Autodesk Rendering Getting started with VR

By Justin Doughty

Virtual Reality or VR is very popular at the moment, but to achieve end results it can become very expensive. There are a mixture of formats, devices, and software, all with varying cost, with the likes of Oculus, HTC Vive, Samsung VR and PlayStation VR.

But what if you wanted to quickly test out your Autodesk design or project in a VR environment, without expensive gadgets using your existing software?

Autodesk have the answer using the “Stereo Panorama” feature of the A360 cloud rendering service. 

What you will need:

1. An Autodesk product that has access to the cloud render feature (AutoCAD, 3DS Max, Revit or Navisworks).
2. Up to 16 Autodesk cloud credits, depending on quality.
3. A modern smartphone.
4. Some form of mobile phone VR viewing device, such as Google Cardboard or similar:

So the first step in this process is to send your file to render in the cloud, the below example is using Revit, you see we have the output type set to Stereo Panorama:

However not all products have the direct options for stereo panorama, so don’t worry, just render an image to the cloud as normal, as we can always change this afterward in the Autodesk rendering gallery:

Once done, in the Autodesk rendering gallery you will be presented with the stereo logo, and a link to view:

If you have a cardboard VR viewer and smartphone, you can give my sample a try using the link below:

http://pano.autodesk.com/pano.html?url=jpgs/b79527e8-d6b2-4631-8a32-ebdb2f53c46b