Easily Create 3D Models from Photographs with Autodesk’s Project Photofly

(BUSINESS WIRE)–Autodesk announces the availability of Project Photofly, a technology preview of a web service that allows users to easily create 3D models from photographs using the cloud. Project Photofly is currently available for free* on Autodesk Labs.

The Autodesk Project Photofly technology preview enables architecture, design, media & entertainment and manufacturing firms to easily create 3D models from a series of photographs.

Photofly breaks the barrier to entry to image-based modeling because of its automatic calibration process. The manual calibration of photographs enabled by other technologies is complex and requires a strong expertise to get a good result. Project Photofly utilizes an automatic calibration engine, called “Camera Factory,” which is made available as a web service through a Windows-based client called “Photo Scene Editor.” Customers connect to the Camera Factory through the Photo Scene Editor, and then use their favorite Autodesk 3D modeling software (AutoCAD, Autodesk Revit, Autodesk 3ds Max, etc.) to consume the data in DWG format to model on top of the images.

“Reality capture gives designers and engineers the ability to better measure, analyze, document and plan for projects.”

“Project Photofly brings the possibility of reality capture to designers, creative artists and engineers who didn’t have the resources or expertise for image-based modeling, and expedites the process for those who are used to spending endless hours manually stitching together images to create a 3D model,” said Brian Mathews, vice president of Autodesk Labs. “Reality capture gives designers and engineers the ability to better measure, analyze, document and plan for projects.”

General information about Project Photofly is available immediately at: http://labs.autodesk.com/technologies/photofly. The Photo Scene Editor is immediately available for download at http://labs.autodesk.com/utilities/photo_scene_editor/.