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Rhino Integration

The Rhino plugin will only work with the 64-bit version. For best results, please upgrade to the latest Rhino release, which can be found here.

Get Started

To view your project in virtual reality using Prospect

  1. Open your file in Rhino
  2. Model must be positioned at (0,0,0) origin coordinate (see "best practices" below for more details.)
  3. Click "View in VR" plugin button, automatically added to your toolbar after installing Prospect. 

A Rhino file can have a great amount of geometry and consist of different layers where you have set up different options for a particular section of your project. Here you will learn how to limit what gets exported into Prospect and how to set up design options using Rhino layers.

Geometry Filtering

If you have a large file or you only want to review a specific part of your project, select the objects that you don't want to have access to in VR and hide them.

The Prospect plugin for Rhino exports all the geometry in the file except for those that have been hidden using the command Hide. 

Named Views

You can set cameras as scenes in Prospect using Named Views (NamedView in the command line) in Rhino

 

Design Options

In the Prospect plugin for Rhino, the objects in layers that are set to 'off' will still be exported, but they will be hidden when you first load your experience in VR. This is handy while setting up design and material options to be reviewed immersively.

In the example below, we have copied the geometry into each of the Option layers. The layers have different materials assigned to them. Toggling on and off these layers in Prospect will show you the different material choices.

Layers in Rhino

Option 1: when Prospect first loads, it matches the state of the layers in Rhino

Option 2: setting Option1 layer to off and turning Option2 on

Option 3: setting Option2 layer to off and turning Option3 on

 

Best practices

While we work through edge cases with various types of models, below are some modeling guidelines that will improve the quality of the virtual reality experience once inside the headset. 

  • Model Setup Position MUST BE in (0,0,0) Coordinate
    1. Position model in (0,0,0) origin coordinate. Placing the model in the origin point will avoid general z-fighting, flashing of layers and other geometry issues.
    2. Select the primary area for your model that you’d like the viewer to experience. For example, a model that has a mile long boardwalk would become a better virtual reality experience if the model was cropped or sectioned to the focal segment of the board.
    3. If you have Named views setup, remember to reset them after moving the model to origin point.
  • Delete Extraneous Geometry
    1. As you model it’s natural for geometry to be pasted and copy around the central* model. For importing into virtual reality it is best to delete any geometry that is not part of the central model.
    2. Removing this geometry will help create a faster more stable virtual reality experience.
  • Layer Setup 
    1. Assigning layers materials or colors will improve the quality of the virtual reality experience
    2. Avoid using colors and materials that are white as it becomes very glaring in virtual reality. Instead, go for light grey colors. 
    3. Avoid using colors that are pitch black.
    4. Our software currently reads semi-transparent layers as if they are glass, so that you can teleport through a window or glass door quickly. Avoid making any surface that you do not want to teleport through semi-transparent.
  • Geometry
    1. Trim any surfaces under the mesh to avoid overlapping with the mesh that represents the terrain.

 

*For the purposes of these guidelines, wherever “central” model is used it is referring to the primary or focal portion of the 3D model, where you would like the user to go to in virtual reality or has the design you would like to communicate.

 

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