This article describes how you can create an IDS file in Solibri IDS Editor. You can choose to either create the IDS file from scratch or upload a previously create IDS file and edit it. When you've completed the specifications, you can download them as an IDS file.
The article covers the following topics:
Related articles:
In the first section, you can add information related to the project. This is the metadata part of the IDS file. You can add the following information:
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Title: The document title of the IDS. This is a required field.
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IFC Version: The IFC standard version. Available versions are IFC 2x3, IFC 4 and IFC 4.3.
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Author: The author of the IDS File. By default, this is pre-filled with your email, but the field is editable.
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Creation date: The date the file was created. Please note that this is not a timestamp and you can edit the field.
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Description: You can add a description of who the IDS is for, why it's created, what projects it might apply to, etc.
Note
When you create an IDS file with the Solibri IDS Editor, an XML comment is automatically added to the file. This comment provides crucial metadata that facilitates better traceability and documentation. It includes specific details, such as the software version, timestamp, and other relevant data. The XML comment ensures that any future reference to these files will be clear and well-documented.
If you have a previously created IDS file, you can upload it to the Solibri IDS Editor, make changes and download the edited file. Note that this action will clear the IDS file you're currently working on and replace it with the imported content. To upload an IDS file:
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Click Upload IDS:
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A dialog opens. If you wish to download the current IDS, click Current IDS. To upload an IDS file, click Clear current IDS:
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Drag and drop the file into the dialog (or browse the file):
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The file is opened.
Important
Please note that you can't import an IDS file that has multiple entities or multiple IFC versions, since those are not supported. The import will also fail if you try to import an IDS file which doesn't include the ids: prefix.
When you open the Solibri IDS Editor, an example specification has been created for you.
You can add multiple specifications to one IDS file. To add a new specification, click Specification. You can also duplicate an existing specification and add instructions related to the specification:
Specifications are created to be easily understood by humans. However, because IDS files are machine-readable, the specifications are also highly structured, allowing computer software to automatically and accurately verify information requirements without ambiguity. Every specification has three main parts:
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Description: A description of the reasoning behind the specification, along with instructions on how to implement it. This section is intended for humans to read and understand the purpose behind the information being requested.
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Applicability: Defines the subset of the model that is targeted by the specification. While IFC models contain various types of objects, each specification applies only to a specific subset. This subset can be identified using available facets, such as entity or classification.
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Requirements: Specifies the information required for the subset identified in the applicability, such as required properties or materials.
Applicability and requirements are defined using a collection of facets. Each facet represents specific information that a single entity, such as a wall, door or window, in a model may possess. A facet precisely describes this information through fixed facet parameters, ensuring computers can accurately interpret the required data.
When used in the Applicability section, a facet describes the information used to identify the relevant parts of the model. When used in the Requirements section, a facet describes the information constraints the model parts must fulfill to comply with the specification. You can combine multiple facets together to describe a wide variety of specifications. Some facets may have optional facet parameters.
There are six different types of facets:
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Entity: Facet parameters are IFC Class and Predefined Type
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Attribute: Facet parameters are Name and Value
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Classification: Facet parameters are System and Value
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Property: Facet parameters are Property Set, Name, and Value. In Soibri IDS Editor, Custom Property Set is handled as a special case of the Property facet.
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Material: Facet parameter is Value
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PartOf: Facet parameters are Entity and Relationship. Currently not supported in Solibri IDS Editor.
In the Applicability Section, you can select the set of items to which the requirements are applied. You can add a new Facet to the section by clicking + Applicability:
In the Requirements Section, you can specify the requirements. You can add a new requirement by clicking + Requirement. Note that it's not possible to reorder the facets once you've added them. If you wish to add a description for the requirements, click the three dots and select Add description:
You can combine multiple facets in either the Applicability or Requirements section to define a wide range of specifications. Some facets may include optional parameters. You can, for instance, define a list of acceptable values, a numerical range, or a text pattern for certain facet parameters. These are referred to as Complex Restrictions.
In the current version of the Solibri IDS Editor, you can apply the Complex Restriction to Value fields in all other facets except Entity. The Entity facet can only be added to the Applicability section, and you can only select one IfcEntity.
For some facets, additional options (Add instruction, Add value) are available when you click the three dots:
Tip
For detailed descriptions and explanations of the different facets and complex restrictions, as well as instructions and examples, please see the GitHub documentation.
Note
To learn more about Regex patterns, please see here. Please note that in Solibri IDS Editor, the character * (asterisk) by itself is not a valid pattern ,and using it will result in an error. Unlike in Solibri Office, where the characters +, ? and , can be used as wildcards characters without defining a valid regex pattern, IDS requires a valid regex pattern, for instance /.*/, to match any character 0 or more times.
When you've finalized the specifications and the IDS is ready, you can download the .ids file. To do so, click the IDS File button:
Tip
If the download button is disabled, some required information is still missing from the specifications. The missing fields are highlighted in red: