Vector and scanned PDFs
Not all PDF drawings are the same, and the difference affects any count, manual or automated:
- Vector PDFs are exported from design software. Lines and text are stored as drawing objects, so symbols are crisp at any zoom and text is often searchable.
- Scanned PDFs are images of paper sheets. Symbols can be faint, skewed or touching other linework, and text cannot be searched.
- Text drawn as linework. Some exports turn text into lines, so a sheet looks like a vector PDF but its tags cannot be searched.
Vector PDFs give the best results in InstantTakeoff. Scanned sheets can be counted too, and wiring on scanned sheets is estimated instead of traced.
Three ways to count fixtures from a PDF
- Print and highlight. Mark each fixture on paper and tally by type. Slow, and hard to revise after an addendum.
- A count tool in PDF markup software. Click each symbol, one type at a time. Accurate when done carefully, but every click is yours.
- Automated detection. Software finds the symbols across the set and types them, and you check the result. This is how InstantTakeoff works.
Tips for an accurate fixture count
These apply however you count:
- Find every lighting sheet, including enlarged plans, site lighting and partial floor plans.
- Watch for overlap. An enlarged plan can repeat an area already shown on the floor plan; count it once.
- Leave out what is not installed work: legends, symbol lists, details, title blocks and demolition views.
- Keep emergency variants separate from the normal type when the schedule lists them separately.
- Check against the schedule when you finish. A type with zero counted is a red flag. More on fixture schedule reconciliation.
- Recount what changed after each addendum, and note the revision on your takeoff.
- Keep counts by sheet, not just set totals, so phases, buildings or floors can be priced and checked on their own.
How InstantTakeoff counts fixtures from a PDF
- Upload the full set; the lighting plans are found by scanning each sheet.
- An AI-powered computer vision model finds light fixtures, exit signs and lighting controls on each lighting plan.
- Each fixture is typed from its tag, matched to the fixture schedule.
- Title blocks, engineer seals and demolition views are left out so they do not inflate the count.
- Each count is a box on the sheet in the browser app. Add, remove or retype a count and the totals follow.
- Export counts by type, per sheet and for the set, to Excel.
How results are measured is on the accuracy page: the model keeps improving, checked against a held-out test set.
Try it on one sheet
The quickest way to judge a fixture count is on a sheet you know. Try a sheet free with the tool on the home page: drop one lighting plan sheet as a PDF and the counts appear on screen, drawn on your sheet. No signup. No card.
Pricing: $300 per seat per month, billed monthly, or $3,000 per seat per year, billed annually. See pricing.
Questions
Can it count fixtures on scanned PDFs?
Yes. Vector PDFs give the cleanest results, and scanned sheets can be counted too. On scanned sheets, wiring is estimated rather than traced.
Do I have to upload sheets one at a time?
No. Upload the whole set and the lighting plans are found for you. The free tool on the home page takes one sheet at a time.
How do I check the count?
Each count is a box on the sheet in the browser app. Spot-check the boxes, add or remove a count, or change its type, and the totals and the Excel export follow.
What does the Excel export contain?
Counts by fixture type for each sheet and for the set, plus the priced estimate and a bid summary sheet: material, labor, sales tax, overhead, contingency and profit.