Creating a Family Browser Toolbar

Revit API
#1

I’m very new to coding and I’ve been trying to develop a toolbar for my company that allows the user to place family instances using a pushbutton on a toolbar rather than searching through the project browser for the right family. I created an entire custom family library and now am trying to spoil us with a custom toolbar to easily find and place the family. I can get it to at least attempt to place the family but get an error that I can’t figure out as well “Exception: Family cannot be placed as hosted on an input face reference, because its FamilyPlacementType is not ViewBased” Im not sure exactly where I’m going wrong. Im trying to setup where it essentially runs the “Create Similar” command and automatically selects the corresponding family in the Project Browser.
#This is my Script following Erik Fritz#

from Autodesk.Revit.DB import *
#VARIABLES
doc = revit.ActiveUIDocument.Document
uidoc = revit.ActiveUIDocument
app = revit.Application
title = ‘Place New Instance’
active_view = doc.ActiveView
active_level = doc.ActiveView.GenLevel
import clr
clr.AddReference(‘System’)
from System.Collections.Generic import List

#pyrevit
from pyrevit import forms,revit

#MAIN
#=====================
#EXTRA FUNCTION
def get_type_by_name(type_name):
#CREATE RULE

param_type = ElementId(BuiltInParameter.ALL_MODEL_TYPE_NAME)
f_param = ParameterValueProvider(param_type)
evaluator = FilterStringEquals()
f_rule = FilterStringRule(f_param, evaluator, type_name, True)

#CREATE FILTER

filter_type_name = ElementParameterFilter(f_rule)
# GET ELEMENTS

return FilteredElementCollector(doc).WherePasses(filter_type_name).WhereElementIsElementType().FirstElement()

symbol = get_type_by_name(‘LB_Conduit_Body’)

#PLACE FAMILY

with Transaction(doc,title) as t:
t.Start()
# CHANGES HERE

element  = doc.Create.NewFamilyInstance(XYZ(0,0,0) , symbol, active_view)

t.Commit()
#2

Your issue is that different families have different ways of being placed. Some are good with just a point and rotation. Others need a couple of points for a line-based family. Some need a host. So, I don’t think you want to do all the upfront decision makings. You just want to set the family you are using and then let Revit do its thing.

This might help:
The Building Coder: Launching a Revit Command (typepad.com)

#3

Have a look at a ready made solution with .content bundles

#4

Is there a way it can work without the _content part at the end of the file name? I had also done it with the _content and it wasnt able to load so not sure where im wrong. Im also doing this in Revit 2020

#5

Not that I know of without interfering with what is in place.
But probably not too bad of a job. Families could be located in 2 subfolders instead without renaming.

Anyway, here is a typical folder content. The folder needs to be named *.content

#6

I finally got it to work with the _content. I didn’t realize the family had to be loaded into the project already with the _content name. The only thing that’s holding me back is having that name in the project as we export out model in schedules for material req’s and I cant have that _content visible in the schedule. As of now though the only way it will work is with the _content being present in the file name?

#7

As of now, by default yes.
You did well filing an issue on GitHub, it makes sense.

There is always the possibility to hardcore the loading and placing in a script file