Multiple VR headsets in direct collaboration mode

#1

Hello, currently one can only have one VR user in direct collaboration mode. Would it be possible to add more VR users to a direct session, please?

I am an architect and I often meet a Client in the office or at their place over my laptop computer. More recently, I am talking my VR headset with me.

I would like to be able to add, move, change objects or edit the model while next to the Client in VR. For more complex operations, I would leave the headset aside and perform them directly on the computer while the Client remained in VR.

I wouldn’t want clients to be able to edit the model themselves, just to watch what I am doing either directly on the computer or in VR.

Would this be feasible? Many thanks and great work by the way :slight_smile:

#2

Hello!

I am unsure of exactly what you mean by “add more VR users to a direct session”, but I can describe the various options that are already available. It seems that they already give you what you ask for.

Let me assume that you are using your laptop computer on which Sketchup is installed, and either you have a Quest standalone headset, or the laptop is a PC with a good graphics card and you are carrying a tethered VR headset.

You can run VR Sketch from Sketchup in this situation, and get exactly what you are asking for. You can make changes to the model in Sketchup, and the person in VR sees them immediately. Or you can be in VR, and make changes, and they are immediately visible in Sketchup on the laptop screen.

There is an option to disable editing from VR if you want to prevent the client from doing any change (in Sketchup, see Extensions -> VR Sketch -> Configuration), but usually we find that it is not really needed because doing accidental changes in VR requires quite a few steps.

Did I answer your question? Or do you have a different use case in mind (maybe several VR headsets)?

#3

Thank you so much for the prompt reply. Yes, it is different headsets on the same wifi network that I had in mind- apologies.

Your described scenario works a treat, by the way. The difference between your scenario and mine would therefore be additional headsets with no editing rights.

Also, I am moving away from the Wild, which I have been using for nearly 2 years now and, having just discovered your product, you may be the one to move to. I would tho’ miss the ability to edit models in the cloud collaborative environment. Again, the behaviour would be as in the direct collaborative scenario described above (one editor only, i.e. paid subscribers) and guests with no editing rights i.e. free subscription) If this came with the ability to save a collaboration session (as a model with a different name) would be a bonus, and so would having the ability as editor to move between VR headset and a computer during the collaboration session (essentially a direct collaboration scenario in parallel with the one in the cloud). I hope this makes sense.

With regards to ‘usually we find that it is not really needed because doing accidental changes in VR requires quite a few steps’ in my experience with the wild, the fewer the options for the clients (guests), the better as they tend not to be as ‘computer literate’ as the architect and they can very easily be overwhelmed by a busy interface. So, the simpler the interface, the more likely the clients are to come back in VR. Of course, having access to some basic tools (such as taking dimensions or changing the time of day) would be essential.

Would any of this be feasible? Thank you!

#4

With multiple headsets, there are two options available, and I think you’re looking for the “Collaborative editing” one (Extensions -> VR Sketch -> Collaborative editing). It is the same basic scenario as I described above, but with multiple headsets all connected to a single Sketchup. You can still view or edit in Sketchup, or in the headsets, like before. And like the pure cloud-based option (Extensions -> VR Sketch -> View cloud model) you see the other VR users as “avatars”.

License-wise, you need a license on the Sketchup side, not on the headsets’ side, so one license is valid for any number of headsets connected to one Sketchup.

There is no way right now to disable editing in a single headset. The previous option disables it in all headsets. However, the user interface in VR is not actually simplified; it just makes 80% of the tools non-working. We might improve that at some point. In practice, we found that it is generally enough to explain to the user how to teleport, with the trigger, and have them avoid the other controller buttons. Some users may quickly feel confident enough to change tools and take measures, for example, while others may definitely not; I see your point that there might be some intermediate category of users which would use that if the interface was simplified.

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#5

Thank you, this makes sense.