Rhino BETA Feature: Export Block Attributes

Serengeti (Rhino BETA)
1

Rhino BETA now incudes the ExportBlockAttributes command.

What is Export Block Attributes?

Blocks in Rhino can have meaningful data attached to it. Usually in the form of Attribute User Text. The ExportBlockAttributes command extracts this data to a CSV file.

Interview with the developer Dale Fugier

Why is it useful?

Rhino’s blocks can include additional user defined data. Exporting these values for analysis to a program outside of Rhino, was left up to scripting (Python or Grasshopper) in previous versions. Now, in Rhino BETA, you can export this information and create a table or spreadsheet for analysis or data management.

Steps to Use:

  1. Open a model with Blocks that have attribute values associate with them.
  2. Type ExportBlockAttributes.
  3. Select the blocks with attribute to export:
    Use a Windows selection or
    SelBlockInstanceNamed or layer selection can be helpful.
    Enter when the selection is complete.
  4. The ExportBlockAttributes dialog appears.
    There are 2 parts: Block Properties and Block Attributes
  • Block Properties included Name, Insertion Pts, Layer, URL and more.
  • Block Attributes are added to blocks and defined by the user.
    image
    image388×561 22.6 KB
  1. Pick OK.
  2. Navigate to location and type a name for the file.
  3. Use your spread sheet application to import the CSV and analyze the data.

See this feature in use below:

“Put down scripts” and try this new Rhino BETA command.
Let us know if this works for you.

Sincerely,
Mary Ann Fugier

PS If you want to learn about Attributed blocks, see this tutorial.
Attributed blocks were added in Rhino 7.

Download Rhino BETA…

2

Hi Mary,
I will make a request hoping that the table feature will also be in r9.

I think it will be very useful to import the the contents of a spread sheet directly into Rhino on the same feature.

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3

Hi @herso,
This is makes sense.
I will get this logged.

I think this button is dependent on all these table features.

  1. Table object RH-30945/Text-Table-editable-spreadsheet-like-table
  2. a way to remove row(s) & column(s) (logging wish fir Edit table command)
  3. a table style (logging wish for Table Style)

I will post the links to the other YTs when I have them completes.
Thanks again for letting us know.

Sincerely,
Mary Ann Fugier

4

Thank you!

5

Hi, do you think there is a way to have assigned materials as a native block attribute that can be called out in much the same way without having to retype all the material names as a text attribute? Would make exporting material schedules much faster

6

Hi Omar -

To make sure that we are on the same page, could you explain or give an example of an “assigned material”?
-wim

7

Hello Mary,

A lot of people name their blocks in English, but as a Korean, I usually save them in Korean so it’s easier to recognize at a glance. However, after checking Excel, it seems like the Korean language isn’t supported

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image1063×651 54 KB

8

Hi Youngmin,
We need more details:

  1. Open Rhino. Type SystemInfo command. Copy and paste the text results into your reply.
  2. Please attach the 3DM file.
  3. "However, after checking Excel, it seems like the Korean language isn’t supported
    What steps did you use for generating the CSV from the 3DM?

The goal is to duplicate this here.

Thanks,
Mary Ann Fugier

12

I defined a block in Rhino and gave it a Korean name. Then, I used the ExportBlockAttributes command to export a CSV file as shown in the screenshot below. However, the block names inside the Excel file appear corrupted.

attribute
attribute414×702 11.2 KB

block.test.korean.csv (293 Bytes)

block.test.korean.3dm (620.0 KB)

14

Hi Youngmin,

Thank you for reporting the bug. We were able to reproduce it and found several things to fix.

The fixes are now in RhinoBETA!

Please give it a try and let us know if it still doesn’t work.

감사합니다!:grinning_face:

HeeYoung

15

Hi HeeYoung,

I tested it out on the new Rhino beta, and it seems to work fine.

감사합니다!:+1: