 3D geometry and create lighting plan views from them.
- Photometric Manager
- Run Calcs in the Cloud
- Calc history and viewing online
- Collaborate with message threads, sharing designs, and results
- Download data for reporting or further analysis
All workflows for fixture layouts in LightStanza have in common:
- Luminaire Manager
- Online Editing
The LightStanza Web Application
Overview
LightStanza is a full-featured electric lighting design and analysis program.
The figure below describes a typical workflow of assigning luminaires to run calculations.
1. Set your calculation mode to electric light only. This should be the default for models that were imported from Revit with electric lighting checked.
2. Go to wireframe mode to see all of your photometric webs and IES files.
3. Assign IES files to your fixtures. The fixtures without IES files an be identified in the 3D viewer by red spheres, and yield symbols in the luminaire manager. Not all fixtures have to be assigned to run calculations.
Once assigned, click the name of an IES file to edit in LightStanza’s advanced IES/Family Manager. Here you can view IES file details, BUG ratings, and photometrics, as well as change LLF (light-loss factors), fixture dimensions, and more (see Luminaire Manager).
4. Create new fixtures online and place them in your model.
5. Mark all fixtures that will contribute to Emergency Lighting mode (and set their dimming/power level).
6. Enter the instance manager to edit individual fixture properties. Here you can change rotations, height adjustments, set individual fixtures to emergency lighting, etc.
7. Run calculations in standard mode
8. Run calculations in Emergency Lighting Mode
Generating Results in LightStanza
Navigate to the Illuminance Grids panel on the left-hand panel. Select the “crop” symbol under the area of interest to crop the model to that space. Uncheck the “crop” icon to return to the whole building model.
The Activity Bar (on the right side of your design screen) is where new activities are started, previous activities are referenced, model edits are listed and comparison reports are kicked off.
- Renderings/Animations – These come from individual point-in-time renderings and animations. To play a rendering/animation, click the New Simulation button in the top of the activity menu.
- Camera Tools – You can customize the way you view your renderings in the 3D viewer with Camera Tools. (Hover over the activity you want to see in the activity menu then click the building icon)
- Exposure – You can manually adjust the exposure of your renderings in order to increase or decrease the amount of light per unit area. LightStanza uses Reinhard tone mapping for adjusting exposure.
- Contrast – Adjusting the contrast of your image will increase or decrease the difference between light and dark in your renderings.
- False Color – In the 3D viewer, you have the option to view your renderings in False Color mode for a more quantitative view of your images.
- Luminance Bounds – Changing your luminance sets what luminance values each color in your image represents. Adjust this to focus on very bright or very dark areas.
- Log Scale – Adjusting your log scale sets scaling of your false color heat map.
- Contour Lines – This is another way to look at your false color rendering. Contour lines trace the different luminance thresholds in your rendering, using the false color legend.
- Line spacing – Changing your line spacing sets the density of contour lines in your image.
- Camera Tools – You can customize the way you view your renderings in the 3D viewer with Camera Tools. (Hover over the activity you want to see in the activity menu then click the building icon)
- Illuminance Grids – These come in the form of Point-in-time Illuminance Grids and animations. Clicking one of these activity cards will place the result inside of your 3D model.
- View model edits – By clicking the “Show model edits” button at the top of the Activity Bar, you can see edits you’ve made to your model in the left toolbar. You can also revert to previous model states using the revert button on a history card, and you can save any state of your design to a new design using the save button on a history card.
- Starting a comparison – By clicking the “Compare Activities” button at the top of the Activity Bar, you can compare two different simulations at once by selecting two activities from the list of simulations below.
- Starting a new activity – At the top of the Activity Bar, there is a “New” dropdown menu with the following options:
- Rendering/Animation – Renderings can be made on the fly or from your list of viewpoints in the left Viewpoints panel. To make renderings on the fly, simply move your 3D viewer screen to the angle and location that you want, and when you start a new rendering at the exact spot. After clicking “Rendering/Animation” in the dropdown menu, you will be presented with a new set of simulation options:
- Check the “Emergency Lighting Calculation” box under Simulation Options to create a rendering from luminaires designated as emergency. Leaving this box unchecked will create a rendering of all normal lighting within the set viewpoint.
- Simulation Quality depends on a list of Radiance settings. These settings will be shown as a tooltip next to the Simulation Quality setting in the header.
- “Draft” quality is good for faster simulation
- “High” and “Very High” quality renderings will be more accurate for things like reports.
- You also have the option to set “Custom” quality settings. Simply click “Show Quality Details” and edit your Radiance parameters directly. You can hide these details by clicking “Hide Quality Details.”
