Acute3D Viewer

Last Updated: December 21, 2017

 Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Getting Started ..........................................................................................................3
About .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................3
Navigation ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................3
Chapter 2: Using Acute3D Viewer ...............................................................................................4
Shortcuts ................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 4
Tip: how to measure distances and positions .........................................................................................................................................5
Rendering Modes ................................................................................................................................................................................................6
Display on a 3D stereoscopic screen ..........................................................................................................................................................8
Chapter 3: Troubleshooting .................................................................................................... 11

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 Getting Started
1
About
Acute3D Viewer is a visualization software, which allows to navigate 3D models generated by the
ContextCapture solution. ContextCapture produces high resolution 3D models from simple photographs,
without any human intervention. To achieve this, ContextCapture uses cutting edge photogrammetry, computer
vision and computational geometry algorithms fulfilling industrial-quality requirements in terms of precision,
scalability, efficiency, usage, robustness and interoperability.
Actute3D Viewer loads and displays 3D models using level-of-detail LOD, paging and streaming. Users can
measure distances, pick GPS coordinates, generate animations,…
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and is provided as is without warranty. There
is no warranty of any kind with regards to this material, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Bentley Systems shall not be liable for errors contained
herein or for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages in connection with the use of this
material.

Recommended Configuration
Windows 7/8/10 64-bit with 4GB RAM and a video card supporting OpenGL with at least 512 MB of dedicated
memory.

Navigation

Once the Acute3D Viewer module is installed, you can load any file with the 3SM or 3MX extension by double-
clicking it in the file explorer.
The 3D model loads in different tiles and is displayed with a dynamic adaptation of the level-of-detail depending
on the viewpoint.

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 Using Acute3D Viewer
2
Shortcuts
Key Action

Arrows Hand mode: move along horizontal plane

Orbit mode: move along camera plane

Arrows + Alt Rotate around center (rotate head in first person

viewing mode)

Arrows + Ctrl Move along vertical and lateral axes

Arrows + Shift Move to home position

Home Update home position

Home + Shift Update rotation center / Select new center

Mouse: Double click (or Click + enter) Hand mode: horizontal pan; Orbit mode: Rotate
around

Mouse: Left button Hand mode: horizontal pan; Orbit mode: Rotate
around center

Mouse: Left button + Shift Hand mode: rotate around center; Orbit mode: Pan

Mouse: Left button + Ctrl Rotate camera

Mouse: Middle button Hand mode: move along camera plane

Mouse: Right button / Wheel Change distance

PageUp / PageDown Change elevation

Space Select a primary 3D point at mouse position

Shift + Space Select a secondary 3D point at mouse position and

show distance

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Tip: how to measure distances and positions

Key Action

>/< Increase/Decrease speed of keyboard motion

A Start/stop animation (Ctrl + A: loop mode)

E Toggle environment

L / Shift + L Increase/Decrease LOD scale (change image quality)

P Toggle point cloud

T Toggle texturing

W Toggle wireframe overlay

Tab Toggle strero

S On screen stats

Shift + S Output Stats to console

V Lock/Unlock vertical axis

Shift + V Update and lock vertical axis

F11 Toggle Full screen

F12 Toggle Console

C Take screenshot

Shift + C Toggle continuous screen capture

K / Shift + K Add/Remove animation key point

Shift + A Start/stop animation with screen capture

Ctrl + Space Display geometry file at mouse position

B Toggle backface culling

N Toggle normal smoothing from mesh normals

Tip: how to measure distances and positions

1. Open the Measurements window (menu Tools > Measurements) to measure distances and positions.

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Rendering Modes

If the model is georeferenced, then GPS coordinates are shown in the selected spatial reference system, as well
as altitude, and distances are indicated in meters; otherwise distances and positions will be relative to the
spatial reference system of the 3D model.

Rendering Modes
Several rendering modes are proposed for a photorealistic model or to highlight the model geometry. Rendering
modes are available in the menu Display > Rendering mode.

Figure 1: Textured mode

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Rendering Modes

Figure 2: Shaded mode

Figure 3: Wireframe overlay

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Display on a 3D stereoscopic screen

Figure 4: Point cloud

Display on a 3D stereoscopic screen

Open the Options window (menu Tools > Options) and set the options corresponding to your 3D screen in the
Stereo tab.

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Display on a 3D stereoscopic screen

1. Check the Stereo display checkbox.

2. Select a Stereo mode compatible with your 3D screen. Vertical Split should work for most 3D screens.
3. Specify the screen width and height in centimeters.
4. Specify the approximate distance between the users and the screen in centimeters.
5. Click OK, and enter in Full screen mode (F12) to hide the toolbars.

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Using Acute3D Viewer
Display on a 3D stereoscopic screen

Figure 5: Example of a display in Vertical Split stereo mode

To return to the default display mode (non-stereoscopic), uncheck the Stereo display checkbox in the Stereo tab
and click OK.

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 Troubleshooting
3
If you encounter any problem using, Acute3D Viewer, please check our FAQ below. If you do not find the answer
to your question, we invite you to contact technical support.

Question Answer

How accurate are the 3D measurements? It depends on the georeferencing accuracy, as well as
on the 3D model accuracy. The latter depends on the
resolution and on the spatial distribution of the photos
used to produce the 3D model with Acute3D .

There are artefacts in my model. Why? This is most probably due to a lack of data/images
when generating the 3D model with Acute3D .
Surfaces with insufficient overlap, with no color
variation (for example, solid color walls/floors/
ceilings), or with reflective, glossy, transparent or
refractive materials (for example, glass, metal, plastic,
water, and to a lesser extent, skin) may cause holes,
bumps or noise in the generated 3D model.

I can’t get close enough to the ground. Why? A minimum height constraint is activated in some 3D
scenes to avoid getting too close (if the model is not
accurate enough for street level navigation for
instance) .

Any other question? Contact technical support.

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 Index
Numerics R
3D stereoscopic screen 8 H Rendering modes 6
How to 5
A S
About 3 N Shortcuts 4
Navigation 3
D T
Display 8 P Troubleshooting 11
Distances 5 Positions 5

F
FAQ 11

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