Namespace: Autodesk.Revit.DB

FamilyInstance

Class

Description:
This object represents a single instance of a family type, such as a single I beam.

Remarks:
Examples of FamilyInstance objects within Autodesk Revit are Beams, Columns, Braces and Desks. The FamilyInstance object provides more detailed properties that enable the type of the family instance to be changed, thus changing their appearance within the project.

Inheritance Hierarchy:
System.Object
  Autodesk.Revit.DB.Element
    Autodesk.Revit.DB.Instance
      Autodesk.Revit.DB.FamilyInstance
        Autodesk.Revit.DB.AnnotationSymbol
        Autodesk.Revit.DB.Mullion
        Autodesk.Revit.DB.Panel

Syntax

public class FamilyInstance : Instance

Public Class FamilyInstance
	Inherits Instance

public ref class FamilyInstance : public Instance

type FamilyInstance = 
    class
        inherit Instance
    end

Examples

public void GetInfo_FamilyInstance(FamilyInstance familyInstance)
{
    string message = "FamilyInstance : ";
    // Get FamilyInstance host name
    if (familyInstance.Host != null)
    {
        message += "\nFamilyInstance host name is : " + familyInstance.Host.Name;
    }

    foreach (ElementId materialId in familyInstance.GetMaterialIds(false))
    {
        Material material = familyInstance.Document.GetElement(materialId) as Material;
        message += "\nFamilyInstance e material : " + material.Name;
    }
    // Get FamilyInstance room name
    if (familyInstance.Room != null)
    {
        message += "\nFamilyInstance room name is : " + familyInstance.Room.Name;
    }

    // Get FamilyInstance structural type
    message += "\nFamilyInstance structural type is : " + familyInstance.StructuralType;

    // Get FamilyInstance structural usage
    message += "\nFamilyInstance structural usage is : " + familyInstance.StructuralUsage;

    TaskDialog.Show("Revit",message);
}

Public Sub GetInfo_FamilyInstance(familyInstance As FamilyInstance)
 Dim message As String = "FamilyInstance : "

 ' Get FamilyInstance host name
 If familyInstance.Host IsNot Nothing Then
        message += vbLf & "FamilyInstance host name is : " & Convert.ToString(familyInstance.Host.Name)
    End If

    For Each materialId As ElementId In familyInstance.GetMaterialIds(False)
        Dim material As Material = TryCast(familyInstance.Document.GetElement(materialId), Material)
        message += vbLf & "FamilyInstance e material : " + material.Name
    Next
    ' Get FamilyInstance room name
    If familyInstance.Room IsNot Nothing Then
        message += vbLf & "FamilyInstance room name is : " & Convert.ToString(familyInstance.Room.Name)
    End If

    ' Get FamilyInstance structural type
    message += vbLf & "FamilyInstance structural type is : " & Convert.ToString(familyInstance.StructuralType)

    ' Get FamilyInstance structural usage
    message += vbLf & "FamilyInstance structural usage is : " & Convert.ToString(familyInstance.StructuralUsage)

    TaskDialog.Show("Revit", message)
End Sub

FamilyInstance Class Members:

Name	Description	Inherited From
AssemblyInstanceId	The id of the assembly instance to which the element belongs. (Inherited from Element )	Element
BoundingBox	Retrieves a box that circumscribes all geometry of the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CanFlipFacing	Property to test whether the orientation of family instance facing can be flipped.
CanFlipHand	Property to test whether the orientation of family instance hand can be flipped.
CanFlipWorkPlane	Identifies if the instance can flip its work plane.
CanRotate	Property to test whether the family instance can be rotated by 180 degrees.
CanSplit	Identifies whether a particular family instance can be split at a point on it's defining curve (by Split(Double) ).
Category	Retrieves a Category object that represents the category or sub category in which the element resides. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CreatedPhaseId	Id of a Phase at which the Element was created. (Inherited from Element )	Element
DemolishedPhaseId	Id of a Phase at which the Element was demolished. (Inherited from Element )	Element
DesignOption	Returns the design option to which the element belongs. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Document	Returns the Document in which the Element resides. (Inherited from Element )	Element
ExtensionUtility	Property to check whether the instance can be extended and return the interface for extension operation.
FacingFlipped	Property to test whether the orientation of family instance facing is flipped.
FacingOrientation	Property to get the orientation of family instance facing.
FromRoom	The "From Room" set for the door or window in the last phase of the project.
FromRoom[Phase]
Geometry	Retrieves the geometric representation of the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GroupId	The id of the group to which an element belongs. (Inherited from Element )	Element
HandFlipped	Property to test whether the orientation of family instance hand is flipped.
HandOrientation	Property to get the orientation of family instance hand.
HasSpatialElementCalculationPoint	Identifies if this instance has a single SpatialElementCalculationPoint used as the search point for Revit to identify if the instance is inside a room or space.
HasSpatialElementFromToCalculationPoints	Identifies if this instance has a pair of SpatialElementCalculationPoints used as the search points for Revit to identify if the instance lies between up to two rooms or spaces.
Host	If the instance is contained within another element, this property returns the containing element. An instance that is face hosted will return the element containing the face.
HostFace	Property to get the reference to the host face of family instance.
HostParameter	If the instance is hosted by a wall, this property returns the parameter value of the insertion point of the instance along the wall's location curve, as long as the family of the instance isn't work plane based.
Id	A unique identifier for an Element in an Autodesk Revit project. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Invisible	Property to test whether the family instance is invisible.
IsModifiable	Identifies if the element is modifiable. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsSlantedColumn	Indicates if the family instance is a slanted column.
IsTransient	Indicates whether an element is transient or permanent. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsValidObject	Specifies whether the .NET object represents a valid Revit entity. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsWorkPlaneFlipped	Identifies if the instance's work plane is flipped.
LevelId	The id of the level associated with the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Location	This property is used to find the physical location of an instance within project. (Overrides Element . Location )
MEPModel	Retrieves the MEP model for the family instance.
Mirrored	Property to test whether the family instance is mirrored. (only one axis is flipped)
Name	A human readable name for the Element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
OwnerViewId	The id of the view that owns the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Parameter[BuiltInParameter]	Retrieves a parameter from the element given a parameter id. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Parameter[Definition]	Retrieves a parameter from the element based on its definition. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Parameter[Guid]	Retrieves a parameter from the element given a GUID for a shared parameter. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Parameters	Retrieves a set containing all of the parameters that are contained within the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
ParametersMap	Retrieves a map containing all of the parameters that are contained within the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Pinned	Identifies if the element has been pinned to prevent changes. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Room	The room in which the instance is located (during the last phase of the project).
Room[Phase]
Space	The space in which the instance is located (during the last phase of the project).
Space[Phase]
StructuralMaterialId	Identifies the material that defines the instance's structural analysis properties.
StructuralMaterialType	This property returns the physical material from which the instance is made.
StructuralType	Provides the primary structural type of the instance, such as beam or column etc.
StructuralUsage	Provides the primary structural usage of the instance, such as brace, girder etc.
SuperComponent	Property to get the super component of current family instance.
Symbol	Returns or changes the FamilySymbol object that represents the type of the instance.
ToRoom	The "To Room" set for the door or window in the last phase of the project.
ToRoom[Phase]
UniqueId	A stable unique identifier for an element within the document. (Inherited from Element )	Element
VersionGuid	Get the element version Guid. (Inherited from Element )	Element
ViewSpecific	Identifies if the element is owned by a view. (Inherited from Element )	Element
WorksetId	Get Id of the Workset which owns the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element

