Viewing and Using 3D PDFs in Your Business

If you work with 3D models or schematics in your business, 3D PDF offers several advantages. Chief among them is a file format that you can share easily and that anyone can view with the right tool, like Foxit PDF Editor. That means there’s no need to give your entire team CAD software or a 3D modeling program.

This helps control your software budget, including the IT support and hardware resources required by larger 3D programs. That makes it easy to view and collaborate on projects where it’s important to visualize what the result looks like in the 3D world.

In addition, 3D PDF files often feature substantially smaller files compared to original 3D documents which makes them easier to share, open and store.

How can your business use 3D PDFs?

If you’re an educator teaching students about 3D printing, you want to be able to share examples of projects and problems. Advertising agencies and printing companies can show how product packaging or point-of-purchase displays will look like on the shelf or in the aisle.

Real estate sales and development, and tenant finish and leasing agencies can show prospective buyers what a residential or commercial building will look like. Product developers bring a design to life before production; and medical professionals share details about how a bone is healing or a surgical procedure will be performed. In each case, 3D PDFs provide a streamlined way to share a file in a way that makes it real on the screen.

How do you view 3D content in PDFs?

PDF Editor makes it easy for you to view, navigate, and comment on 3D content in PDF documents. PDF Editor allows you to show or hide parts of a 3D model as needed; and add in 3D comments on model, including text, linear, angular, and radial. You can also rotate, pan, and zoom your 3D model to see what it looks like from any angle, distance, or perspective. PDF Reader also allows you to view, rotate, pan and zoom 3D models, but not to edit them.

Show or hide parts of your 3D model

You can view the 3D scene structure and the preset views. Check/uncheck the appropriate checkbox to show/hide the corresponding part of the 3D content. Click on the Default view button to go to the initial view. Select the desired view name in the list to switch between preset named views. Or save your current viewing settings as a new view.

Add 3D comments and measurements to your 3D model

You can add a 3D comment or measurement to any part of a 3D model with the options you’ll find on the 3D Content Navigation panel. Here’s how:

To add a comment, select Add Comment on the 3D Content Navigation panel. Put the cursor where you’d like to add the comment. Click to add a comment. You will be prompted to enter a comment string in the pop-up dialog box.

To add a measurement, select Add Linear/Add Angular/Add Radial on the 3D Content Navigation panel. Put the cursor where you would like to add the measurement. Click to add the measurement.

In the Default View, a new view is created after you add a 3D comment or measurement. It will be automatically named 3DCommentView1 or MeasurementView1, respectively. Additional comments or measurements added will use the same naming convention, and automatically number them sequentially (3DCommentView2 or MeasurementView2). When you add a comment or measurement to other preset views, the 3D comments/measurements will be listed under that view using the same naming convention.

Rotate, pan, and zoom your 3D model

Use your mouse to rotate, pan, and zoom in/out a 3D model in Rotate mode.

• To rotate, click and hold the left mouse button on any part of the model. Move the mouse in whatever direction you wish to rotate the model. Release when you have rotated as much as you need to.
• To pan, click and hold the left mouse button on any part of the model. Hold the CTRL key (typically on the lower left part of your keyboard) and move the mouse to position the model where you need it.
• To zoom, click and hold the right mouse button on any part of the model. Move the mouse toward the screen to zoom in, and away from the screen to zoom out. You can also click and hold the left mouse button, along with the SHIFT key, and move the mouse in the same way to zoom in or out.
• Or use the devoted Pan and Zoom modes to easily shift the document with standard mouse clicks.

Many benefits for 3D PDF

Manufacturing and architects rely on 3D modeling that’s now done with 3D PDF. Legal firms and courts rely on legal briefs in PDF. A 3D PDF adds data security because your intellectual property is protected if you never share original CAD data. And, PDF is a standard format so almost anyone can view 3D information with 3D PDF, which lets you bring a 3D world to almost everyone with a 2D screen.

For more details, check out our tutorial video here.