3D Scene Glossary

Terms commonly used when managing your 3D scenes.

Term	Description
Bake	To permanently apply the position, rotation, and scale properties of a mesh while keeping the geometry in place. Baking resets the scale to 1, the rotation to 0, and the relative position to 0. Baking these fundamental properties of a mesh can make the mesh easier to manipulate using Snap rules. Do not confuse bake with collapse.
Barycenter	A calculated point in space, considered the average of a collection of points. As the points in that collection move, the barycenter also changes. For a specific example, see the Weld Vertices Feature.
Collapse	To permanently replace the geometry of a mesh with the geometry generated by the feature stack, and then destroy the stack. Collapsing the features on a mesh can make it simpler in the scene and faster to process. However, the features can no longer be changed during run-time with Snap rules, and in some cases the resulting geometry may actually be more complex. Do not confuse collapse with bake.
Edge	A part of a Mesh. It appears as a line connecting two vertices, and defines the edge of a face.
Face	A part of a Mesh. It appears as the space defined by edges and vertexes.
Gizmo	A visual handle that lights up around the object’s origin when it is selected and a tool (such as the move or rotate tool) is clicked. You can either… drag the handles on the gizmo to adjust the properties of that tool visually (in the 3D viewport), or watch the handles change as you adjust the properties of the object logically (in the properties tab). Usually, scene designers first drag the gizmo handles to perform most of the transformation they want, and then type the precise values desired into the properties tab. Remember the gizmo for an object always surrounds the origin of that object. Usually the origin is in the center of the object’s geometry, but it can be somewhere else. If you select an object and click a tool that should show you a gizmo, but don’t see the gizmo in the viewport, then the origin of the object may be off-screen: use “frame scene” to be sure both the object’s geometry and origin are visible.
Mesh	A mesh is an object in the 3D scene your user can see. Every mesh is a collection of vertices, edges, and faces in 3D space. A vertex is a point in 3D space. An edge is a line that connects two of these points. A face is a plane bound by 3 or more edges. The faces of the mesh are the surfaces your user sees. By aligning these faces correctly, you can create a 3D shape as simple as a cube, or as complex as an automobile.
Normal	A synonym for “perpendicular to” or “at ninety degrees to.” An opposite term to “parallel”. For example, a person stands normal to the ground. A person usually sleeps parallel to the ground. Every polygon in a mesh has a normal, which is an invisible vector pointing directly up from the surface of the polygon, perpendicular to it, like a handle. A normal texture in a material can alter these normals, making any mesh painted with the material look like it has a textured surface even though the geometry is unchanged. Normal smoothing is a feature that averages normals together, smoothing the transition between from one face to another.
Node or Object	Another name for an item in the scene. The most common objects are mesh nodes (which your user can see), but also includes logical objects such as mates, viewpoints, lights, and sketch paths (which your user cannot see directly).
Origin	The point in 3D space from where an object is positioned.  Every object must have an origin, including the scene itself. The scene origin is the exact center of the scene, where the X Y and Z axes meet.  The origin of a mesh is by default in the center of that mesh’s geometry.  However, it can be moved anywhere through the move vertices feature. Any transformations made to the object are done in relation to this origin point. For example, a mesh representing a long pipe can have its origin at the center of the pipe, or at one of the ends. Rules that change the position of the pipe to align it with other meshes may position it strangely, if the origin is not in an expected place. The origin of a nested scene always aligns with the origin of the parent scene. The origin of multiple meshes is always the mathematical average of all the origins of the meshes within it. For greater control, place the meshes within a group node, and then modify the origin of the group.
Pivot	The point in 3D space around which an object is rotated. By default this is the same as the origin. However, the pivot of an object can be anywhere, including outside the bounds of the object’s mesh. Adjust the pivot of a mesh using the object properties.
Render/ Rendering	To “render” is to create a 2D image from a 3D scene.  This image is called a “rendering” of the scene. Just as a camera in the real world can can take a 2D picture of its 3D surroundings, a viewpoint within a 3D scene can render a 2D rendering of that scene.  Renderings are often used in output documents, to give the document an attractive cover page of the configured product, like the user saw it on-screen as they saved their configuration.
Rotation Mode	The philosophy used to describe how an object is rotated in 3D space. Two rotation modes are available in the scene creator: Euler and Axis & Angle. Both have their strengths and weaknesses, and are appropriate for different situations. Learn more about rotation modes.
Scene	The virtual space in which all 3D design takes place. Like a theater stage for actors and lights and cameras, A 3D scene contains all the 3D objects within it and gives them an environment where they can appear.
Vector	Three numbers stored together and written as [x,y,z]. A vector can represent A position in space. For example, the position of the scene origin can be expressed as the vector [0,0,0] One way of describing a rotation in space called “Euler rotation”. Learn more about Rotation Modes . A direction away from a point. For example, the vector [1,0,0] can mean to move an object 1 unit up the X axis. This is used, among other places, in the Linear Pattern Feature . Use the vector Snap block to create and manipulate vectors.
Vertex	A part of a Mesh. Vertexes are the points where the edges of a mesh meet.
xR Mode	xR is a general term, referring to both Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR). When a person views a 3D scene on certain devices with rear-facing cameras (like smart phones and tablets), xR merges the 3D scene with the device’s camera. This makes the virtual-world objects in the scene appear in the context of the user’s real-world physical surroundings. This can be useful for understanding the size or configuration of the custom product in situ (in the location where it is intended to be used). For example, a chair configurator can be viewed in the living room where the chair would be used. An awning could appear over the actual window where it is intended to be installed. Learn more about xR mode in the properties of the scene node itself. Note that xR is a new standard and some features may not be compatible with some systems. Learn more about Epicor CPQ system requirements.