What reader prog can client use view rhino3D model or obj?

Hi,
I want a client to view either an obj made in metashape (has coloured images mapped to it) or then imported into Rhino, in which I could add dimensions etc.
Also perhaps they could select left or top etc and see orthos as well.
It sounds better to have the ortho option than just tumble an obj about, unless the prog has ortho options.

Any advice, suggestions etc welcome. on what FREE and SAFE reader prog to have them install, either for an obj viewer (is that the best format for exporting a model and a reader to view it ?) or a Rhino reader.

They have a laptop. win 10 as far as they know (some folk never know !)

To be able to print from the image when in ortho mode or perspective mode would be required if at all possible.

Cheers

Steve

PS excuse lousy english in title 60 chars is a joke.

Hi Steve - if things look correct in Rhino, the evaluation version of Rhino is a good ‘viewer’.

-Pascal

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Hi Pascal,
As a reader, is that a time limited install ?

With all the controls, compared to the simple settings on a player, and 3D viewers are even more simple, for a client used to play stop and rotate tools , it may be a bit daunting. if Rhino has no ‘reader’ as such then some kind encouragement might overcome any trepidation from the client.

What export model option from Rhino would I use to keep the object and the dimensions now added to it and have it viewable in a different reader ?

Aside from Rhino files, what are the best obj viewers I wonder., install rather than online perhaps.

Steve

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Steve -

It’s a 90-day evaluation that can be used as a reader thereafter.

There have been some experimental/work-in-progress 3dm viewers that you could try…

You’ll have to explode both dimensions and text for these to show up in a viewer:

This one doesn’t appear to render curves so you would have to make surfaces from dimensions:

-wim

if your clients happen to have a MacOS device and if the textures are properly linked you dont need any app to view obj files. quickview will open the file correct you can swivel and zoom to check out a model, no idea how it works on windows

Hi,
Rhino reader might have to be the way, I thought the world would have loads of .obj readers.

the viewport one, has no print option though perhaps its a web browser print required. All I can do there is go File Print but I see a blank page. The kitchen scene looked wrong with exaggerated camera lense, the nearest wall edge being far too tall compared to the corner of the room a few metres away and sliding the view switch saw the furthest wall edge now go larger than the nearest, impossible in reality. I open my obj which has a texture image in same folder and it says too big, must be less than 35Mb. I will have to dumb down the model until I get 35Mb. but the camera angles are of no use, this technical item needs to have the right appearance and a print off ability and no grey background as that will see paper coveerd in black ink, needs to be white. No client will want to use up a black ink cartridge on prints like that.

The online 3D viewer opened the obj no problem (so its happy beyond 35Mb) but it was in grey mode and no images mapped to it, I tried the missing files section, I browsed to the jpg but that was not what it was after, saying no importable file found and listing 3D model types only.

so no joy with either.

encephalon, pity that, He has a win 10 laptop. Others I deal with are windows.

Steve

Hi,
I have now tried:-
https://viewer.autodesk.com

Also unlike some bug ridden sites I might yet come across, this should I hope be trustworthy for self and clients.

and it offers ortho (use the cube top right), a white background, so printer friendly, measuring, (if obj has a scale) (note A) markup, sections (bit odd hatched a blank area) BUT IT IS AGAIN IN GREY, this time upload allowed me to select the obj mtl and jpg, 101Mb uploaded, but the jpg has not been used.

is it normal practice that a prog exports a model and you get three files in a folder, as metashape does so and everything inc Rhino is ignoring the jpg !

Note A, metashape doesnt provide a dimension function unless I havent spotted it, so measuring failed in this viewer, however if I were to scale it then export it from Rhino, that would solve that , would it ?

…and would Rhino make an obj with the seen colours on (will have to accept the non texture version but perefctly likable, at least it isnt blurred in places) and would Rhinos export ability work with it and we see the image as should be ?

Steve

Thats a nice site. Any idea how i can define views so that they show up in the scenes-tab of the app? Like perspective, or different ortho-elevations.

Steve,

OBJ will always give you 3 files, regardless of what app you save it from. Its one of the oldest formats that support images mapped to meshes.

For embedded images in a single file with the mesh, you should try FBX or perhaps DAE.
You will have to test the Metashape export to see if these formats will save the image embedded in one file with the mesh. This appears to be an option for embedded image or not based on some of the apps I have used.

Hi,

OBJ will always give you 3 files, regardless of what app you save it from. Its one of the oldest formats that support images mapped to meshes.

why dont the reader sites tried, inc Autodesk, give me a coloured image when opening the obj ?

What do I have to do, Autodesk even showed all three, I selected them , and still got grey.

Mich, having just used this for the first time today, all I know is click the cube top right to get an ortho view, repeat etc.

would FBX or DAE be the export option, and why oh why does obj fail.

If anyone has metashape does an obj from it (needs texture created first) open with texture in Autodesk or any other prog, inc Rhino ?

I just tried exportingthe model from Rhino as obj ticking texture and 146Mb file resulted, and again the image is not there in Autodesk.

