3DSOM Pro Feature List

On this page:
Masking functions
Geometry functions
Photography
Texture functions
Export
System Requirements
Compatible Software

This is just a brief list of the main features of 3DSOM Pro. For more details click on the links to online tutorials provided. Features new to the Pro version are indicated as new. Features that we believe are unique to 3DSOM Pro are indicated as unique selling point...

For additional functions in the latest 2.1 release click here

newProfessional GUI - wizards help you to easily find and use the extensive set of modelling functions.

Powerful masking tools

rough sketch
shrink-wrapped
  • Automated masking capability unique selling point - (see Masking the images section in the online User Guide).
  • newInteractive threshold selectionunique selling point for automatic masking - (see Fine tuning the automasking section in the online User Guide ). Lets you quickly find a good threshold for automatically cutting out the object shape.
  • newShrink Wrap toolunique selling point for semi-automatic masking (see Manual masking with the shrink-wrap tool section in the online User Guide). Just provide a rough sketch of the outline of the object and let 3DSOM Pro do the rest.
  • newComplete set of manual masking tools including fill tool, polygon tool, circular brush tool, square brush tool. See Reference: The Edit Masks Window section in the online User Guide.
  • newImproved support for 3rd party mask editing via 4 channel TIFF and PNG suitable for Adobe PhotoShop and JASC Paint Shop Pro. (see Editing the masks in an external application section in the online User Guide).

Surface Generation

conventional mesh
optimised mesh
  • Fast precise wireframe generation unique selling point - retains the 3DSOM patented silhouette intersection engine, with no voxel grid aliasing.
  • newSurface Optimisationunique selling point Intelligently smooths away artefacts in the silhouette-based geometry without compromising accuracy. Allows much more accurate relighting for added realism. (See Optimising the surface geometry section in the online User Guide).
  • newSubdivision Surface fittingunique selling point - automated fitting of a smooth subdivision surface for unbelievable geometry compression and additional improvements to the surface appearance. (See Compressing the geometry with subdivision surfaces section in the online User Guide).
  • newModel a part of a complex object - using a set of photographs of a complicated object (e.g. a camera), 3D SOM Pro now allows a single textured part (e.g. the camera body) to be modelled separately. This can result in substantially improved model quality.
  • newImproved integration with existing 3D modelling packagesunique selling point - Edit or create the surface geometry in a standard 3D modelling package. Then import back to 3DSOM Pro for texturing. (See Editing the geometry in an external application and Texturing a CAD model).
  • Interactive mesh decimation to reduce polygon count to required level.
  • Optional clip plane to remove any remaining stand geometry.

Photo taking

before and after lens correction
  • newLens correctionunique selling point - Many zoom and wide-angle lenses distort the image so that straight lines appear curved. This can reduce the accuracy of photo based modellers. 3DSOM Pro now includes a special module for correcting lens distortion. Many cameras (with built-in lenses) are automatically handled with no user input. Now you can build high quality 3D content with a standard low-cost digital camera.
  • newSemi-automatically merge in additional shotsunique selling point using 3DSOM Pro's patented interface (see Adding texture underneath an object section in the online User Guide).
  • newMerge multiple scans - using the alignment wizard to accurately model the underside of the object (see Merging multiple scans section in the online User Guide).
  • Mat printing function to create calibration mats on an ordinary printer at any size.
  • Accepts up to 256 input images per project as JPEG, BMP or PNG.
  • Fully automatic, robust camera calibration to identify camera position and orientation.

State-of-the-art Texturing Tools

  • Fully automatic texture map creation - automatic UV unwrap. 3DSOM Pro texture maps are now designed for optimal compression.
  • newIncremental texture map generationunique selling point - allows you to watch the process and stop as soon as the desired quality is obtained. (See Adding the surface texture section in the online User Guide).
  • Texture map editingunique selling point - patented texture editing approach. Rotate the current model, and then paste the rendered view into any image editor to touch up the textures by hand. (See Editing the textures section in the online User Guide).
  • newLayered editingunique selling point 3DSOM Pro can now align the copied view with an input image for additional fine control (see Advanced texture editing section in the online User Guide).
  • newView-dependent texturingunique selling point To capture interesting lighting effects you can utilise all the input images. Because there is still an underlying 3D model, users can still view the object from any angle and have the model quickly streamed over the web. (See View-dependent textures section in the online User Guide).
  • User chosen texture map resolution up to 2048 pixels square.
  • Tone correction option to compensate for exposure differences between images.

Save and Export

  • Output to industry standard formats (including VRML, 3DS, Macromedia Shockwave3D) for importing into 3D packages such as 3D Studio Max or publishing straight to the web (see Exporting the finished model section in the online User Guide).
  • newHigh spec. 3D viewer appletunique selling point Compact redistributable Java 3D viewer renders backgrounds, shadows, relighting, smooth shading, and antialiasing. Support for subdivision surfaces and view-dependent textures. 3DSOM Pro's patented approach allows a conventional texture map to be quickly downloaded followed by extra view-dependent texture data for improved model appearance.
  • newFlash 3D exportunique selling point Compact redistributable Flash 3D viewer allows models to be easily exported as a Flash movie. Supports model streaming and compression. Click for more info...
  • newWeb optimizerunique selling point - tool for optimised plugin-free web export using 3DSOM Java viewer applet. Highly compressed models with streamed textures. (See The Web Optimizer tool section in the online User Guide ).
  • newHotspots and scriptingunique selling point Hotspots and powerful scripting capability added to 3DSOM Java viewer (see About the 3DSOM Pro Java Viewer section in the online User Guide).

System Requirements

3DSOM Pro runs under Windows Vista, Windows XP and Windows 2000. Although it is possible to run under a Windows emulator on a Macintosh, this is not recommended as intensive processing is required.

We recommend the following spec for a PC to run 3DSOM Pro:

  • CPU x86 compatible, PC/AT compliant
  • Pentium 3 upwards is preferable
  • 32-bit graphics card (OpenGL support preferable)
  • Monitor resolution 1024x768 minimum (small system fonts)
  • Physical RAM: 256MB minimum, 512MB or greater recommended
  • Mouse and Keyboard

Compatible Software

These are just some of the applications that can load models exported from 3DSOM Pro If you know of other compatible software, then please let us know.