The seventh annual AMC Bridge D3D 2021 conference was held online on October 23. To maximally approximate the online event to the usual conference format, we decided to conduct all the presentations in two streams in one day. Thuswise, D3D 2021 participants could choose their topics of interest and spend time most efficiently.

Our team members presented six engineering reports, and at the Q&A session, Vadym Synakh and Igor Tsinman, the AMC Bridge company co-founders, answered the conference participants’ questions.

An AMC Bridge technical expert, Kyrylo Nazarov, who specializes in geometric modeling, devoted his speech to volumetric modeling and practical approaches to modeling.

“Usually, when talking about volumetric modeling in 3D graphics, lighting and special effects are meant. It’s what was always popular in game development and cinematography. And if you look for information about volumetric modeling, most probably, you will learn how to model steam, volumetric light, or fog. Instead, we talk about the modeling of real things that will go into production.”

Bohdan Nashylnyk, a senior software development engineer at AMC Bridge, presented visual programming in engineering at the D3D 2021 conference.

“One of the visual programming specialties is enabling the creation of models that are impossible to generate manually in the common CAD—various fractal or hollow structures, meshes, and so on.”

By the way, the AMC Bridge team took part in developing an interactive desktop application for generative design. And our teammate shared the experience of working on that app at the conference. He also explained the difference between classic CAD applications and algorithmic modeling using visual programming.

At the conference, Oleh Vovkodav, senior software development engineer at AMC Bridge, clarified why as of today, implicit modeling is actively advancing and finding its niche in the CAD industry, competing with mesh structures and B-rep. Oleh has been working at the company for more than six years. He started as a .NET developer, so he got interested in visualization.

“Any geometry representation type cannot solve all the problems we face. That’s why a particular geometry representation is chosen for every single task. For example, we can use mesh if geometry representation is shown with a set of points and topology, B-rep—if the geometry is presented as a collection of edges and faces, and implicit modeling—if geometry can be expressed in the analytical form or with so-called distance fields. And when we talk about implicit modeling, not only geometry but also different values can be referred to, for example, results of simulations distributed in space.”

Also, Oleh showcased the application using which he generated several implicit models and the operations that the implicit modeling approach performs in the best way possible.

CAD applications—web or desktop? Not so long ago, CAD realization on the web was quite a questionable thing due to the insufficient performance of such apps. But our team member Volodymyr Verbliudov, senior software development engineer, is sure that now the situation has changed. Volodymyr compared web and desktop CAD applications by several parameters—primarily by performance—and presented the results at the event.

“Yes, a desktop version still prevails if the system is demanding in terms of resources, and the drawbacks are minor. The web provides an interface for interaction with a graphics accelerator with minimal overhead, which allows carrying out visualization close to the native one. The estimated JavaScript performance still lags behind the native one, but WebAssembly and the ability to implement logic on a graphics accelerator eliminate the lack of speed. From my experience, I would emphasize the convenience of working with the web from both the developer’s and user’s point of view. But at the moment, it is handier for small models creation.”

For the third time, Veronika Demedetska—an AMC Bridge technical project manager and expert in robotics—has become a D3D speaker. Veronika has been working at the company for more than ten years and has experience of work on projects related to 3D graphics and math, robotics and simulation. This year, she has devoted her presentation to OpenPLC and the ways of programming PLC. Veronika explained what PLC simulation means and what place in the automated systems simulation it takes. She also demonstrated the realization of a simple solution using OpenPLC, ladder logic, and integration with the C# application.

Kyrylo Hulko, a middle software development engineer at AMC Bridge, presented a report about Unreal Engine 5, which currently works only in the early access mode.

“What is Unreal Engine? It is a game engine that works with CAD systems, allows rendering the scene in real time, and supports various CAD files. Lumen—a new dynamic system of global illumination and reflection in Unreal Engine 5 designed for the next-generation console. With the new Unreal Engine 5, the light became more natural, and shadows—more scattered and realistic. And you can use high-poly models that do not interfere with the performance of the game engine.”

At the end of the conference, the co-founders of the AMC Bridge company, Igor Tsinman and Vadym Synakh, answered the participants’ questions. They shared their opinion regarding the way the pandemic influenced the IT industry, talked about the key stages of the company development, and about the values of the AMC Bridge team.