Simply because it never brought in the texture image in that obj.

So how can I use Rhino to at least export the model with the coloured images mapped to it (these being those metashape displays in 'model shaded ’ view ) and have a reader use these ? Perhaps convert the images it has mapped to it into textures, then perhaps Rhinos obj export with textures would see Autodesk and others open image as textures.

Steve

None of the cloud platform viewers are likely to support an OBJ with color. That’s typically only going to work on a desktop computer because the three file must be in the same folder (same relative path). On a cloud server that’s not going to be possible.

If you want to see the color image on the mesh you need to use a format that embed the image in a single file with the mesh.

Starting to make sense, yet their demo subjects are in colour, crafty chaps !!! why dont they warn us, so how do I do that ?
what file formats, or are we talking your suggested FBX or DAE ?

and is it possible to get Rhino to turn that coloured image it used (which was not the texture) into a texture then I can use FBX or DAE or ?, or would Rhino put that out so another would read it anyway ?

Steve

I have used FBX from other apps, have not tested FBX export from Metashape.
As I recall, it was necessary to specifically choose the “embedded” texture option with FBX, or else it would save a separate texture file like OBJ

Hi,

I am puzzled by the fact that Rhino is PC based, I pointed it at the folder with all 3 files in it, and it opened the .obj without the texture. So it even failed on a PC, unless that ws Rhino itself failing.

As such the obj from metashape is a failure or Rhino a failure or both.

Will try for the fbx and dae.

**exported both from my model which has a texture **

Choose export texture, but also need to choose embed texture, as if the one isnt enough !

dae opens as grey, however the fbx (vital to select both tick boxes about texture) opens with texture, albeit dull dim, and milky when using mouse.
Ortho view loses otho as soon as pan it. Image is poor.

Well thats something though need ortho to remain as ortho. and be as clear as in source prog and as in Rhino.

Slight progress but bad view.

lets try for Rhino and the fbx and dae that are on the PC its on.

well the dae doesnt even show up when browsed to, and the fbx , I got an error message upon selecting it from the command line., just said error importing file, try again same message. select show all file types dae still not visible. Rhino thus doesnt work with .dae, and also something wrong with .dae

1 day of trying to just open an obj and a pro site and duff results.

Not sure what to do now.

I thought viewing a 3D file would be dead easy as they are viewable in all sorts of forums, folk post them to such, and these forums dont have special facilities, or perhaps they are linked to servers that do store all the assoc files, or are they using fbx and just have more luck ?

Need to find a better site than Autodesk ?

get everyone to install evaluation version of Rhino, compared with an online reader and easy peasy, the prospect of explaining how to install a program and what all the little buttons do, so they can read an obj when they have never needed to, it doesnt make sense.

Gutted.

Steve

Conclusion. and I cant believe this.
THERE ARE NO SITES THAT ALLOW A CLIENT TO VIEW A RHINO CREATION OR AN FBX EXPORT.
There are no file types that contain the coloured raster image for a coloured viewing experience except fbx and the only site to display it has it terribly dark, useless.
obj doesnt work, fbx cant find a site thats any good, only found 1 anyway, dae doesnt work.

Correct me if I am wrong and show me a site link.

Its 2021 surely there is better ?

Steve

Not sure if this is what you want to share Rhino models on the web easily with clients but I have used this for years with my clients that are intimidated by using a demo/eval of Rhino. Easy to navigate and great texture and material features make SketchFab a great presentation tool.

Hi Joseph.
I had noticed sketchfab but with accounts and $$$ and being unable to find out anything as there is no easy email thing to use, I moved on.
It would appear I have to upload the fbx file or is it that the client takes it from the email sent him and does a file>open and browses to it as per normal viewers ?
If I upload it is it passworded so just my client can view it ? I dont want everyone seeing it.
Does it have ortho views ?
Can he get measurements from it ?

Would it be that I instead export the model from Rhino and as what file type so as to contain the colour image it opens in Rhino as from the obj ?

Note Rhino will not open the texture file assoc to it in an obj. I see the same mapped images as the ‘model shaded’ mode shows in Metashape, the finer (though blurred) texture doesnt get opened. CCordoni has asked for mtl to see if can suss why.
Photoscan however does generate perfect textures unblurred, Agisoft still havent got metashape working properly a few yrs later, yet they now only run with that. I am forever having to use Photoscan to get better results.

I just aligned 71 photos using Photoscan and it did the entire lot when metashape failed on a good third !

I digress, but I do wonder about Metashape !

Rhino will not open an fbx at all, says error.

Steve

There is a third party plug-in for Rhino which generates 3D PDF’s which can be viewed with the Adobe PDF Reader. Third party PDF views do not appear to work. I have not used it for several years.

Hi David,
So there was a Third party pdf maker for Rhino models but it doesnt work.

Anyone, inc McNeel …How do Rhino users normally get their models viewed as 3D and measurable by the client in an easy way (aside from client having to install Rhino) ?

Steve

Is there a problem with having the client install Rhino?