Valid Formula Syntax and Abbreviations

Formulas support the following arithmetic operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, exponentiation, logarithms, and square roots. Formulas also support the following trigonometric functions: sine, cosine, tangent, arcsine, arccosine, and arctangent. The valid formula abbreviations for arithmetic operations and trigonometric functions are Addition + Subtraction Multiplication* Division/ Exponentiation^: x^y, x raised to the power of y Logarithmlog Square rootsqrt: sqrt(16) Sinesin Cosinecos Tangenttan Arcsineasin Arccosineacos Arctangentatan 10 raised to an x powerexp(x) Absolute Valueabs Pipi (3.141493...)

You can enter integers, decimals, and fractional values in formulas, using normal mathematical syntax, as shown in the examples below: Length = Height + Width + sqrt(Height*Width) Length = Wall 1 (11000mm)+ Wall 2 (15000mm) Area = Length (500mm) * Width (300mm) Area = pi() * Radius ^ 2 Volume = Length (500mm) * Width (300mm) * Height (800 mm) Width = 100m * cos(angle) x = 2*abs(a) + abs(b/2) ArrayNum = Length/Spacing

You can use the round function for values in formulas. Function syntax Description Examples

round(x)

The round function returns a value rounded to the nearest whole number. It doesn't take into consideration rounding direction. The roundup function returns a value to the largest integral value greater than or equal to x.

round(3.1) = 3 round(3.5) = 4 round(-3.7) = -4 roundup(3) = 3 roundup(3.1) = 4 roundup(-3.7) = 3 rounddown(3) = 3 rounddown(3.7) = 3 rounddown(-3.7) = -4

roundup(x)

rounddown(x)

The rounddown function returns a value to the smallest integral value less than or equal to x.

Parameter names in formulas are case sensitive. For example, if a parameter name begins with a capital letter, such as Width, you must enter it in the formula with an initial capital letter. If you enter it in a formula using lower-case letters instead, for example, width * 2, the software will not recognize the formula.
NoteIt is recommended that you do not use a dash (-) when naming parameters.

Comments

Comments2

thomkThu Jan 24, 2013 11:18 am"e raised to an x powerexp"

That isn't accurate. It's not 'e' (Euler's number) raised to an x power, it's 10 raised to an x power. If this was accurate, exp(1) would equal 2.71828182846... Instead, in Revit, it equals 10 which is 10^1. pattygaleFri Mar 1, 2013 7:20 amThanks for the correction, thomk. You are absolutely right! I have fixed it in the topic above. Please let us know if your eagle eyes find any more errors or confusions. -- Patty Gale, Autodesk Revit User Assistance Team