Product(s):	OpenBuildings Designer
	Version(s):	2023
	Area:	Architectural Design
	Subarea:	Curtain Walls

Problem

The delivered louver panel in OpenBuildings Designer has horizontal blades but we have the need for vertical blades instead. In addition, we may need to adjust the spacing between the blades dependent on the size of the frame opening, and if possible rotate them similar to how vertical blinds work. Is there a way to achieve any of this? 

Solution

Yes, all of these aspects are possible but will require creating a custom parametric cell using a combination of constraints. You can find general information about how constraints work in the online OpenBuildings Designer documentation here:
https://docs.bentley.com/LiveContent/web/OpenBuildings%20Designer%20Help-v8/en/GUID-588AFE55-F0C6-4741-B75B-435F64869567.html

For this particular case, the parametric cell must first meet the typical requirements of a curtain wall component, including: 
- The Family/Part assignment of "Curtain Wall:Curtain Wall" to the rough opening shape.
- Creating a horizontal and vertical construction line to use for the panel's geometry and constraining them (Coincident and Equals) to the applicable rough opening shape's edges.
Refer to this YouTube video for more details.

Beyond these basic panel cell requirements, the key aspect is to use a combination of constraints and variables to achieve rectangular louver blades that fill the rough opening's height and width, while allowing the blades to be rotated. The constraints and variables used in this example are shown below, though the variable names can be customized as needed:

Following is an overview of the workflow to create a constrained 2D shape, extrude that into a 3D solid, array the solid, then use variations to control the louver blade distance and rotation:

1. Create a dimensionally constrained 2D shape to use for the initial louver blade extrusion. Rotate the shape to whatever angle best suits the default state of the louver blades in relation to the rough opening shape.

2. Constrain the opposite long edges of the 2D shape to be Parallel and Equal to each other, and both short edges to be Perpendicular.  This will force the shape to always be rectangular without any skew. Alternately, you can use the Auto Constrain tool. 

3. Place a line along the outer long edge of the 2D shape, and constrain the line to be both Coincident and Equal to that edge. 

 

4. Create an Angle constraint between that line and the horizontal construction line already constrained to the rough opening.

5. With the 2D shape in place and its rotation controlled by the Angle constraint, click the Extrude Along tool (Solid by Extrusion Along Path) to create the initial louver blade solid. Use the vertical construction line as the extrusion's Path Element and of course the 2D shape as the Profile. Note: because the vertical construction line is already constrained to be Equal and Coincident to the rough opening edge, the 3D extrusion will always be vertical and its length will always match the rough opening height.


 

6. Use the Array Parametric Solid Feature tool (Array Feature) to create a 3D array of the initial louver blade parametric solid:
- Set the Array Type option to "Along Path" so the horizontal construction line can be used to control the direction of the array.
- Set the Along Path Mode option to "Distance" so the existing Distance variable can be used. 
- Enable the Whole Element option.

7. Once complete, you should have an array of 3D louver blades. 

8. We will now create a few variations to define blade distance (Array) and rotation (Angle) values to be used in our curtain walls. Again, you can use any values that suit your requirements as long as they physically allow the blades to be generated. 

9. Open the Catalog Editor dialog, and use the right-click > Duplicate command to create a copy of the desired Curtain Wall Panel catalog item. Rename your new catalog item as desired and change the cell value to your custom parametric cell + applicable variation. You can also create multiple catalog items so that each uses a specific variation. Once finished, click on the Save icon and close the Catalog Editor.  See this article for additional details. 

 

You should now be able to place any delivered curtain wall system and select your new panel(s) from the list:

Once placed, you can also choose different panels (if you've created them) to change the blade spacing and rotation as shown in the video below. 

10. Optional: You can also use the right-click > Duplicate command to create a new Curtain Wall System(s) that uses one of your new Curtain Wall Panel catalog item(s).