The 3D PDF file created by Universal Plant Viewer Builder can be
opened with Adobe Reader. The 3D toolbar always appears in the area above the upper left corner
of the 3D model and cannot be moved. Hide the toolbar by right-clicking the 3D model and choosing Hide
toolbar. To show the toolbar, choose Show toolbar from the same context
menu. You can expand and collapse the display of 3D tools on the
toolbar using Tools → Expand/Collapse 3D tools on the
context menu. Turn 3D objects around relative to the screen. How the objects move
depends on the starting view, where you start dragging and the direction
you drag, such as in a straight line or in curves, circles, or
loops. Turn a 3D model in parallel to two fixed axes in the 3D model, the
x-axis and the z-axis. Move the model vertically and horizontally only. You can also pan
with the Hand tool: Ctrl-drag. Move you toward or away from objects in the scene when you drag
vertically. You can also zoom with the Hand tool by
holding down Shift as you drag. Pivot horizontally around the scene when you drag horizontally; move
forward or backward in the scene when you drag vertically; maintain a
constant elevation level, regardless of how you drag. The
Walk tool is especially useful for architectural 3D
models. For the Rotate and Spin tools,
right-click dragging temporarily shifts to the Zoom
tool. For the Zoom tool, it makes the tool function like a
Marquee zoom tool, zooming to the area that you define
when you drag. For the Walk tool, right-click dragging makes the
tool function as the Pan tool. Return to a pre-set zoom, pan, rotation, and projection mode of the
3D model. Select the different views defined for the current 3D model. Open and hide the model tree. Toggle between using perspective and orthographic projection of the
3D object. An orthographic projection effectively removes a dimension,
preserving the size ratio between objects but giving the 3D model a less
realistic appearance. Select the different model render modes to see how the 3D shape
appears. Have a look on the differences in rendering speed and
quality. The model rendering modes include combinations of factors that affect
the appearance of the 3D object. The illustration below shows a simple
tank object rendered in each of the available modes. The default
rendering mode is usually solid. Table 1: Model rendering modes Use the different lighting effects, to see how the number, colour,
orientation, and brightness of the lights, the reflectivity of the
surface, and other factors affect the illumination of the 3D object. Open the colour picker, which you can use to select a different
colour for the space surrounding the 3D object. Show and hide cross sections of the object. Click the pop-up button
to open the Cross section properties dialog box. Open the camera properties window and modify the camera’s position.
Save camera view is not available in Adobe
Reader. The model tree appears in the navigation pane on the left side of the
work area. The model tree has three panes (structure pane, view pane, object
data pane), each of which displays a specific type of information or
controls. The topmost pane shows the tree structure of the 3D object which is
composed of individual parts. For example, a 3D object depicting a
storage tank may have separate groups of objects (called nodes) for the
tank, insulation, and nozzles. To configure the model tree and attributes in the PDF file, please
see the section 3D PDF settings. Move through the hierarchy and see how the related parts in 3D
model are selected by selecting the tree nodes Hide various parts, to isolate others, by removing checkmarks
next to them. Highlight, view or modify the 3D model content at any level
within the model tree by right-clicking the node and selecting the
desired function. Model render mode: Changes the surface appearance of
the entire 3D model according to the item you choose from the submenu:
Transparent Bounding Box, Solid, Transparent, Solid Wireframe and so
on. Show all parts: Displays the entire 3D model. Fit visible: Displays all visible parts and centres
them in the view. Display bounding box: Displays the box that encloses
the 3D object or selected parts of the model. Set bounding box colour: Changes the colour of the
bounding box. Choose this option, select a colour, and then click
OK. Hide: Displays the model without showing the
selected parts. Isolate: Displays only the selected part, hiding all
others. Zoom to part: Changes the centre focus from the
entire 3D model to the selected parts. This setting is especially useful
for rotating a part, allowing the rotation to occur around the part’s
centre focus rather than that of the entire model. Transparent: Displays a see-through version of the
selected part. Export as XML: Creates a separate XML file of either
whole tree or current node of the 3D model. The middle pane lists the views that the document author has defined
for that 3D object. After you changed the view, such as by isolating and rotating a
part, simply click one of the listed views to return the 3D model to a
saved state. Change the default view
( The lower pane displays other information, including properties and
metadata, if any, about the object or part. The selected object is highlighted in a bounding box and the
attributes are shown on the object data pane: 3D PDF files created by CAXperts Universal Plant
Viewer contain a volume clipping feature. Then input the volume clipping radius around the selected object: To switch off volume clipping, click on CAXperts - Reset
model on the context menu. Use the context menu on a 3D object in Acrobat Reader and click
CAXperts - Measuring tool to measure 3D
models. Click on the first object after this message shows up: The distance between the centres of the bounding boxes will be
shown: The function to link 2D objects with objects of the 3D model is only
available in PDF documents created with CAXperts tools. Show the 3D model in a floating window by right-clicking the 3D
model and choosing View in floating window. Click on a linked item of the 2D drawing to let the 3D window
show the item’s 3D representation. You can create measurements between combinations of points or edges
of the 3D model. The 3D measurement tool supports four types of
measurements: perpendicular distance between two straight edges, linear distance between two points, the radius of circular edges, and the angle between two edges (or three points). You can also display comments while taking measurements. However,
these comments (also called measurement mark-ups) are not preserved
after the document is closed. Figure 1: 3D measurement display Click a 3D model in a PDF to enable it. Click the 3D measurement tool icon ( Select the options you want in the Snap enables,
Measurement types, and Units and mark-up
settings areas of the 3D measurement tool
palette. Under Units and mark-up settings, change the
options, as needed. Leave the 3D measurement tool
palette open. Measure the 3D model: To measure the distance between two positions on the 3D model,
click to set a start point and move the pointer to another location or
an edge. To measure the circumference of a round shape, move the pointer
to the edge of the shape so that a circle appears, and click
once. To create and set the position of an annotation on the
measurement, select Measurement mark-up in the
3D measurement tool palette and then type a mark-up
message in Annotation. Measure the 3D model as
described above, but click to set the end point for the measurement and
then click a third time to set the location of the measurement and
annotation text. To discontinue a measurement, right-click and choose
Cancel measurement. To delete a measurement mark-up, click it with the 3D
measurement tool and press Delete. Snap enables options in the 3D measurement
tool palette: 3D snap to edge endpoints ( 3D snap to linear edges ( 3D snap to radial edges ( 3D snap to silhouettes ( 3D snap to planar faces ( Measurement types options in the 3D
measurement tool palette 3D point to point measurement ( 3D perpendicular dimension ( 3D radial dimension ( 3D angle measurement ( Units and mark-up options in the 3D
measurement tool palette Model units scale ratio: Shows the relationship
between units in the model and real object measurements. Use the
Display units menu to select a different unit for the
real object measurements. Measurement mark-up: Select to have the
measurements appear as comments in the PDF. Label: Type text that you want to appear with
the measurement, both in the 3D model area and in the comments panel.
(Not available if Measurement mark-up is not
selected.) 3D Measurement tool viewing options Use the Options menu in the 3D measurement
tool palette to set viewing options. Show details: Shows or hides the Cursor
location and Units and mark-up settings
options in the 3D measurement tool palette. Show rulers: Shows or hides vertical and
horizontal rulers on the page. (Has the same effect as choosing
View → Rulers.) Snap to 2D content; Ensures precise measurement
in 2D objects. Snap to 3D content: Ensures precise measurement
in 3D objects. 3D measurement navigation tips: Opens a dialog
box with keyboard shortcuts for several 3D features. You can use these
shortcuts while you are measuring. Change the 3D measuring preferences to determine how 3D data is
measured. These options appear in the Measuring (3D)
panel of the Preferences dialog box. Use scales and units from model (when present):
Displays measurements based on the model units, if present, generated
from the original 3D model. Deselect this option to specify the units of
measurements manually. This setting can be changed in the 3D
measurement tool palette. Use default display unit: Uses units of measurement
that you specify here rather than those in the 3D model. Significant digits to display: Specifies the maximum
number of digits in the measurement number. 3D measuring line colour: Specifies the colour of
the line that appears when you click or drag to measure an object. Measure feedback size: Sets the text size for the
measurement display. Angular measurements shown in: Specifies units as
either degrees or radians. Circular measurements shown as: Designates whether
the diameter or radius is measured for circular parts. 3D snap settings: Turns on snap and specifies
whether points, arcs, edges, silhouette edges, or faces are snapped to.
