Here are the best new features of Revit 2020:
NEW PATH OF TRAVEL TOOL
The new Path of Travel feature allows you to select a “start point” and an “end point”. Revit will then automatically calculate the shortest path between the two points. That means it will avoid walls and try to find doors. path of travel can be tagged and scheduled as well.
IMPORT PDF TO REVIT
If you go to the Insert tab in the ribbon, you will find a brand new Import PDF tool. Yeah!
The PDF will be imported as a 2D object in the current view only. You have to specify which page you want to import each time you select a PDF file. You can also specify a DPI import value.
If the PDF contains vector lines, you can use the Enable Snap feature to interact with the lines using tools such as “pick lines”.
CREATE ELLIPTICAL WALLS
The elliptical wall feature is now directly integrated in Revit.
EDIT SCOPE BOXES IN VIEW LIST
You can now add the “Scope box” parameter in a “view list” schedule. That means you can quickly assign scope boxes without having to manually enter a view. Useful for projects with a lot of views.
Scope boxes are used to control the crop region of multiple views and to control the extents of datum elements like levels and grids.
MORE EFFICIENT IMPORTATION FOR SKETCHUP FILES
Sketchup 2018 files can now be imported. Colors and transparency will act in a more consistent way. Sadly, the colors in Realistic visual style won’t use the Sketchup colors and everything will be set to RGB code 80-80-80.
COPY AND PASTE LEGENDS VIEWS TO SHEETS
Legends can now be copied from a sheet to another. You can select the “Paste Aligned To Same Place” feature to make sure legends are in the exact same spot on all sheets.
MANAGE IMAGES MENU IMPROVEMENTS
Images that are imported and linked into Revit can be managed more easily. The Manage Images menu will display the file format, the original image dimensions and DPI. You can also select the path type to be based on Absolute, Relative or Cloud.
IMPROVED “OR” IN VIEW FILTERS
In the new version, you can assign each OR rule to a specific category, allowing you to choose specific parameters. As you can see in this example, we can set the category to Walls and use the Length parameter. You can also select “All Selected Categories”, which will act the same way as the default mode in Revit 2019.
MATERIAL USER INTERFACE IMPROVEMENTS
The material libraries icon has been modified to be more visible.
If you are the kind of person that enjoys large thumbnails, you will be pleased to learn that you can use them in the material library browser.
NEW APPEARANCE ASSETS
Revit 2020 expanded the library with 104 new appearance assets using physically based definition. Some of the new assets include floorings like in the image below. Some of these assets seem promising but further testing will be required to see if they are worth it.
OTHER CHANGES:
SAVE ANY REVIT FILE TO THE BIM 360 CLOUD
Revit has a new feature called “Cloud Models For Revit”. It can be accessed in the “Save As” menu. It allows any model to be saved directly to the cloud, including models that don’t have “worksharing” enabled.
ELEVATION FROM LEVEL TAG
A new “Elevation From Level” parameter can be used for various families. You can create a tag in plan views to indicate the height of various families. In the example below, we use a tag to indicate the relative height of casework families in a plan view.
DYNAMO 2.1
Dynamo is now directly integrated into Revit. Older versions of Dynamo are not compatible with Revit 2020.