
At the top level of this hierarchy, are Categories. All elements in the Revit platform are part of a family and they fit into a clearly defined hierarchy. In order to get started with the family editor, it is important to understand some basic concepts and terminology. Using the concepts and techniques covered herein, you will learn how to begin tapping into one of the most powerful aspects of the Revit software package - the Revit family editor! Everything in Revit Is Part of a Family Following this brief introduction to terminology, the tutorial will focus on the component family creation procedures and strategies - presented in detailed step-by-step procedures. We’ll also take a quick look at what is provided in the Revit libraries and learn about family templates. Beginning with the difference between System and Component families, this section will explore the critical concepts and terminology. Everything you create in Revit is part of a family - consequently, understanding families and what it takes to manipulate them is a vital part of learning the software. New family files can be created to further customize how the RPCs are described in a scene.Even if you are completely new to Revit, you have no doubt discovered how important families and the family editor are to your success in Revit.

Family files can be customized with paths to different content categories. The RPC Family file defines the properties for the RPC. This file is located in the Entourage folder under the Imperial Library. RPC objects are placed via the template RPC.rfa family file.

This is a great place to learn about family files: It was created by Chris Fox of 4D Technologies for their CADLearning series for Autodesk Revit Architecture. I was searching for some good info on Revit families when I discovered this useful video that explains how Family files are used in Revit. The data contained in the family is one of the keys to Revit being such a useful tool for Building Information Modeling (BIM). For example, a window can be a family and types might describe the width, shape, materials and appearance of the window. There is a hierarchy of properties that define how families behave.

For Revit users “families” are how parts of a building are arranged in a meaningful way. Family means something different to everyone.