Sensitivity indicates how close the pointer needs to be to the item
being snapped to. For Snap hint colour, specify the
colour of the snap line that appears when you hold the pointer over the
3D object. Comments added to a 3D object are associated with specific views that
are defined when the comments are added. If the view is changed—for example, if the 3D object is rotated or
moved—the comments are no longer visible. If you don’t want a comment to be associated with a 3D view, add the
comment to another part of the page, outside the 3D object area. To add more comments, do one of the following: To create an additional comment in a view, make sure that the
commenting view you want is selected in the Model Tree, and click inside
the 3D object area. To create an additional comment in a new commenting view, make
sure that no commenting view is selected in the Model Tree, and click
inside the 3D object area. Do one of the following: In the model tree, select a view that contains comments. Click the Comments button or choose
View → Navigation panels →
Comments. In the view pane of the model tree, click
Options and choose List
comments. Double-click a comment to open its comment window. If there is a separate JavaScript file associated with the 3D model
PDF, you can activate it. In the 3D panel of the Preferences dialog box (Edit
→ Preferences) you can determine whether the 3D toolbar
and model tree are displayed by default. You can also specify a default
renderer and determine whether animations are allowed. Preferred renderer: Specifies the rendering engine
used to affect both performance and quality, so it’s important to select
the appropriate renderer. If you select a DirectX or OpenGL option, all
rendering takes place using the graphics chip on the video card. If
Software is selected, rendering may take more time, but the performance
may be more consistent with that of the model in its original
application. Enable double-sided rendering: Some model parts have
two sides. To save time and space, you can deselect this option to
render only the side facing the user. If the user looks inside a part
rendered with only one side, the backside would be invisible. Enable hardware rendering for legacy video cards:
Forces the use of a hardware accelerator for even video cards that do
not support a pixel shader. Open model tree on 3D activation: Determines whether
the model tree is displayed when the 3D model is activated. Choose
Use annotation’s setting to use which ever setting the
author used when adding the 3D model to the PDF. Default toolbar state: Determines whether the 3D
toolbar is shown or hidden when a 3D model is activated. Choose
Use annotation’s setting to use which ever setting the
author used when adding the 3D model to the PDF. Enable 3D selection for the hand tool: Lets the user
select and highlight parts of the 3D model using the
Hand tool. If this option is not selected, use the
Object data tool (Tools →
Object data → Object data tool) to
select the object. Consolidate 3D tools on the 3D toolbar: Selecting
this option places the manipulation and navigation tools under the
Rotate tool, there by shortening the 3D toolbar. Enable view transitions: Some 3D models include
animated transitions between views. Deselect this option if you want to
prevent this 3D animation. Optimization scheme for low frame rate: Specifies
what happens to animations of complex models when the frame rate becomes
low. None: does not compromise the visuals and leaves
the frame rate low. Bounding box: shows the three-dimensional planes
enclosing the parts instead of the parts themselves, which keeps the
frame rate high. Drop objects: does not show some parts of the
model in order to keep the frame rate high. Frame rate threshold: Sets the minimum frame rate,
either by dragging the slider or entering a number in the value box. If
the frame rate drops below that number of frames per second, the
Optimization scheme for low frame rate option goes into
effect.
How to Use 3D PDF Files
3D Toolbar
Display and Hide 3D Toolbar
All tools
that can be used from the 3D toolbar can also be used by right-clicking
the 3D model and using the different items of the context menu.Use 3D Navigation Tools
):
You
can also use the Hand tool to select an object if
Enable selection for the hand tool is selected in the
3D preferences.
):
):
):
):
The
Walk tool is only available when you select the 3D
Preferences setting that consolidates tools or when you right-click the
3D model and choose Tools → Walk.
Use 3D Toolbar View Controls
):
If an object
ever moves out of your view, click the Default view
icon on the 3D toolbar to move the object back into view.
):
):
):
A. Solid
B. Transparent Bounding Box
C. Transparent
D. Solid Wireframe
E. Illustration
F. Solid Outline
G. Shaded Illustration
H. Bounding Box
I. Transparent Bounding Box Outline
J. Wireframe
K. Shaded Wireframe
L. Transparent Wireframe
M. Hidden Wireframe
N. Vertices
O. Shaded Vertices
):
), (not
available in Adobe Reader):
):
Model Tree
Display and Hide Model Tree
) on the 3D
toolbar, or by right-clicking the 3D model and choosing Show
model tree.
You can
change the default behaviour for the model tree by right-clicking the 3D
model, choosing 3D preferences and then choosing an
option from the Open model tree on 3D activation
menu.Use Structure Pane
The items
that appear on the Options menu and the order in which
they are listed depend on whether the selected 3D model is composed of
just one part or multiple parts.Use View Pane
) of
3D toolbar view controls by right-clicking a view in
the View pane and then choosing Set as default
viewUse Object Data Pane
Volume Clipping
All the
CAXperts menu items are using JavaScript. This is not dangerous, you can
just ignore the “Warning: JavaScript window”.
Measure with CAXperts -
Measuring Tool
Link 2D Objects with 3D
Objects
Links are obvious from the mouse pointer switching to hand whenever you
hover over a link.
3D Models in Acrobat
Professional
Measure 3D Objects
) on the 3D toolbar. (If the
3D toolbar view is set for consolidated tools, the 3D
measurement tool is available on the pop-up menu under the
Rotate, Spin, Pan,
Zoom, or Walk tool.)
While you
measure, you can Ctrl+Shift to rotate. Hold down Ctrl to pan. Hold down
Shift to zoom. Hold down Alt to disable snap.
): Snaps to the entire
edge.
): Snaps to
a straight-line segment of an edge.
): Snaps to
a circumference.
): Snaps to
the apparent edge of a part, such as the side of a cylinder.
): Snaps to
the geometric plane making up a face of the part.
): Measures
the distance between two positions on the 3D model that you click to set
a start point and then click another location to set an end point or
edge.
): Measures
the distance between two edges taken at a right angle to the starting
edge.
): Measures
the radius at the location clicked.
): Measures
the angle between two edges.
If you do
not see these settings, choose Show details on the
palette’s Options menu.
The
3D measurement tool palette changes to the
Distance tool palette after a brief delay when the
pointer moves outside the canvas area of the 3D model. Moving the
pointer back over the 3D model restores the 3D measurement
tool options. The Ortho option is available
only for the 2D Distance, Perimeter,
and Area tools.
Measuring Preferences
These
preferences apply to PDFs that have commenting enabled.Comment on 3D Designs
Adding
comments to 3D model views requires version 7.0.7 or later of
Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader.Add comments to a 3D object
The Text
edit tools have no effect on 3D objects.
If one of
the automatically generated commenting views is deleted , the associated
comments are still available. They can be viewed and selected in the
comments panel or in the model tree, where they are listed under the
views. Selecting a comment switches the 3D model to the
same viewing configuration it had when the comment was added.Display Comments for a 3D
Object
Run a JavaScript
Acrobat 3D Preferences
