If A3d is reading VW's Instr Type field, why do multiple lights with different type names come in as the same fixture type?

Hi Cory Pattak,

The confusion is that while there is a property called "Instrument Type" in the Object Info box when the fixture is selected, the field that is actually being used comes from the Light Info record attached to the symbol called "Inst Type". The "Instrument Type" is treated by Vectorworks as a descriptive field, while the "Inst Type" is treated as a fixture identifier.

To correct for this, you would want to duplicate the symbol in the Resource Manager so that you have unique symbols for every type of fixture. Then, using Vectorworks' Lighting Symbol Maintenance Report, edit the symbol to show the correct type.

Once you have the correct symbols in your show file, draw (or change) your fixtures using the corrected symbols and then re-export as normal.

For more information on Lighting Symbol Maintenance in VW2021, see: https://app-help.vectorworks.net/2021/eng/VW2021_Guide/LightingDesign2/Lighting_symbol_maintenance.htm

gotcha. I thought all I had to do was change the name in the OIP. Now I understand I've got to change the root data in the record format. thank you!

@stark I thought I had this figured out but clearly not. Attached are 2 VW files and their accompanying .a3d exports. They each contain, to the best of my knowledge, the exact same fixture types. The file that works is a new file with the symbols imported from my symbol library. The file that doesn't work have lights pasted from a larger plot, in which those lights came from that same symbol library. In the "works" files...I get two fixture types in the Eos import window, an RGBW fixture and an RGBA fixture. But with the "doesn't work" files, I'm only getting the RGBW fixture. The lighting symbol maintenance window looks exactly the same in both files and I've made sure (I think) to update the "Inst Type" filed you mention above with 2 different unique names. So why aren't I getting two fixture types in my import window? stumped. 

thanks
Cory

doesnt work.a3dworks.vwxdoesn't work.vwxworks.a3d

OK I have an update on this thanks to some sleuthing from Craig Stelzenmuller. We figured out what happened, but it does bring up a larger issue.

What happened, was I did update my symbol in Lighting Symbol Maintenance as instructed but I forgot to click on "update all lighting devices" which meant that it updated the Inst Type for the symbol in the Resource Manager, but NOT all the instances on the plot. By replacing all of the instances on the plot with the one in the RM it updated all my instances on the plot, and imported correctly into Eos. Yay!

The issue I think it brings up, is that the field that Eos is reading for type, is actually, as far as I can tell, a hidden field inside every lighting device on the plot. You can change the root field value for Inst Type for the symbol in the RM, but once a light is in the drawing, I can't find any way to view the field data for "Inst Type", you can only see 'Instrument Type' in the OIP. This makes troubleshooting these kind of issues problematic. If Eos is pulling a very important piece of information from a field that the user can't actually see or check, you can only just 'try' the above and hope it fixes the problem. That feels less than ideal. I'm not sure who would be the one to solve this (ETC or VW) but just flagging it.

thanks
Cory

I don't disagree that it is quite difficult to troubleshoot. According to the documentation by Vectorworks (Lighting symbol maintenance), it was supposed to pop-up a dialog when you changed data if that tick box wasn't selected asking you if you wanted to change data in your file. Did it not do that?

so yes that box does pop up...but the problem is that some of these symbols that were sending rogue data like VL3000, PAR64, etc those were not symbols I had dealt with in Lighting Symbol Maintenance. They had been changed from the old fixture type to the new fixture a couple of years ago, and in Symbol maintenance, everything looked correct. Somehow in the process of using the "replace with..." command, the lights got changed but the internal label of Instr Type did not. So I had no way of knowing anything was wrong until A3d came along. But this was not a problem that could be fixed in Symbol Maintenance because that is only showing field values for the ROOT symbol in the resource manager, it gives you no knowledge of the individual data fields of the various lights already on the plot. does that make sense? I realize this may be out of the purview of ETC to fix, and now and forever, I'll know what to do if I'm seeing rogue Instr Type data in A3d...but it's super unintuitive for a newcomer to solve themselves in VW.

There is now a support article to help explain this: Vectorworks: Not All of the Symbols Used in my Plot Appear in the Eos Source File List - Electronic Theatre Controls Inc 

that is great to have for others. thanks!

@stark possibly one suggestion for your support article...since it was my experience. Aside from mentioning the issue of the field instr type confusion and not all of your symbols appearing in the import window, there is also the issue of symbol names appearing that are NOT in your drawing. You might want to mention that the root cause is the same, which is some rogue data in this hidden field that may need to be weeded out.