Name	Description	Inherited From
AddCoping	Adds a coping (cut) to a steel beam.
ArePhasesModifiable	Returns true if the properties CreatedPhaseId and DemolishedPhaseId can be modified for this Element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CanBeHidden	Indicates if the element can be hidden in the view. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CanBeLocked	Identifies if the element can be locked. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CanDeleteSubelement	Checks if given subelement can be removed from the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
CanHaveTypeAssigned()	Identifies if the element can have a type assigned. (Inherited from Element )	Element
ChangeTypeId(ElementId)	Changes the type of the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
DeleteEntity	Deletes the existing entity created by %schema% in the element (Inherited from Element )	Element
DeleteSubelement	Removes a subelement from the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
DeleteSubelements	Removes the subelements from the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Dispose	(Inherited from Element )	Element
Equals	Determines whether the specified object is equal to the current object. (Inherited from Object )	Object
EvaluateAllParameterValues	Evaluates all the parameters' values of the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
EvaluateParameterValues	Evaluate the parameters' values of the element on the given parameter ID set. (Inherited from Element )	Element
flipFacing	The orientation of family instance facing will be flipped. If it can not be flipped, return false, otherwise return true.
FlipFromToRoom	Flips the settings of "From Room" and "To Room" for the door or window instance.
flipHand	The orientation of family instance hand will be flipped. If it can not be flipped, return false, otherwise return true.
GetCopingIds	Lists the elements currently used as coping cutters for this element.
GetDependentElements	Get all elements that, from a logical point of view, are the children of this Element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetEntity	Returns the existing entity corresponding to the Schema if it has been saved in the Element, or an invalid entity otherwise. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetEntitySchemaGuids	Returns the Schema guids of any Entities stored in this element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetExternalFileReference	Gets information pertaining to the external file referenced by the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetExternalResourceReference	Gets the ExternalResourceReference associated with a specified external resource type. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetExternalResourceReferenceExpanded	Gets the collection of ExternalResourceReference associated with a specified external resource type. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetExternalResourceReferences	Gets the map of the external resource references referenced by the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetExternalResourceReferencesExpanded	Gets the expanded map of the external resource references referenced by the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetFamilyPointPlacementReferences	Returns the Point Placement References for the Family Instance.
GetGeneratingElementIds	Returns the ids of the element(s) that generated the input geometry object. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetGeometryObjectFromReference	Retrieve one geometric primitive contained in the element given a reference. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetHashCode	Serves as the default hash function. (Inherited from Object )	Object
GetMaterialArea	Gets the area of the material with the given id. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetMaterialIds	Gets the element ids of all materials present in the element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetMaterialVolume	Gets the volume of the material with the given id. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetMonitoredLinkElementIds	Provides the link instance IDs when the element is monitoring. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetMonitoredLocalElementIds	Provides the local element IDs when the element is monitoring. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetOrderedParameters	Gets the parameters associated to the element in order. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetOriginalGeometry	Returns the original geometry of the instance, before the instance is modified by joins, cuts, coping, extensions, or other post-processing.
GetParameter	Retrieves a parameter from the element given identifier. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetParameterFormatOptions	Returns a FormatOptions override for the element Parameter, or a default FormatOptions if no override exists. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetParameters	Retrieves the parameters from the element via the given name. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetPhaseStatus	Gets the status of a given element in the input phase (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetReferenceByName	Gets the family instance reference corresponding to the named reference plane in the instance's family.
GetReferenceName	Gets the name of the reference plane in the family corresponding to the given family instance reference.
GetReferences	Gets family instance references corresponding to the reference planes or reference lines of the given reference type in the instance's family.
GetReferenceType	Gets the type of the reference plane or reference line in the instance's family corresponding to the given family instance reference.
GetSpatialElementCalculationPoint	Gets the location of the calculation point for this instance.
GetSpatialElementFromToCalculationPoints	Gets the locations for the calculation points for this instance.
GetSubComponentIds	Gets the sub component ElementIds of the current family instance.
GetSubelements	Returns the collection of element subelements. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetSweptProfile	Gets the object that describes the profile that is swept along the driving curve for this instance.
GetTotalTransform	Gets the total transform, which includes the true north transform for instances like import instances. (Inherited from Instance )	Instance
GetTransform	Gets the transform of the instance. (Inherited from Instance )	Instance
GetType	Gets the Type of the current instance. (Inherited from Object )	Object
GetTypeId	Returns the identifier of this element's type. (Inherited from Element )	Element
GetValidTypes()	Obtains a set of types that are valid for this element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
HasModifiedGeometry	Identifies if the geometry of this FamilyInstance has been modified from the automatically generated default.
HasPhases	Returns true if this Element has the properties CreatedPhaseId and DemolishedPhaseId. (Inherited from Element )	Element
HasSweptProfile	Indicates if this instance can be represented as a swept profile.
IsCreatedPhaseOrderValid	Returns true if createdPhaseId and demolishedPhaseId are in order. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsDemolishedPhaseOrderValid	Returns true if createdPhaseId and demolishedPhaseId are in order. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsExternalFileReference	Determines whether this Element represents an external file. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsHidden	Identifies if the element has been permanently hidden in the view. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsMonitoringLinkElement	Indicate whether an element is monitoring any elements in any linked models. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsMonitoringLocalElement	Indicate whether an element is monitoring other local elements. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsPhaseCreatedValid	Returns true if createdPhaseId is an allowed value for the property CreatedPhaseId in this Element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsPhaseDemolishedValid	Returns true if demolishedPhaseId is an allowed value for the property DemolishedPhaseId in this Element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
IsValidType(ElementId)	Checks if given type is valid for this element. (Inherited from Element )	Element
LookupParameter	Attempts to find a parameter on the element which has the given name. (Inherited from Element )	Element
RefersToExternalResourceReference	Determines whether this Element uses external resources associated with a specified external resource type. (Inherited from Element )	Element
RefersToExternalResourceReferences	Determines whether this Element uses external resources. (Inherited from Element )	Element
RemoveCoping	Removes a coping (cut) from a steel beam.
rotate	The family instance will be flipped by 180 degrees. If it can not be rotated, return false, otherwise return true.
SetCopingIds	Specifies the set of coping cutters on this element.
SetEntity	Stores the entity in the element. If an Entity described by the same Schema already exists, it is overwritten. (Inherited from Element )	Element
Split	Splits the family instance element at a point on its defining curve.
ToString	Returns a string that represents the current object. (Inherited from Object )	Object