Blender Interface & Loading a model

It might seem overwhelming at first, but don't worry, we'll go over the basics so you can navigate like a pro.

01-Loading a model

Blender’s interface is divided into panels. The main Viewport panel shows 3D geometry. The top right Outliner panel shows a tree of geometric objects. The bottom right Properties panel shows data and relationships.

The Properties panel has tabs to switch between different types of properties. Make sure you have the Scene Properties tab activated, and find the IFC Project subpanel. Click on Load Project and browse to your .ifc file.

After loading, you will see the model appear in the Viewport panel.

Let’s take a look at the IFC Project subpanel again. It shows the loaded filename, as well as the IFC Schema. There are two commonly seen IFC Schema versions: IFC2X3 and IFC4. Checking the IFC Schema is important because it has an impact on what BIM data may be stored. IFC4 is the newer version and it is recommended to use IFC4 models as it has significantly more BIM capabilities compared to IFC2X3.

Tip

Blender’s interface is highly customisable. Panels, panel types, colours, sizes, and tabs may be edited to suit your workflow. If you want a Hot Pink theme look no further.

02-Navigating a model in 3D

To navigate, can use the Navigate Gizmo on the top right corner of the Viewport panel. Click and drag on the coloured axes to Orbit, click and drag on the magnifying glass to Zoom, and click and drag on the hand icon to Pan. You can also click on the grid icon to switch between perspective and orthographic view.

To switch to a top view, front view, or side view, click the relevant axis on the Navigate Gizmo.

You can also use your mouse to navigate. Hover your mouse over the Viewport panel and click and drag the Middle Mouse Button (MMB) to Orbit. Scroll the mousewheel to Zoom, and use Shift-MMB to Pan.

If you have a numpad, you can use the numpad keys to quickly switch to top, front, or side view. Use 7 for top view, 1 for front view, and 3 for side view.

Warning

Blender’s hotkeys are context sensitive. This means that a hotkey has a different meaning depending on the panel your mouse cursor is hovering over. If you press 7 to go to top view, make sure your mouse cursor is over the Viewport panel. Be very careful where your mouse is, or you might press a hotkey and it will have unintended consequences!

If you click on an object, such as a wall in the Viewport panel, you can zoom to the selected object by clicking on View > Frame Selected. The hotkey is the . button on the numpad. After zooming into an element, when you Orbit the 3D view will rotate around the center of that element.

You can also zoom to all objects in the project by clicking on View > Frame All.

Another good way to navigate is by flying or walking around similar to a video game. Choose View > Navigation > Walk Navigation, or use the Shift-`` hotkey (the backtick key is usually to the left of the number 1 on the keyboard). With **Walk Navigation** enabled, use the WASDkeys and the mouse to move around like a video game. You can use theShift` key to switch between moving fast and slow. If you scroll with the mousewheel, it will adjust the speed that you move at.

Sometimes, you want to look through objects. You can toggle X-Ray Mode by pressing the button on the top right of the Viewport panel. The hotkey is Alt-Z.

Tip

Blender has lots of hotkeys to do things quickly. These can take time to learn but it is worth it as you will work much faster. These hotkeys can be customised in Blender’s preferences.

BlenderBIM also has many hotkeys, which are case sensitive.