- Camera Settings – These settings allow you to adjust several options for you rendering/animation.
- Field of View – Adjusting these settings will change the X and Y lens angles. Both the X and Y default angles are 180.
- Super Sampling – Setting this percentage determines the original size before scaling to your target resolution. The larger this percentage, the crisper your images will be.
- Resolution – Adjusting of the resolution will change the quality, in pixels, of your renderings.
- Section Cut – By simulating with a section cut, you can cut into your 3D model to easily view daylight performance in your building.
- Analysis Viewpoint – The analysis will be performed at the selected viewpoint.
- Camera Settings
- Lens
- Perspective lens resemles the way the human eye would see a space.
- Hemispheric lens uses a wide angle similar to a fisheye lens.
- Cylindrical lens has a panoramic look.
- Field of View – Adjusting field of view will change X and Y lens angles. Different lenses (above) will have different default angles. The minimum value for X and Y is 1°. The maximum value for X or Y is 180° for hemispheric and cylindrical lenses, and 175° for perspective lens.
- Super Sampling has to do with the original size of your images before scaling to your target resolution. The larger this percentage, the crisper your images will be. For speed, choose smaller percentages.
- Resolution changes the quality, in pixels, of your rendering.
- Lens
- Rendering/Animation – Renderings can be made on the fly or from your list of viewpoints in the left Viewpoints panel. To make renderings on the fly, simply move your 3D viewer screen to the angle and location that you want, and when you start a new rendering at the exact spot. After clicking “Rendering/Animation” in the dropdown menu, you will be presented with a new set of simulation options:
- Grid Illuminance – This option will provide electric lighting calculations.
- Simulation Options – Leaving this section at its default will produce a normal electric light calculation. Checking the “Emergency Lighting Calculation” box under Simulation Options will provide an emergency lighting calculation activity card.
- Grid Settings – “Unit” will adjust the lighting measurement unit between Lux or Footcandle (FC). “Point Spacing” allows you to adjust the spacing between grid points for the calculation. “Scale” allows you to choose a graphical scale to accompany the results.
- Simulation Quality depends on a list of Radiance settings. These settings will be shown as a tooltip next to the Simulation Quality setting header.
- “Draft” quality is good for faster simulation.
- “High” and “Very High” quality renderins will be more accurate for things like reports.
- You also have the option to set “Custom” quality settings. Simply click “Show Quality Details” and edit your Radiance parameters directly. You can hide these details by clicking “Hide Quality Details.”
- Camera Settings – These settings allow you to adjust several options for you rendering/animation.
- Field of View – Adjusting these settings will change the X and Y lens angles. Both the X and Y default angles are 180.
- Super Sampling – Setting this percentage determines the original size before scaling to your target resolution. The larger this percentage, the crisper your images will be.
- Resolution – Adjusting of the resolution will change the quality, in pixels, of your renderings.
- Section Cut – By simulating with a section cut, you can cut into your 3D model to easily view daylight performance in your building.
- Analysis Viewpoint – The analysis will be performed at the selected viewpoint.
- Grid Illuminance – This option will provide electric lighting calculations.
6. Navigating Activity Panel Tools – The top of the Activity panel holds several buttons to compare, view, and edit your model.
- Compare Activities – This button allows you to compare two separate 2D reports of simulations that have been run.
- Intelligent Perspective/Section Cut – This button will allow you to toggle Smart Camera Position and Smart Section Cut on and off for easily viewing grid-based simulation results within your 3D model.
- Revert Model to Previous State – When selecting this button you will be prompted to select a model state to revert to represented by history cards in the Activity Panel. Once you revert to a previous model state, this action cannot be undone.
- Make a Copy of Your Design – This button will create a new copy of your model in its current state in the 3D viewer (so if you are viewing a previous state in the model history, the copy will have the properties of that previous state). After selecting this button you will be prompted to name your new design before continuing.
- Show/Hide Simulation Results or Model Edits – Here you can show/hide cards in the Activity Panel that represent Simulation Results and/or Model Edits.
- Filter Activities – This button will allow you to filter cards in the Acitivty Panel strictly by the Simulation Type.
7. Viewing Previous Activities – Each card in the activity bar is an individual activity. The cards consist of a few basic navigational elements.
Luminaire Manager
This panel allows users to create and add fixtures, assign and adjust IES files, and set up Emergency Lighting in their model.
Each fixture type in LightStanza can be addressed through this panel.
- Access the Luminaire Library
- Access the IES Library
- Create new light fixtures — ideal for those designing in LightStanza
- Fixture type name — can be edited
- Number of instances of that fixture type
- Adjust the LLF of all fixtures in that family type
Adding a Fixture
Fixtures can be created in LightStanza in various ways:
1. Importing lighting families from a Revit model
2. Creating a new lighting family (without fixture geometry) to hold an IES file – ideal for those that wish to design in LightStanza, regardless of where the model geometry is imported from
3. Adding a fixture that was previously saved into the family library
4. Adding more instances/copies of a fixture already present in the design (via one of the above methods)
Placing Fixtures
You can create, delete, and move fixtures in LightStanza. The following figure illustrates these steps:
1. Navigate to a 2D lighting plan view (recommended – you can edit and create luminaires in any view mode). Use this dropdown menu to navigate between model levels.
2. Click on the fixture you want to move. Right click lets you delete it.
3. Use your keyboard to move the fixture. See keyboard shortcuts above.
4. You can also add and remove fixtures using the top menu and batch selection.
Use an adjustable grid to assist placing light fixtures in the model:
- Toggle between 2D plan and 3D model views.
- Toggle the grid on and off. Adjust the spacing of the grid.
- Move and align the grid while this button is active.
IES File Assignments
You can directly upload an .ies file into LightStanza or choose one from your team’s online library. Upload and assign fresh .ies files, or store them in your LightStanza library for easy assignment and management.
Instance Manager
Each fixture instance in LightStanza can be individually addressed through this panel.
Emergency Lighting
Rotating/Moving Fixtures
IES/Family Manager
This panel allows you to customize your IES file and make adjustments to light source position/orientation within the family.
Features Include:
- Candela Distribution viewer
- Luminaire classification system viewer
- Photometric web viewer
- Light Loss Factor: directly enter the number in this field or click on the pencil to get a detailed list of factors to modify
- The rotation and location of the light source within the family, and the IES luminous dimensions to match the family
Working with Illuminance Grids
Importing Illuminance Grids from Revit
1. Horizontal illuminance grids will be generated in the LightStanza model per Rooms or Spaces assigned in Revit.
2. Create vertical illuminance grids on the walls of each room or space.
A horizontal illuminance grid will be created in the LightStanza app. You can adjust the height of this using the editing tool in the Illuminance Grids Panel.
3. Adjust the “Room Type” assigned to the grid by clicking on the light bulb.
4. A “Room Type” for that illuminance grid will be assigned based on the room or space type defined in Revit. An illuminance target and whether that target is an average, max or min will be defined based on that room or space type. These conditions are editable for each illuminance grid imported from Revit.
Vertical illuminance grids have been created on each wall within the imported Revit model. Toggle the vertical illuminance grids on and off to customize your design.
Collaboration
You can tag your peers in your designs and result reports.
Creating Reports
Users have the ability to download their report from the activity panel.
Once downloaded the user can click on the ppt. file labeled ‘report sheet template’ to start creating sheets.
The template is completely editable. From here you can copy and paste an image of the calcs and the calc summary or what ever information is required to present on your sheets.
LightStanza Revit Plugin
Overview
The most developed electric light modeling workflow is with the LightStanza Revit Plugin, which can be found on our Plugins Page.
LightStanza’s Revit Plugin allows design teams to quickly export relevant geometry, fixtures (optional) and IES files from a Revit document to LightStanza. Users can try out different concepts, run calculations, bring results back into Revit and other reporting programs.
LightStanza Revit Plugin is used for:
- Exporting 3D Revit building geometry
- Can select individual rooms, spaces, section boxes (to improve performance)
- Update backgrounds of previously exported Revit geometry
- Exporting Luminaires
- Filter family geometry and data as needed
- Automatically converting rooms/spaces into calculation grids (at customizable heights)
- Two-way syncing between Revit and LightStanza (see below for details)
- Adding new families to LightStanza
- Saving the Revit document as a .lsd file to share with colleagues/clients without Revit access
- Loading custom LightStanza Parameters (used for per-instance scaling of IES files, emergency lighting and more)
- Importing calculation results and schedules from LightStanza into your Revit documentation
Best Practices:
- Change syncing (Revit → LS) is intended for minor design iterations. For major model geometry changes, it is better to export to a new design in LightStanza.
- Define light fixture families in Revit with a default IES file (offset the IES file from the family geometry at least ½” inch).
- Light Source Definition should have Light Distribution set to Photometric Web. Choose any Emit from Shape option that matches the light fixture family.
- Make sure the “Light Source” checkbox is on
- IES files can be modified/swapped once in LightStanza
- Use Face-based, Workplane and Non-Hosted light fixture families. (Do not use ceiling or wall based light fixture families)
- Create and send new light fixture families from Revit. (Create new light fixture family types in LightStanza or Revit).
- Change vertically hosted light fixture’s position and rotation in Revit then sync to LightStanza.
- When replacing a light fixture use a family/type that has the same host in Revit.
- Use change syncing only in one direction at a time (i.e. make changes in Revit or in LS, but not both)
Export and Syncing information:
| Geometry | Revit → LightStanza (Export) | Revit→ LightStanza (Send Changes) | LightStanza → Revit |
| Revit/Model Geometry | ✔ | ✔ | |
| View Template Filtering | ✔ | ✔ |
Tilt Fixture✔✔
| Fixture Action | Revit → LightStanza (Export) | Revit→ LightStanza (Send Changes) | LightStanza → Revit |
| Add Fixture | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Copy Fixture | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Delete Fixture | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Move Fixture | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| New Fixture Family | ✔ | ✔ | GLF |
| New Fixture Family Type | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Replace Fixture | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Rotate Fixture 2D Plane | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Light Fixture Family Host | Revit → LightStanza (Export) | Revit→ LightStanza (Send Changes) | LightStanza → Revit |
| Ceiling Based | ✔ | ✔ | GLF |
Face Based (On Vertical Face) | ✔ ✔ | ✔ ✔ | ✔ VF |
| Floor Based | ✔ | ✔ | GLF |
| Non Work Plane-Based | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Roof Based | ✔ | ✔ | GLF |
| Wall Based | ✔ | ✔ | GLF |
| Work Plane-Based | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Revit Parameters | Revit → LightStanza (Export) | Revit→ LightStanza (Send Changes) | LightStanza → Revit |
| Active (LightStanza) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Color | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Color Filter | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Custom Parameters | |||
| Emergency (LightStanza) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Emergency Output (LightStanza) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Emit Circle Diameter | ES | ES | |
| Emit Line Length | ES | ES | |
| Emit Rectangle Length | ES | ES | |
| Emit Rectangle Width | ES | ES | |
| Family Name | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| IES Basis Length | ✔ | ✔ | |
| IES File | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Initial Intensity | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Light Loss Factor | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Luminous Length (LightStanza) | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Tilt Angle | |||
| Type Mark | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Type Name | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
ES: Emit from Shape Parameters are dependent on which Emit Shape is selected from the Light Source Definition in the Light Fixture Family.
GLF: Generic Light Fixture – If a light fixture family is sent from LightStanza → Revit with one of the noted Host types then the fixture will be placed as a generic light fixture.
VF: Vertical-Face – Light fixtures that are placed on a vertical surface (wall) in Revit and position is changed in LightStanza will still be attached to the vertical surface in Revit when changes are synced. Also adding/copying a fixture in LightStanza that is on a vertical face will place the fixture horizontally in Revit when changes are synced. For best results with vertically placed fixtures edit/add the fixture in Revit and sync changes to LightStanza.
Revit Plugin QuickStart
Once you install the LightStanza Plugin, open up Revit and under the LightStanza tab log into your LightStanza account. Then go to the “Export Button” and click “Export”.Step 1: Setup 3D View
The plugin must have a 3D view in Revit to export to LightStanza. What you see in the 3D view is what will get exported to LightStanza.- In the “Export Window” under “3D View” select a 3D view to export from.
- Check that 3D view to make sure the model elements are appearing correctly in that 3D view. (Materials as well like glass)
Step 2: View Template
A view template is applied to the 3D view to trim out model elements that aren’t needed for analysis (e.g. fire alarms, conduit, pipes, railings, plumbing, etc). These items will greatly increase the data exported to LightStanza and aren’t needed for calculations in most cases.- In the “Export Window” under “View Template” select “LightStanza Minimal Export” which will apply that view template during the export process.
- To create/edit view templates in the 3D view under “Properties” panel scroll down until you see “View Template”. Click the button to the right. Here you can create and edit a view template or set the 3D view to a view template.
- Select “LightStanza Minimal Export” under “Names”.
- To change what type of model geometry is being exported to LightStanza click “Edit” next to “V/G Overrides Model”. In the pop up window you can turn on/off different model categories you want to export to LightStanza.
- Press “Okay” twice to apply the view template to the 3D view and close those windows.
Step 3: Apply Section Box to 3D View
Applying a section box to the 3D view will trim out anything outside of the section box. This is useful to ensure only the part of the model you need for analysis is included, and not outlying elements (e.g. site/terrain geometry).- To apply/edit a section box in the 3D view under “Properties” panel scroll down until you see “Section box” and check it.
- Then in the 3D view find the section box and click on it to enable the drag handles. Then you can align the section box around the part of the model that is of interest for analysis.
