The VR/AR tools are available in 3D Settings.
- From your model, click Edit 3D Settings or add "/edit" to the end of any model URL.
- Select the VR/AR panel in the top left.
The VR/AR tools in the editor let you configure how your model will be experienced with a virtual reality device or in augmented reality.
AR/VR World scale
This setting affects both VR and AR. The scale is the most important setting for virtual reality and augmented reality. In VR/AR, you can really have a sense of scale. Just like in real life, you can tell when an object is big or small, far away or near. A 3D car could have the size of an actual car or look like a small toy, so it's important to get scale right.
On Sketchfab, your model remains untouched but you can adjust the scale of the world, represented by the floor and a standard character. Additionally, Sketchfab assumes models are uploaded in meters. So, if you export your 3D model measured in meters, the AR/VR world scale should already be correct by default.
The "World Scale" number in 3D Settings tells the Sketchfab viewer how many "units" in your 3D model file are equivalent to one meter. So, for example, if your models were exported in inches, you should set the World Scale to 39.37, because 39.37 inches equals 1 meter.
For reference:
- The character is 1,75m tall (5' 8⅞")
- Every floor tile is 1m x 1m (3.2ft x 3.2ft)
Adjust the scale until the size of the character looks right compared to the size of your model.
What's the right scale?
Most of the time, you will want to have your model to have the same scale that in real life. But sometimes, this could be impractical in VR:
Very small objects (like a pen or coin) cannot be viewed very closely due to the convergence limit of VR headsets. These models should be enlarged so that detail can be seen at a comfortable distance (~arm length).
Very large objects (like a tall building or mountain) will be hard to view entirely at normal scale. In VR, people can teleport on horizontal surfaces or walk around, but cannot fly around to get an overview of the scene. You can:
- Downscale to make them look like dioramas, so that people can walk around it
- Keep their real size, but make sure that the model remains navigable
For medium sized objects, you can scale them like in real life. To make things easier, you can create your model with 1 unit = 1 meter and click the dedicated button to use that scale.
Click Reset Scale to revert to the original world scale.
Floor
Mobility in virtual reality can vary depending on the VR device used. Not all devices allow people to crouch or walk in the room. For a good experience, you need to set the floor level so that people can see your model comfortably only by using teleportation and reasonable head movements.
For small models, having them floating at eye level is usually preferable.
You can remove the floor completely by disabling Display floor for teleportation. This is useful for rooms and other large scenes where you only want to be able to teleport around real surfaces.
Initial viewing position
In VR, people can move around by pointing a cursor (imagine a laser pointer) to any horizontal surface and click to teleport there. Teleportation is efficient, compatible with many devices and doesn't make you sick. However, teleportation doesn't work well for unnatural moves, like going through a wall or jumping very high.
Choosing a good initial viewing position is important for people to understand what they are looking at and where they can go.
- Double-click anywhere in the scene to move the scale figure there
- Click the scale figure to select it and display the controls
- Click and drag the arrows to move it along the X, Y and Z axes
- Click and drag the small blue square to move it freely in the X and Y axes
- Click and drag the circle to rotate the initial view
- Click anywhere else in the scene to de-select it and hide the controls
Placing the initial point of view in front of the model works most of the time. This is the default setting.
For rooms, or scenes that are enclosed in a sphere/cube, place the initial viewing position inside the model.
If your scale figure is not standing on the ground, a warning is displayed. Click Move To Floor to automatically place it on the floor.
Saving
Once you've made your adjustments, including position and orientation, be sure to update your model's thumbnail image and default position with Save View and/or save your changes with Save Settings. You can return to your model by clicking either the model's name or Exit.
Also see:
Comments
12 comments
Great tutorial but wondered if you guys could help... I'm struggling working out what scale I need to use to make the model viewable at a 1:1 scale. I don't like the thought of choosing a scale which looks about right. I know the character used to represent the VR's scale is 1.75m tall but don't know how I can accurately alter this to view the model at a 1:1 scale - screenshot below...
Any help would be great! Thanks!
Why does it seems like the VR functionallity doesn't work anymore for HTC Vive in the latest Firefox web browser. It was working wonderfully before the the webbrowser was upgrraded. All your instructions are pointing and referring to older web browsers. What can i do to be able to se the Sketchfab objects again?
@TonyWiren I just tested Firefox 56 (Windows 10) with a Vive and it worked. Can you elaborate on what happens?
Hey there everybody... Noob here...
I noticed that we can scale the object when we are viewing it in AR Mode (with the mobile app).
Is there a way we can lock the scale? And/or maybe add some shadows to the floor?
Hey,
There's no way to "lock" the scale, but you can just stop zooming :)
Shadows would be tricky in an AR environment...maybe in the future!
Hi.
Im using FOREVER VR glasses. So there is one small problem. All glasses have different lenses, so I havent option to correct screen deformations in mobile app. For example VaR's VR player have that option, and its changes many things to get reality feeling in that type of VR glass.
I suggest to make something like in VaR's VR right on VR mode screen (hidden when not active). All is needed is make ZOOM - / + and make sphere modification.
i'm using oculust quest and trying to view my models on 1:1 scale after reading through all this documentation i still don't get it how can you set your model 1:1 scale giving the fact i know the unit i've worked with ... should i upload my model with a ruler and approximate the scale ???
@KingFury - The Sketchfab viewer is unitless, so there is no notion of dimensions or scale like there might be when you created or exported the model. You'll need to use the scale slider in the editor to approximate the scale.
Hi ! I do love sketchfab, it's near from perfect.
A nice feature would be to add the possibility to move in VR with "rotate around viewer/move in front" instead of teleportation, even if it makes sick. I'm often watching objects sitting and having to turn the head or moving physically could be really annoying.
Keep up the good work !
Hi! Thanks for the kind words :)
Yes, a sort of "object" mode could definitely make sense for viewing some kinds of models in VR.
I like the AR mode; Viewing my models in real life is neat (though being able to take pictures without the buttons would be nice).
There's one problem I've noticed, though: Sketchfab doesn't seem to use the scaling I've set in the AR/VR 3D settings for my models. For example, here's a cup that was scaled months ago:
That looks correct, but when I try viewing it in AR in the Android app, it's giant.
(that's on the floor.)
Is there a way to fix this, or does AR use a fixed scale for all models, regardless of settings? I've even seen this happen with old models, where I opened them in AR, saw they were way too big, scaled them down, then even months later, they still look very large, like the models are never updated. For example, this "juice cylinder" is still way bigger than it's meant to be:
The only model I've made that looks like it's the correct scale is this broom.
Hello,
The mobile app does not use the VR/AR scale from 3D Settings. It's really just putting the regular viewer in front of your camera feed.
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