Description

Intuiface natively supports 3D models. With this support, users are able to rotate and zoom 3D models using their fingers. In addition, through the use of triggers and actions, you can cause 3D models to rotate and zoom to specific orientations and levels of magnification. Action-initiated rotation and zoom can create animation with an engaging effect.

To add a 3D model to your experience, either drag it into the active scene from Windows Explorer or import it into the Content Library.

Note: Under the covers, Intuiface uses the third-party, open-source ThreeJS 3D engine. In our experience, the quality of format support can vary widely within ThreeJS. Try any of the formats listed below but as import quality will vary, be alert to differences and let us know what you see. In addition, test your 3D models in Player on your target devices early and often to ensure you are getting maximum performance.

Prepping for use of 3D models on Windows PCs

Composer (and Player for Windows) enables you to configure how aggressively you'd like it to address performance in the 3D Model Asset. Read the article about Composer and Player settings for details.

In addition, make sure your Windows PC is always updated to the latest video drivers for your graphics card to get the best performance out of the 3D Model asset.

Supported formats

The following list applies to all platforms supported by Intuiface Composer and Player.

All non-Windows Player-supported platforms

You must use

• glTF (.gltf & .glb)

Using other formats? Try Microsoft 3D Builder, which can open multiple 3D formats and save them as glTF.

Player on Windows

Recommended format

• glTF (.gltf & .glb)

Using other formats? Try Microsoft 3D Builder, which can open multiple 3D formats and save them as glTF.

Also supported and fully tested

• Collada ( .dae )
• Wavefront ( .obj & .mtl )
• 3ds Max ( .3ds )

Supported and tested

• Microsoft XAML 3D ( .xaml )
• Stereolithography ( .stl )
• Babylon ( .bablyon )

Supported but not tested

If you intend to use such models, let us know how it goes.

• Standard Polygon Library ( .ply )
• Filmbox ( .fbx )
• Biovision ( .bvh )
• Quake II ( .md2 )
• Assimp JSON ( .json )
• OpenCTM ( .ctm )
• Visualization ToolKit ( .vtk )
• 3D Manufacturing ( .3mf )
• Additive Manufacturing ( .amf )
• Keyhole Markup Language ( .kmz )
• MikuMikuDance (game) ( .mmd )
• Nearly raw raster data ( .nrrd )
• Point Cloud Library ( .pcd )
• Packed Raw WebGL Model ( .prwm )
• Open-source format for Sea3D game engine ( .sea3d )
• 3D Data Compression ( .draco )

Unsupported formats

This list is not exhaustive.

• 3ds Max ( .ase / .max )
• tga"tf" is a property of material file to specify the transmission filter. It is not managed by Three.js (the 3D rendering engine used by IntuiFace)
• Blender ( .blend )
• PDF including 3D Models ( .pdf )
• Solidworks ( .smg )
• Universal 3D ( .u3d )
• Ogre XML ( .xml )
• Lightwave ( .lwo / .lws )
• Cinema 4D ( .c4d )
• AutoCAD DXF ( .dxf )
• TrueSpace ( .scn )

Best practices for textures

• Texture files located in the root folder of the 3D object will always be loaded.
• For experience portability purposes, avoid using absolute paths (e.g. C:\...) to reference textures. That said, textures can be referenced within the material file (*.mtl) using a relative file path (i.e. relative to the .mtl file).
• Textures referenced in the material file (*.mtl) with a relative path must be located in the following folder of the Intuiface project: [Experience Name]/Files/Object3D/[My3DModelFolder]/[TextureFolder].
  • [My3DModelFolder] is the folder Intuiface created when you added your 3D Model to the experience. It contains your .mtl file
  • [TextureFolder] is a folder you create, referenced with a relative path in your .mtl file. It is in here that you put your texture files.
• The supported file formats for textures are .jpg, .png, .bmp and .tga.
• Models with tga textures having "tf" property in the material file are not supported.

Lighting Options

Player on Windows

Intuiface supports four lighting options for 3D models. These options and their configuration are accessed through the Properties panel for the 3D model in Composer. For a description, see the Appearance category in the Properties section below.

Player on any platform other than Windows

Lighting cannot be controlled by Intuiface. Lighting decisions must be preconfigured for 3D models prior to importing them into Composer.

Properties, Triggers & Actions

Properties

Triggers

Actions

 

Limitations

• Some *.3ds models might be rendered with separated parts. In other words, models may present components that are rendered apart from each other.
• Limit 3D models in collections to 10k facets. 3D models consume a lot of system resources so a collection filled with very large 3D models could severely impact PC performance.
• The Container property must be set to Static or Pinnable to enable users to manipulate the 3D model.
• You can zoom and change the view angle / direction in 3D models but you cannot change the camera position to perform a virtual visit. For virtual visits, we recommend the use of videos.
• In addition to the use of 3D models added to the Content Library, the 3D Model asset can reference a 3D model via an absolute file path. Reference via URL, on the other hand, will not work.
• Textures referenced with a URL in the material file (*.mtl) will not work. See textures best practices.
• Some models could not appear to render correctly because of the texture occlusion applied to the models. The 3D engine we use, Three.js, does not render texture occlusions properly. As a work around, you will need to remove the texture occlusion for the model.  
  You can see how a 3D model will render in Intuiface by testing it here: https://modelviewer.dev/editor/