Step 4: Setup Calculation Grids
Calculation Grids are automatically created from the rooms or spaces defined in the Revit model during the export process. You can also create grids in LightStanza.- Under the “Settings” tab in the “Export Window” you can select which spatial type to create calculation grids from. (Rooms or spaces)
- Change the default height of the calculation grid comes in at under “Calc Grid Height”.
- By default grids are trimmed out by construction phase, to export grid from another phase like existing, under “Advanced” uncheck “Only create grids in construction phase”.
Using the Revit Plugin
Step 1. Put Lighting Families into your Revit model (note: you can also add fixtures directly inside the LightStanza application). The lighting families do not have to have an associated IES file, but these will be included in your export if they are present. Step 2. Create a 3D view to use for exporting to LightStanza. LightStanza will use the current Construction Phase, and will include geometry and other data from associated linked Revit files. You can apply section boxes to crop to any region of the model, or let LightStanza automate this for you in the next step. Step 2b. If you plan to sync data between Revit and LightStanza after initial export, create a 3D View called “LightStanza Sync View”. See below for more information Step 3. Create a 3D view template to apply to the 3D view for use in exporting to LightStanza. You should filter out categories using the view template you do not need (e.g. furniture, plumbing) as this will greatly improve performance and export time. You can refer to the LightStanza View Template examples in your Revit project on which categories you may or may not need. Step 4. Click “Export to LS”, “Select Rooms for Export” or “Save to disk” on the LightStanza Toolbar- “Export to LS” will send your model directly to LightStanza, creating a new LightStanza design that will automatically open in your web browser.
- The speed at which this button works depends on your model size/complexity and internet upload speed.
- “Select Rooms for Export” will send your model directly to LightStanza, creating a new LightStanza design that will automatically open in your web browser.
- Only the selected rooms will export to LightStanza.
- “Save to disk” will save a LightStanza Data (.lsd) file to your local disk that can be directly loaded into LightStanza.
- This option can be faster than “Export to LS” – if you have a very large file you may find this option more efficient.
- Share the file with someone else who has the LightStanza application (without needing to use Revit).
- When you do not have an internet connection and want to upload later, or to save your design in a specific state.
- “Tracking” If this is turned on, changes to your Revit model will be automatically tracked for syncing to LightStanza to keep the designs in the same state.
- If you have exported multiple times, you can relink to a previously exported LightStanza design by clicking the “Relink” button on the LightStanza Toolbar and selecting the appropriate LS design.
- Changes made while this is “off” will not be sent when turned back on.
Step 4. Check Options.
| Export Option | Description |
|---|---|
| LightStanza Design | The name of your LightStanza Design |
| LightStanza Folder | The folder you want to export your design into |
| Export | Allows you to crop your model to a particular level, room or space before uploading to LightStanza. This can dramatically improve export and simulation times. |
| 3D View | The view that will be used for the export process to LightStanza. Anything not visible in this view will not export to LightStanza |
| View Template | The view template that will be used for the export process to LightStanza. The view template will be applied to the selected 3D View and will only export Revit Categories that are selected in the view template to LightStanza. |
| Auto Create Grids | Create calculation grids in LightStanza based on either Rooms or Spaces. Applies to linked files as well. |
| Calc Grid Height | The default height to use for calculation grids created from Rooms/Spaces. |
| Create calc grids on walls and ceilings | If checked all walls and ceilings of Rooms/SPaces will have a calculation grid. Checking this option will have an impact on performance so it is recommended to use this option with individual rooms/spaces. |
| Electric Light Data | Lighting fixtures and lighting family data will/will not be be included in the exported model |
| Enable track changes | Track changes from Revit to LightStanza (can be toggled later) |
| Optimize export data | If you have issues with exporting your LightStanza design you can try using this feature. It may significantly increase export times and negatively affect performance. |
| Apply Revit Photometric Settings | Will use the lighting type parameters set in the Lighting Fixture Family. Without this selected, all data will be set based on IES file parameters (if present) |
| Sync changes from LS to Revit | Track (lighting fixture) changes for syncing from LightStanza back to Revit |
Revit Setup
Exporting to LightStanza
- The Revit project needs to have at least 1 3D view defined in order to export to LightStanza. This 3D view should also have a view template applied that turns off Revit Model Categories that are not needed.
- Anything not shown in the 3D view will not export to LightStanza.
- Turn off lighting fixtures from other links in the view template applied to the 3D view if applicable. This will prevent architectural lighting fixtures from other links showing up in your LS Design.
Lighting Families
- Every lighting fixture family needs to have “Light Source Definition” checked in the Revit family editor for LightStanza to recognize the lighting fixture.
