Introducing TurboReview, the First 3D PDF Mobile Markup for AEC

October 01, 2012

Please note that contributed articles, blog entries, and comments posted on AECcafe.com are the views and opinion of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of the management and staff of Internet Business Systems and its subsidiary web-sites.

by Susan Smith - Managing Editor
Each AEC Weekly Review delivers to its readers news concerning the latest developments in the AEC industry, AEC product and company news, featured downloads, customer wins, and coming events, along with a selection of other articles that we feel you might find interesting. Brought to you by AECCafe.com. If we miss a story or subject that you feel deserves to be included, or you just want to suggest a future topic, please contact us! Questions? Feedback? Click here. Thank you!

Welcome to AECWeekly!

AECWeekly is a news magazine featuring important industry news profiles, a summary of recently published AEC product and company news, customer wins, and coming events. Brought to you by AECCafe.

AECWeekly examines select top news each week, picks out worthwhile reading from around the web, and special interest items you might not find elsewhere. This issue will feature Industry News,Top News of the Week, Partnerships,Announcements,New Products, Around the Weband Upcoming Events.

AECWeekly welcomes letters and feedback from readers, so let us know what you think.

Please send me your comments

Best wishes,

Susan Smith, Managing Editor

Industry News

Introducing TurboReview, the First 3D PDF Mobile Markup for AEC

By Susan Smith

IMSI/Design just announced their TurboReview, a first in the CAD world to offer 2D and 3D mobile markup for AEC and support of 3D PDF (U3D).

IMSI is well known as the developer of TurboCAD and lately their free TurboViewer DWG viewing app for iOS and Android.

TurboReview is designed for the iOS platform and will soon migrate to the Android.

According to co-founder and CEO of IMSI/Design, Bob Mayer, customers wanted a product to do markup and also a really fast viewer that can do shaded models and hidden lines in different CAD formats. “We extended that by adding markup capability to TurboReview in addition to the ability to support 3D PDF which, as far as we know, is the first and only mobile PDF viewer available for mobile platforms.”

IMSI/Design created the 3D PDF toolkit on mobile themselves because it didn’t exist elsewhere and deployed it in TurboReview. “It ties in well with our viewer product as well as markup products,” explained Mayer. "There are 3D PDF libraries that exist for the desktop operating system environment for Windows or PC, but not for mobile other than what IMSI/Design has done."

TurboReview is actually a 3D markup app as well as 2D. Obviously, there are 2D markup apps out there, but there aren’t many 3D markup apps – “which means to add notes to 3D objects for example, if I was to add a note to the arm of a robot, I could add an arrow and a textbox that says ‘revise arm’. As you rotate around in 3D space, those markups are always maintained and always facing the text, our leaders are snapping to that arm. No matter what angle you’re looking at it, it stays stuck to the 3D object as well as the text maintained is always facing the view directions." Mayer added, “Obviously if you had a 3D model of the building that

would be true too. Anything that involves marking up in 3D.”

According to Mayer, parts of the program are cloud based, that is, non-native supported file formats are all being converted on one of their cloud based servers, done remotely. The app itself is a locally installed app.

Those who have their files located on Drop Box or any cloud based storage system can view it in the TurboReview app.

The iPad is really the form factor for doing mobile work, Mayer said. “With a laptop you have to unfold it or have a table to prop it up or a lap, with a tablet you can walk around with it, and navigation is good. It is more for consumption of floor plans and drawing and to add markups and notes to it.” It is the perfect vehicle for the AEC marketplace and Mayer said that IMSI/Design will be doing more in this space in the coming year.

The text is always facing and arrow leaders will snap to a 3D object, important features when navigating in 3D as the rotating model will show text and features accurately on all sides.

[Information from the press release]:

TurboReview includes:

Mark-Up Features

Lightning-fast 2D and 3D environment

Redmark tools: Markup 2D and 3D objects using:

Line

Circle

Rectangle

Revision cloud

Highlighter

Text

Rectangular text box and leader

Inquiry tools: Distance/Dimension; Angle; Perimeter; Area

Layer Manager - Layer view manager to turn layers on/off, invert layers, turn all layers on/off

Layout support - View model space and paper space layouts in your drawing

Create screen shots of drawings and markups

Unique 3D Features

Support for 3D PDF (U3D)

Unique "always facing" text and dimensions that always face current view in 3D

Arrow leaders snap to 3D objects, uniquely allowing them to lock and orbit in 3D correctly

Viewing Features

Smooth multi-touch navigation; Pan, zoom, and 3D orbit effortlessly around document

A variety of visual styles include wireframe, hidden line, x-ray, gray scale, shaded, shaded without outline, and more

Adjust edge color range from white-gray-black

Adjust x-ray transparency factor

Option to use default or model lights (if any in drawing)

Option to render both inside and outside model (force two-sided rendering)

Custom perspective view - Now view 3D models in realistic perspective angles with the ability to view in human eye perspective or specify custom camera lens sizes in mm

AutoCAD® SHX font support - Native SHX font support to view localized or custom SHX fonts in your drawing file

TrueType font support - Improved visual fidelity with native TTF font file support to view True Type Fonts in your drawing file

Supports AutoCAD linetypes - Maintain visual fidelity as intended

Restore saved AutoCAD views - Quickly display the best vision of your design

Customized Usage

Tactile sound feedback - Sound confirmation for button and UI item selection

Autosense for 2D or 3D drawings - Option to automatically set appropriate gesture navigation of a drawing or model

Option to use two fingers to 3D rotate/tumble or constrain orbit

Unique time-savers - Able to navigate full-screen preview during file load; Cancel errant file load

File Sharing, Interoperability, and Localization

File Management: Create sub-folders; Cut/Copy/Paste/Rename files and folders

Quickly email marked-up files

Native support for DWG, DXF, DWF, PDF, 3D PDF (U3D), plus more than a dozen other popular AEC file formats including TCW, 2CD, 3DM, 3DS, ASAT, CGM, DCD, DGN, EPS, FCW, IGS, OBJ, PLT, SAT, SKP, STEP, STL, STP, and WRZ

Support for 15 languages: Chinese (simplified), Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish

Availability and Pricing

TurboReview v1 for iPad has a limited-time introductory price of $34.99 (regularly $49.99) and is available from the Apple App Store. For more information, please visit

www.TurboApps.com .

1 | 2 Next Page »

You can find the full AECCafe event calendar here.

To read more news, click here.

-- Susan Smith, AECCafe.com Managing Editor.

Be the first to review this article