How to build the ultimate immersive experience

In attending Cityscape Global a couple of weeks back, one of the main attractions - for me at least - was the immersive Reality Portal on display at the District 2020 stand, something I have talked about in previous LinkedIn updates. District 2020 is the legacy phase of Dubai Expo 2020, repurposing 80% of the site infrastructure - post Expo - running with the themes of 'Connect', 'Create' & 'Innovate'. 

Judging by the reactions (including many ‘wows’ and ‘oohs’) from the people visiting the Reality Portal, it would be fair to say that the communication of the District themes through a digital experience was more than successful. This was the first experience in a series for District 2020, crafted by Autodesk partner Soluis.  

However, virtual and augmented reality involves a lot more than just creating a ‘wow’ experience. One key aspect of this technology is to help project stakeholders visualize the project in context. Beyond this, it also brings digital 3D models to construction sites, overlaying the design in a mixed reality experience. This can help design teams in their review processes, support the project team in pinpointing issues, and connect this information with geolocation information. The end result is much richer data.

Following my LinkedIn updates, which were coming live and direct from Cityscape, I did receive a number of messages and mails asking me how? what? why?

Like many of the software solutions I’ve been involved with over the years, when you’re looking to do something a little bit special, you won’t usually find these solutions ‘out of the box’; it is generally more a case of bringing together several ‘building blocks’ as well as a fair sprinkling of creativity. 

BIM at the Centre

The good news here is the client and their delivery partners had the foresight to support the design and construction phases of the project using BIM, which meant they already had most of the key ingredients. I’m told by the experts that in the absence of BIM, achieving the same final output becomes a lot harder.

The main data used was sourced from the project's central data repository in current model versions – comprising numerous federated Revit files and other sources, such as CAD files. Soluis used all this data to create a coordinated visual engagement model to form the foundation of the immersive virtual journey of the site. 

Autodesk 3ds Max was then used as the primary platform to produce the photo-realistic sequences that formed the basis of this exciting virtual tour of District 2020. The entire sequence was rendered out at 4K using a specific camera type in 3ds Max that returns an accurately mapped one-to-one reality simulation in the Reality Portal at Cityscape, installed by Soluis’ technology spin-out Sublime.

The overall viewing experience was supplemented by several interior sequences created from a similar base model prepared in 3ds Max, and then exported to Unreal Engine for an enhanced visual experience.

And it’s important not to forget the final ingredient - which is the imagination and flair of the creative folk at Soluis.

Beyond Design, Construction & Handover

At Autodesk my main role is to advise owners/developers on how they can benefit in adopting BIM and support them on a journey which provides solutions – in the main, to support design & construction operations. It’s well documented that the inherent benefit is the ability to use BIM to support operations and maintenance – managing the entire lifecycle of built assets.

My own self-education around this particular application has since made me appreciate that beyond design and construction there are many more uses for BIM for owner/developers, which include (and are not exclusive to): -

• Public consultation and planning
• Security & logistics planning
• Facilities management
• Health & safety briefings
• Operative training / process simulation
• Sales & marketing
• Leisure & entertainment
• Retrofit

Summary

The clear message that comes through from all these considerations is that immersive reality has the potential to greatly enhance the design and construction process and provide the end client with a better and more manageable asset. The key is to bring together the right technologies in the right way and keep an open mind about how they are implemented.

Software Products

Autodesk Revit; software specifically built for Building Information Modeling (BIM). Revit design files provided the foundation data for the visualization project.

Autodesk 3ds Max; 3D modeling and rendering software for design visualization, games & animation.

Unreal Engine 4; Gaming engine (developed by Epic Games) with a suite of creation tools, used to provide artistic visions.

IMAGERY SUPPLIED COURTESY OF SCOTT GRANT - CEO @ SOLUIS