CAD/BIM Visualization
Render large CAD and BIM models that bring other renderers to their knees
Extend the Zea Engine with Zea CAD to visualize huge CAD and BIM datasets in the browser.
Zea CAD is for real-world data, not games. This focus in professional graphics allows you to visualize complex models with hundreds of thousands of parts in their entirety.
Table of Contents
Built for Complex Models
Zea CAD was built from the ground up to visualize complex CAD and BIM models in real-time. You don’t have to worry about simplifying or splitting up your models.
- Parametric surfaces are rendered directly in the GPU
- Visualize data sets upwards of 200,000 parts
- Tessellation levels adapt to your device or scene
- Support for mobile devices
Whitepaper
For more information about rendering techniques and data optimization, read our whitepaper “Real-time Collaboration on Large CAD and BIM models in the Browser.”
Optimized for the Web
Zea CAD reduces heavy CAD and BIM files by up to 200 times. Smaller files sizes mean loads times of seconds rather than minutes.
- Preprocess CAD and BIM files in the cloud
- Optimized for repeating and symmetrical geometry often found in CAD data, e.g., the teeth on a gear
- The larger the file, the greater the optimization
- Support for STEP, SolidWorks, CATIA, Parasolid, Rhino, JT, STL, IFC, SketchUp, MicroStation, Revit, ARCHICAD, and more
Extendable
The BIM model transforms into an interactive 4D construction sequence by combining a custom plugin with Zea CAD.
We uploaded a construction schedule to cloud storage, and each of the 64,590 parts of the hospital’s BIM model was then assigned a task from that schedule, using a simple rule-based system. The resulting simulation can then be explored collaboratively by all team members.
Links
FAQ
CAD Data can be loaded as either pre-tessellation polygon meshes, or parametric surfaces which are dynamically tessellated in the Client side GPU. Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages.
One advantage of dynamically tesselating parametric surfaces is that the quality of the tesselation can be increased or reduced based on the capabilities of the system and the desired frame rate. For more information on our parametric surface rendering, please check out the ‘Whitepaper CAD and BIM’ available in the resources section of this website.
For pre-tessellated meshes, the server can produce meshes for each level of detail required, and the client can simply select the best one based on the capabilities of the system.