A reporting parameter is a parameter type that has its value driven by a particular dimension in the family model. Reporting parameters extract a value from a geometric condition and use it to report the data to a formula or as a schedulable parameter.
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Length, radius, angle, and arc length are available as reporting parameters. (Arc length can be only labeled as a reporting parameter).
Note: Area cannot be used as a reporting parameter. - Reporting parameters are useful when a family is driven by external references that are updated based on contextual information from placed family instances, such as curtain panels or the width of a wall for the frame of a door or a window.
- For external reference cases in which the geometry depends on the specific conditions of individual family instance placement, the reporting parameter allows the dimension value to be saved and reported in the family parameter.
- A reporting parameter can be used in a formula only if its dimension references are to host elements in the family (such as levels, curtain panel boundary reference planes). If any of the dimension's references is to family geometry, the dimension can be labeled with a reporting parameter, but this parameter cannot be used in formulas.
When you create a shared project parameter, you can specify it as a reporting parameter in the Parameter Properties dialog. See Shared Parameters and Creating Shared Parameters Files, Groups, and Parameters.
For example, you can create reporting parameters for the four length and four angle dimensions in a curtain panel by pattern as shown here.
Then after you place the curtain panel by pattern in a project, you can select a panel as shown here and then display the reporting parameters in the instance properties.
After creating reporting parameters, you can also create a schedule to report the data. See Schedules with Shared Parameters.
The schedule shown here reports the four angle and four length dimensions parameters for all of the curtain wall panels.