- Revit Lighting Families with LightStanza: Part 1 Video
- Revit Lighting Families with LightStanza: Part 2 Video
Lighting Fixture Parameters
- Press the “Load LS Parameters” button on the LightStanza Tab to get the full functionality of LightStanza. You only need to do this once per project. See the table below for more information on each parameter.
- LS parameters are used for proration and scaling of IES files in linear fixtures, emergency and active/inactive lighting fixtures.
- Can add the LS parameters to the Lighting Fixture Family file (.rfa) The shared parameter file for LS parameters is located in a folder at the install location of the plugin.
Sending Changes
- In order to sync changes to an LS Design you need to have a 3D view called “LightStanza Sync View” defined in your project.
- Tracking needs to be enabled for Revit to LightStanza
Sync View
- In the Sync View you should have the view scoped to the same scope as your exported LS Design.
- Example: Exported Whole Model – Don’t need to apply any scope box.
- Example: Exported Model with a Scope Box – Apply the same scope box to the Sync View when sending changes to that LS Design.
- Example: Exported a Room/Space/Level – Apply a scope box around the room/space/level in the Sync View that matches the room/space/level in the LS Design.
- The sync view should have a view template applied that has all the model categories enabled. In this view template you should turn off lighting fixtures from other links if applicable.
Revit Workflow
Making sure Visibility Filters are set Correctly
- Although you may be working in a Revit 2D sheet for Electrical Fixtures, LightStanza must read model geometry from a 3D view.
- If you press the export button from a 2D view, LightStanza will automatically select a 3D view to read the model geometry from.
- Any visibility filters in 2D will not be automatically applied to 3D. This is a common problem, where in 2D the visibility of lighting fixtures looks correct, but in 3D the filters are set differently.
- If you need to control what gets sent to LightStanza via graphics/visibility/filter settings, it is advised to create a new 3D view and use this when exporting to LightStanza.
- One easy way to do this is to define an Electrical Lighting Template in your preferred 2D view, and apply this template to your chosen 3D view. This will transfer all the visibility filters that have been set in 2D to 3D. Use this 3D view when exporting to LightStanza.
Revit Section Box
- Creating a Section Box in Revit is a convenient way of selecting geometry and fixtures for a space to analyze in LightStanza.
- Be sure to check the dimensions of the section box fully include the height of things like recessed fixtures as well as the floor, full length and width of the space being analyzed.
Revit View Templates
Send Luminaires
- Send only luminaire changes from Revit to LightStanza.
Send Geometry
- Send Geometry changes from Revit to LightStanza
- Updating LS Design background
- Upon opening a Revit Project that has been previously been exported to LightStanza the “Send Geometry” button will populate with any geometry changes the model might have.
- Tracking changes must be ON upon export and when closing Revit.
- Will only update the background of the connected LS Design.
- If you use the relink button to link to a different exported LS Design any Geometry changes for that design will populate.
- Upon opening a Revit Project that has been previously been exported to LightStanza the “Send Geometry” button will populate with any geometry changes the model might have.
Relink
- Use the relink button to relink/link to a previously exported LS Design.
- You can work across multiple LS Designs and sync back to Revit by relinking to each design as needed. By working in multiple LS Designs you can reduce the scope of the elements in LightStanza to have better performance and faster calculation time.
- When relinking to a LS Design any Geometry changes that may be available to update the background will populate in the “Send Geometry” button.
- When relinking to a LS Design any Luminaire changes that may be available to update the LS Design will populate in the “Send Luminaires” button.
Revit Parameters
- When syncing lighting fixtures from LightStanza to Revit, applicable Revit parameters will be updated. You can then send those updates to another LS Design you are working in using the “Relink” button. Any applicable luminaire changes will populate in the “Send Luminaries” button.
Linear Fixtures and IES File Proration
Working with LightStanza Revit Parameters
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| LS-Luminous Length | The length of the linear fixture |
| LS-IES Basis Length | The length of the IES file |
| LS-Active | Include/Exclude from regular (non-em) simulations |
| LS-Emergency | Fixture should be an emergency fixture |
| LS-Emergency Output | Output of the fixture during emergency calculations |
In order to access LightStanza Revit Parameters click “Load LS Parameters” in the ribbon for the LightStanza plugin in Revit. This will automatically add parameters to each individual lighting fixture.
Proration of IES Files
Assign the “LS-Luminous Length” as the intended length of that light fixture type.
Navigate to the Type Properties of each light fixture type and under Photometrics, assign “LS-IES Basis Length” as the length of the luminous box of the base IES file that will be used in the calculations.
Assigning Emergency Fixtures
To assign a fixture as emergency prior to interfacing with the LightStanza model, use “LS-Emergency” to designate each fixture you wish to mark as emergency. Adjust the emergency output of the fixture using “LS-Emergency Output”.
Marking fixtures as emergency prior to uploading a model to LightStanza will automatically designate those fixtures as emergency in the LightStanza model. These emergency fixtures will be included in Emergency Lighting Calculations.
If you are syncing changes to/from/between Revit and LightStanza, the emergency parameters can be edited from either location and kept in sync in the two applications.
Active/Inactive Fixtures
Fixtures can be included/excluded from regular (non-emergency) simulations in LightStanza using the “Active” parameter. You can set the initial state of each fixture by toggling the LS-Active parameter on each instance before exporting.
After the initial export, you can use syncing to/from/between Revit and LightStanza to toggle this parameter in either place and have it kept in sync in the two applications.
Viewing Proration Set from LightStanza Revit Parameters
In LightStanza, you will see the “Proration Factor: #.##” for each individual fixture instance. For example, this fixture is 16ft in length with a base IES file of 4ft. The IES file of this fixture has be prorated by a factor of 4.00 to create a 16ft luminous box.
In LightStanza, you will see the “Proration Factor: #.##” for each individual fixture instance. For example, this fixture is 8ft in length with a base IES file of 4ft. The IES file of this fixture has be prorated by a factor of 2.00 to create an 8ft luminous box.
Sending Schedules from LightStanza to Revit
On the activity card for the calculation information you wish to send back to Revit, click the icon to create a report.
Once in the report file, navigate to the icon highlighted in red in the image below. Clicking this icon will export scheduled information back to the Revit model. Syncing between LightStanza and Revit must be activated for this to occur.
In Revit, navigate to the “Schedules/Quantities” section of the Project Browser. You will see (2) schedules were created from the LightStanza model:
“LightStanza Luminaires” will provide a schedule of fixtures that were used in the model.
“LightStanza Report” will provide a full calculation matrix of illuminance values generated in the specified calculation.
See the “LightStanza Luminaires” schedule below:
See the “LightStanza Report” schedule below:
Sending DXF files from LightStanza to Revit
Ensure that the syncing from LightStanza is turned on by clicking the link button in the upper left hand corner. Next, in Revit, open the View in which you would like the DXF placed. Then, in LightStanza, open the report you would like to send to Revit. On either the total floor result image or a single grid result image click the “Send all DXF’s to Revit” or the “Send DXF to current Revit view” button. This will send the DXF(s) to Revit which will pop up a message telling you the DXF(s) successfully imported.
If you cannot see the DXF(s) please double check your Visibility/Graphics settings and make sure your Cut Plane is above your LightStanza grid height.
Manually Adding LightStanza Results Images to Revit
On the activity card for the images you wish to add to Revit, click the icon to create a report. Once in the report file, click on the “Download report data” button at the top-right. This will download a zip file containing all of the data in the report, including DXF format drawings of the results.
In your Revit design, navigate to the “Insert” tab and select “Import CAD”:
In the next dialog, navigate to the files downloaded from LightStanza, and select the desired image. Make sure to show files of type .dxf, and set the import units to meters. By default, Revit will load the image into the current active view, or you can select one in the “Place at:” drop-down:
Once loaded, you can align the image with the view by clicking and dragging if necessary.
Creating a Vertical or Custom Grid in Revit:
- Create a new material in Revit by going to the Manage tab, then clicking on Materials.
- Next, click the gray circle with a plus on it which is located at the bottom of the materials list and then click “Create New Material”.
- Once the material is made, change the “shading” and the “surface pattern” colors to yellow RGB(255,255,0) and then the “surface pattern” to “” on the right panel.
- Click on the Appearance tab and change the generic color to yellow as well. Make sure there is no image selected as well.
- Rename the new material to “LSGrid” + whatever you want the grid name to be in LightStanza (i.e. “LSGrid Grid 1”) by right clicking it in the “Project Materials” list, and clicking “Rename”. Then click OK.
- If you are creating a horizontal grid, create a new “level” by going to an elevation view. For a vertical grid, use the floor plan view where you want to make the grid.
- Make sure you are not in Modify mode for this step. Click on a level and then type “cs” for the keyboard shortcut to “create similar” this will create a new level. Set the new level to 30” above the actual floor for workplane measurements.
- Next, go to your newly created level by clicking on its floor plan view.
- Next, create a new floor or wall by going to the architecture tab and clicking on floor or wall. Under the properties section on the left, click “Edit Type”. This will bring up a new menu.
- To create a new type of floor or wall click “duplicate’ and give the object a new name. Click OK.
- Now click on “edit” to the right of the structure parameter.
