Door¶
A door is a wall opening that allows passage between spaces, controlled access for people and goods.
In IFC, it’s represented by the IfcDoor entity, which is a subtype of IfcBuildingElement. Doors play a crucial role in building design, affecting circulation, accessibility, and space functionality.
This section covers how to add and customize doors in your BIM model using Bonsai.
Adding a Door¶
Select the wall where you want to place the door.
Set the 3D cursor on the wall at the desired door location.
Click on the “Create Door” tool in the Bonsai toolbar.
In the top bar, you’ll see “[No IfcDoorType Found] | Name [TYPEX] | + Add IfcDoorType”.
Edit [TYPEX] to use a door type name of your choice (e.g., DOOR001).
Click “+ Add IfcDoorType”. The top bar will update with additional options.
Click “Add” (or press SHIFT+A) to create a door with its own type.
Adjust the door’s width and height using the parameters in the top bar.
Placing a Door and Changing its Swing Direction¶
Select the wall: - (Optional) Use the “Create Wall” tool to add a wall in your scene. - Select the wall where you want to place the door.
Selecting the wall is crucial as it ensures that the void relation between the door and the wall is automatically created.
Add a Door: - Use the “Create Door” tool from the toolbar. - Press SHIFT+A or click “Add” to place the door on the selected wall.
Applying Void
If you forgot to select the wall before placing the door, you’ll need to manually create the void relation:
Select both the wall and the door.
Click “Apply Void” (Shift+O) button.
Important
If you need to use “Apply Void”, do this before making any modifications to the door, as there are limitations with this function that may affect door orientation.
Usually, the Regen function will recalculate all the openings with existing void relationships.
Adjust Door Position (if needed): - With the door selected, use Blender’s move tools to adjust its position along the wall.
Regenerate the Wall Geometry: - Select the wall. - Press Shift+G to regenerate the wall geometry, incorporating the door opening.
Note
This step ensures the wall geometry is updated to include the door opening.
Moving the Door using Blender tools doesn’t actually change the IFC model. Future versions need to improve UX in that regard. Synchronisation between the Blender scene and IFC model is an issue that has the highest priority.
Change Door Swing Direction: - Select only the door. - Press Shift+F to flip the door. It rotates the door by 180 degrees and moves the pivot point. - Locate the “Parametric Geometry” panel in the Scene Properties > Geometry and Materials subtab. - Find the “Door” section within this panel. - Change the “Operation Type” to “SINGLE_SWING_RIGHT”.
Note
The Shift+F shortcut is currently a hidden feature and not available as a button in the Door tool interface.
You may need to experiment with the combination of changing the Operation Type and using Shift+F to achieve the desired orientation.
Final Wall Geometry Regeneration: - Select the wall again. - Press Shift+G one more time to ensure all changes are properly applied.
Additional Notes¶
The Shift+F shortcut for flipping the door is not visible in the Door tool interface. This functionality may be added as a visible button in future updates.
Always use Shift+G (Regenerate) after making changes to ensure the wall and door geometries are correctly updated.
Avoid using Shift+O (Apply Void) as it may cause issues with the door’s orientation.
Modifying Doors¶
Note
Some functionality is not implemented.
You can modify doors using various tools:
Resize: Adjust the width and height parameters in the top bar.
Move: Use Blender’s standard move tools to reposition the door.
Flip: Change the opening direction using the flip tool (Shift+F).
Note
After moving a door, you need to recalculate the void in the wall. To do this:
Select the wall containing the moved door.
Click on the “Regen” (Shift + G) button in the top bar or use the appropriate shortcut.
This ensures that the opening in the wall is correctly positioned after moving the door.
If Regen operation doesn’t achive the required result, use Apply Void function:
Click on the “Apply Void” (Shift + O) button in the top bar or use the appropriate shortcut.
This ensures that the opening is linked to the wall.
Door Properties¶
Note
This functionality is not implemented.
After adding a door, you can customize its properties:
Select the door in the 3D viewport.
Go to the … panel.
Find the … section.
Here you can set various properties such as fire rating, u-value, or any custom properties required for your project.
Note
This functionality is not implemented.
You can customize various properties of the door:
Dimensions (width, height, thickness)
Opening direction
Door type (e.g. single swing, double swing, sliding)
Material
Creating Multiple Doors¶
To create multiple doors of the same type:
Select the desired door type from the dropdown menu in the top bar.
Set the 3D cursor on a wall where you want to place a new door.
Select the wall
Click “Add” (or press SHIFT+A) for each new door you want to create.
Adjust the 3D cursor, position and parameters for each new door as needed.