In this guide , we’ll dive into the building blocks of digital asset management for 3D models and explore the effective tools required to overcome the challenges associated with managing interactive 3D content, tools such as a 3D-first content management system (CMS) and content delivery network (CDN), conversion and compression tools, and 3D Backend-as-a-Service.
1. Introduction
Interactive 3D content, for online, virtual reality, and augmented reality experiences, is becoming increasingly popular across industries like gaming, education, marketing, and more. However, creating and managing interactive 3D content comes with unique challenges that require specialized tools and strategies.
One major challenge is organizing and accessing large 3D assets. Interactive 3D projects have larger data and lower latency requirements, while the 3D data itself has no standard file format and is fragmented into multiple files like the model, its textures, its animations, etc. Tools like echo3D, help streamline the asset pipeline by providing cloud storage and organization features. They allow seamless collaboration across teams and help manage different versions of assets over the course of a project.
Interactivity and real-time rendering also pose challenges. Traditional 3D software renders frames ahead of time, but interactive projects require rendering in real-time. Tools like echo3D, are designed to handle real-time updates, with visual editors that allow builders to quickly assemble scenes and set up content release without needing to code everything from scratch.
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The volume of 3D data also creates workflow bottlenecks. Optimizing and compressing 3D data with tools like echo3D improves stability and performance in interactive environments, with features like version control, task management, and integration with 3D creation tools. The ability to search and tag models with metadata also allows teams to collaborate on different versions of assets over the course of a project.
By leveraging the right solutions, builders can streamline their pipelines and deliver optimized, immersive 3D experiences. The combination of game engines like Unity and Unreal, content management tools like echo3D, and testing frameworks provide the foundation for tackling the unique challenges of interactive 3D work.
Here are some of the tools required for effective 3D asset management:
2. Content Management System (3D CMS)
All-in-one 3D Warehouse. 3D digital asset management and file hosting. Store, manage, edit, and customize 3D content in the cloud.
Organizations require CMSs to store, manage, and edit all their content in one simple interface, organized into projects. They require ways to search for, upload, and retrieve 3D assets and share them within their team.
Tools like echo3D make managing, updating, and sharing 3D content easy for teams with simpler 3D asset management tools. Teams can manage their 3D asset library across their organization and deliver 3D content that can be updated in real-time through the cloud.
Functionalities that organizations with 3D asset libraries are looking for:
- Store & Secure: Safely host large amounts of 3D models, images, and videos secured in a 3D-first warehouse accessible anywhere anytime.
- Edit & Customize: Change and edit 3D assets remotely through the cloud without the need to rebuild or redeploy the app.
- Headful & Headless: Manage 3D content through a console or use a cross-platform API to publish and retrieve 3D assets.
2.1. One Central Repository
Teams need to be able to store and manage all their content in one simple interface, organized into projects and folders. They need to upload and retrieve 3D assets, animations, videos, and interactive content and share them with their team and also add custom metadata to each of their assets or to multiple assets at once.
2.2. Editing of 3D Models
Teams are looking to transform 3D models and edit their textures, color, lighting settings, and other attributes. They need tools to structure 3D scenes, merge assets together, and export them to their project.
2.3. Search for 3D Assets
When using tools like echo3D, teams can search and access their assets in one place as well as a library of 800,000+ free 3D models, videos, and images. They can use different search filters to find the right assets from their project and build full 3D scenes from scratch.
2.4. Version Control for 3D Assets
Companies should be able to manage their 3D content effectively within their teams and revert to previous versions. They need to schedule future versions of their 3D content and update it in real-time directly to the 3D experience. Like GitHub for 3D.
2.5. Custom WebAR Experiences
Organizations need to create personalized no-code web-based AR experiences with buttons, actions, links, music, and custom backgrounds. Unlike, echo3D, most 3D DAM tools lack an ability to auto-generate a URL or QR code that leads to an interactive AR experience that works on almost any device, no installation required.
2.6. Team Collaboration on 3D Projects
Teams are looking to collaborate through the cloud and easily share and comment on 3D models. They require the ability to assign different roles and permissions to team members to view, upload, edit, and share 3D content. Effective DAM tools allow you to coordinate the 3D content release process.
3. Content Delivery Network (3D CDN)
3D digital asset delivery and file distribution are a click away. Distribute and stream 3D content from the cloud.
Organizations are looking to distribute and stream fresh content with a delivery network optimized for 3D content. With the right DAM tools, teams can improve load speed and reliability by automatically picking the right server, based on their user’s location and their content’s geo-tagging.
Tools like echo3D allow teams to stream optimized 3D assets to any web page, mobile device, headset, game-engine, or platform, and make 3D content load fast anywhere in the world. They can automate their content release process and deliver content based on the user’s location for faster 3D Deployment.
Functionalities that organizations with 3D asset libraries are looking for:
- Faster Delivery: Load 3D content quickly from the closest server available, with a global delivery network optimized for 3D content.
- Dynamic Set up: Automatically set up and stream 3D content from the right server, based on the user’s location and the content’s geo-tagging.
- Optimized Stream: Improve load speed and reliability by automatically picking the right 3D output format, reducing the file size, and caching near users.
3.1. 3D Content Anywhere
Companies can track to which locations are their 3D assets being delivered and which servers deliver their 3D content to users. echo3D, for example, allows you to dynamically deploy the right server instances to minimize load time as well as storage and hosting costs, and easily integrate with edge solutions or 5G nodes.