- Set the structure of this object/grid to just one layer and set that layer material to the one you created in step 1. Make sure to set the layer to as thin as possible (the minimum thickness in Revit is 31/256″). This will essentially make the object a 2D plane in Revit (0 thickness). Click OK, and then OK again on the Type Properties Menu.
- Make sure the type is set to the grid floor that you created in the left properties tab.
- Draw the floor (which will upload as your illuminance grid in LightStanza) in any shape you want using the drawing tools. If you would like to separate out your illuminance grids into spaces, draw multiple shapes to represent each of your spaces. When you are done, click the green checkmark.
- Next, upload your model to LightStanza. You can either save your model as a .rvt file and upload directly to LightStanza, upload through the LightStanza Plugin for Revit, or upload through the Legacy LSGrid Plugin for Revit.
* On LightStanza that the object will turn into an illuminance grid and will no longer be the object that it was in Revit so it will not interfere with your lighting calculations.
Revit Export Issues
Glass Panes importing to LightStanza as Solids
To resolve the issue of some glass panes exported to LightStanza coming in as solid objects you need to edit the Revit Family definition in Revit. The most important thing to check in the family file is that the visibility settings for the glass pane is set to the below picture. Go ahead an open the Revit Family File and select the glass pane that isn’t coming into LightStanza correctly. Then click on the setting “Visibility/Graphics Overrides” (in the properties panel). In the window that pops up the button “When cut in Plan/RCP” needs to be unchecked as this changes how Revit exports data to LightStanza.
Asymmetrical Linear Fixtures IES Files Exported to LightStanza
When exporting linear lighting families to LightStanza from Revit where the linear distribution is symmetrical the photoweb will come in scaled correctly in LightStanza.
Whereas asymmetrical may come in pointed wrong or have the distribution parallel with the fixture instead of perpendicular. The root cause of this is because the manufacturer defined the IES file wrong. Generally we recommend using a different fixture because it gets tricky to handle it. If you must use this ies file we can fix this through a series of workarounds for fixed length linear types but not adjustable length linears at the moment. In the Revit Family Definition we need to use a rectangle light source and flip the width/length. Then in LS we need to flip the width/length again in the IES file editor. After that the asymmetrical distribution will be perpendicular to the fixture length.
Geometry Exported from Revit not correct in LightStanza
If Geometry is coming in weird to LS there are two things to check:
- Try unchecking “Optimize export data” in the Export Options Dialog box in Revit. (Under advanced settings). This will increase the time it takes to export but every piece of geometry will have its own data which can fix issues with geometry that has been mirrored etc..
- Use a view template to filter out railing during the export process to LightStanza. The model category Railings in Revit are often modeled in very complex ways and are not fully support for plugins in Revit. So railing often come into LightStanza incorrectly showing weirdness in the LS Model. Railings also don’t contribute much to calculations or renderings but they add a lot of overhead. So it is recommended to filter out the railings category.
Linear Proration Details
The two parameters defined in Revit, LS-Luminous Length (instance parameter) and LS-IES Basis length (type parameter) are combined to determine the instance proration: proration = luminous length / basis length
At simulation time, a new copy of the base IES file is created with the luminous dimensions field adjusted to the correct length for each fixture instance. LightStanza does the work for you, instead of you having to create new IES files for each length or by lining up many short IES files into one long one.
The LightStanza simulation engine is built around Radiance, which adds IES files with specific dimensions to the model “scene” using the command ies2rad. Using the modified IES files for each fixture length (see point 2), this ensures that in both point calculations and renderings, the fixture outputs light along its entire length.
To account for spreading the total output of the IES file over a different length than in the original, the proration factor is also applied as a constant multiplier to all output values in the IES file.
LightStanza then runs the calculation using as many IES files as needed (one file for each different instance length), while you only need to manage one! This process will produce identical results as compared to e.g. chaining multiple non-prorated instances together to match the length of a single prorated one.
Checking and verifying proration factors.
There are several indicators in the LS interface to show/check that proration has been applied:
Luminaire Panel – Type View: the arrow button that opens the more detailed Luminaire Panel – Instances View will have a “P” underneath it, indicating that at least some instances of this type have a proration factor applied
Luminaire Panel – Instances View: The proration factor assigned to each instance is listed here, and can be edited if needed.
Model viewer: In the model viewer, the IES luminous dimensions are indicated by a transparent blue plane. You can verify that the luminous dimensions match the fixture geometry dimensions directly in the viewer.
Below you can see two instances of the same type, but with different lengths/proration factors. The light, solid-blue rectangle in the center of each fixture shows the luminous dimensions of the prorated IES file, which matches the length of the fixture geometry (the darker-blue rectangular outline):
4. IES/Family Viewer: In the IES/Family viewer you will see several notifications if any instances have a proration factor applied:
