Visualization techniques for prototypes

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You can create photorealistic renderings to showcase your digital prototype.

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This process includes setting material appearances, adding decals, setting up your scene, and rendering in the cloud.

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To apply a physical appearance, begin with a model already open in the Design workspace.

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Then, from the toolbar, expand the Modify menu and select Appearance.

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The Appearance dialog opens, which includes a Library of materials that are separated by type, including wood, metals, and plastics.

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You can also download other appearances and store them on your computer for future use.

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In this example, some appearances are already applied to the design.

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To apply a material to a component, use the search field for the desired material,

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and then click and drag the material preview to the component on the canvas.

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The component updates with the selected material.

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To adjust the applied material, back in the dialog, under In This Design,

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right-click the material and select Edit.

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The dialog that opens contains some of the material properties that you can change.

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For example, from the color palette, to change the material color, choose a different color.

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Then, re-name the material so it is easily identifiable.

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Click Advanced.

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The Material Editor opens.

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Here, you can adjust other options, such as relief patterns, translucency, and enhanced highlight controls.

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You can also add an existing image as a decal to your project.

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From the toolbar, expand the Insert menu and select Decal.

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The Insert dialog opens.

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In the Insert dialog, locate and select your image file.

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Then, click Insert.

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Now, on the canvas, select the face or faces you would like to apply the decal to.

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Then, use the control grips to move and resize the decal.

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Notice that it will automatically wrap itself around complex geometry.

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When you are finished adjusting the decal, in the Decal dialog, click OK.

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You can repeat these steps for more decals if necessary.

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Also, now that the decal is in the Timeline, you can edit the insert decal action at any time.

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After you are finished applying appearances, navigate to the Render workspace.

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From the toolbar, Setup group, click Scene Settings.

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The scene settings control the lighting, background color, ground effects, and camera in your render.

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In the Scene Settings dialog, expand the Background drop-down

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and choose from either an environment or a solid color.

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To enable real-time lighting and shadowing, select Environment.

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Then, open the Environment Library tab.

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Drag and drop the Photobooth option from the library to the canvas.

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Return to the Settings tab.

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Select both Ground Plane and Reflections.

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Then, click Position.

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On the canvas, a mini-toolbar shows with a slider.

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Use the slider to adjust the rotation of the environment, the shadows, and the highlights.

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Back in the dialog, set the Focal Length by either entering a numeric value or using the slider.

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Expand the Aspect Ratio drop-down and specify an aspect ratio.

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This is used for in-canvas render to enable you to use a different aspect ratio

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than what is implicitly defined by the size of the active viewport.

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Close the dialog.

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Now, from the toolbar, click In-Canvas Render, which provides a real-time render view.

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When you are satisfied with the view you have created, click Render.

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In the Render Settings dialog, you can adjust the settings as needed.

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You can choose between rendering in the cloud or locally.

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Keep in mind that when you use the Cloud Renderer,

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the amount of required cloud credits is dependent on the settings you configure.

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When you are ready, click Render.

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You can continue to choose other views from the Browser to render while the first one is still in the process of rendering.

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Named views are especially useful when you want to maintain the same view

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and compare different appearances in the renders.

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The renders will be linked to your design,

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and other users who have permissions to the project can also access and download them.