3.2. Dynamic Experiences
Organizations need to be able to set how their 3D assets are delivered and alter their 3D experience based on built-in metadata to fit different audience segments in different locations. Builders can tailor the experience based on their audience’s location and behavior at any time.
3.3. Integrated Processing
Effective 3D DAM tools minimize latency by optimizing a team’s 3D experience to fit each user’s location, device, and network conditions. The right tools allow you to benefit from automatic 3D processing, compression, and conversion integrated into their stream.
4. Optimization Tools for 3D Content
3D digital asset optimization tools seamlessly built-in. Compress, convert, and optimize 3D assets in the cloud.
Teams need to ensure 3D content interoperability and need tools to build interactive 3D experiences by streaming optimized 3D data that has been automatically compressed and converted to fit each user and their device.
Tools like echo3D use cutting-edge 3D compression and powerful 3D optimization tools to easily reduce the size of 3D models without losing resolution quality. Teams can simply store, transfer, and display 3D assets for real-time rendering on devices with limited resources.
Functionalities that organizations with 3D asset libraries are looking for:
- 3D compression: Compress 3D files, videos, and images, without compromising how they look or losing any important details, to allow for low latency 3D data streaming.
- 3D conversion: Convert files to and from multiple formats and ensure the 3D experience conforms to the requirements of the user’s device or headset.
- 3D processor: Automatically process and optimize the 3D assets for better app performance (supported formats include .obj, .stl, .fbx, .glTf, .glb, .usdz, .dae, .zip.).
4.1. High Quality at Small Sizes
Companies are looking to stream highly detailed 3D models and interactive content to different devices, without compromising quality. With effective DAM tools, teams can stream light, compressed, and poly-reduced versions of their assets to multiple devices in different locations, while maintaining the same full detail 3D experience.
4.2. Smaller Apps with Better Content
Builder can create smaller interactive experiences that work even for users with slow connections, by processing 3D content in the cloud and streaming it in real-time to different devices. By leveraging the computing power of tools like echo3D, teams can optimize and process even the most complex models.
5. Backend-as-a-Service for 3D Apps
A 3D Backend-in-a-Box. Build a 3D app backend in minutes and keep developers focused on creating a great 3D app, while we handle the messy stuff.
Developers need to be able to build apps that work with any 3D/AR/VR client-side technologies (ARCore, ARKit, and more) and on different platforms (Unity, Unreal, Android, iOS, HoloLens, Oculus, and more). With the right tools, teams can build higher-quality smart-scaling experiences that update in real-time, with no redevelopment or redeployment needed.
echo3D, for example, allows teams to easily save new versions & restore their 3D models back to previous versions in real-time through the cloud with advanced 3D version control tools. Team are able to effectively manage 3D content within their organization and create multiple versions to choose from.
Functionalities that organizations with 3D asset libraries are looking for:
- Drastically reduce costs: Save time, money, and effort on building and maintaining an app backend, and quickly go from development, to testing, and to production.
- Seamlessly incorporate with the app: Use robust SDKs to build, manage, and deploy 3D apps at scale with Unity, Java, Swift, WebAR, AR.js, Flutter, NodeJS, and more.
- Easily build for any platform: Develop once and deploy on different platforms (Unity, Unreal, Android, iOS, HoloLens, Oculus, and more). Compatible with all 3D/AR/VR client-side technologies (ARCore, ARKit, and more).
5.1. Metadata Management
Organizations are looking for an ability to add different metadata to their 3D assets and transform how they behave and interact in real time. With the right DAM tools, they can set attributions for location, placement, size, rotation, and more. They can also set global data for projects and manage when, where, and which 3D content is streamed.
5.2. Real-time Updates
Teams should be able to update their 3D experience and stream fresh content to their users in real-time. echo3D allows teams to build and operate real-time 3D experiences that change constantly and get users to keep coming back for more. This enables rapid iteration cycles, fix issues faster, and deliver a higher-quality experience.
5.3. 3D Analytics
Effective DAM tools allow teams to learn how users interact with their app and engage them with the 3D content they want to see. This tools allow you to discover insights on their user engagement and behavior and understand what different audience segments find most intriguing, to make for a curated and unforgettable 3D experience.
5.4. App Monitoring
Teams need to understand how their app is performing and optimize their resources. With the right DAM solution, teams can abstract the usage and setup requirements of other cloud services and rely on a modern 3D infrastructure that allows teams to innovate quickly and scale on demand.
6. Final Words
The right DAM solution allows teams to securely store and share 3D assets across their organization, while allowing them to collaborate, have efficient workflows, discover content, and minimize duplicates. echo3D allows organizations with 3D asset libraries the following:
- Easy Set Up: Integrate a 3D DAM into existing workflows and keep teams focused on creating great 3D experiences
- Cross-platform Compatibility: Use platform-agnostic solutions to develop once & deploy everywhere.
- Customized 3D experiences: Create immersive localized personalized experiences for different audiences.
- Real-Time Analytics: Learn how users interact with the 3D assets and engage them with the 3D content they want.
- Multi-file Format Support: Convert 3D models, images, and videos to & from multiple formats for all devices.
- Super-low Latency: Dynamically stream compressed & poly-reduced 3D assets in different network conditions.
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echo3D (www.echo3D.com) is a 3D asset management for developers & companies to store, secure, and share 3D content in real-time across organizations.
