1.

Introduction and Preparation 

This guide will walk you through the basics of installing and working with Fologram for
Mobile and Fologram for Rhino for the first time. After completing the guide you should be
able to prepare models for mixed reality and confidently stream your own Rhino models to
your mobile device without issues. You will also be able to accurately locate your models in
physical space to create mixed reality presentations and share these models with multiple
devices.

Who should complete this guide:

This guide is intended for first time users of Fologram.

How long will it take?

You should be able to finish the guide in under an hour.

What do I need before I start?

Make sure you have access to a mobile phone or tablet that supports ARKit (​for iOS devices
see a full list here​) or ARCore (​for Android devices see a full list here​).

You will also need a laptop or PC running Rhino. ​You can get a free evaluation copy of
Rhino here.

Finally, make sure your phone and PC can access the same WiFi network.

I think I'm in the wrong place...

Looking for the HoloLens beginners guide? ​Check it out here.

Already had some experience with Fologram? ​Perhaps try a few of the examples from our
Community​.
2. What is Mixed Reality (and how does it work on my Phone)? 

Mixed Reality (MR) refers to environments that blend digital content with physical space.
Mixed Reality and Augmented Reality (AR) are terms that are often used interchangeably,
though we try to use MR to describe environments where digital models are actively ​affected
by their physical environment as opposed to merely overlaid within a users field of view.
Some examples of MR include when digital models are fixed in a particular place in a
physical space (such as on a desk, construction site or physical tool), or when physical
objects occlude the rendering of digital models, creating the illusion that the digital object has
been hidden behind something real. Fologram provides a kit of tracking tools that allow
designers to further affect digital models with their physical gestures, movement of devices,
scans of physical environments and QR codes and more.
How does my phone position models in space?

Your phone will use a combination of sensors (such RGB and depth camera frames,
accelerometer and gyroscope data) to work out how it is being moved around in physical
space (called pose estimation) and render digital models that appear fixed in one location
over time. ARKit and ARCore are two software packages that are getting very good at pose
estimation by detecting many points of high contrast from your phone's camera(s) and
tracking the movement of these points to infer the motion of your phone.

What is Mixed Reality really good for on Mobile?

Mobile mixed reality is a familiar, fast, reliable way to experience digital models in context
and at scale. Because most people are by now familiar with touch interfaces on smart
phones, mobile mixed reality is an intuitive way to introduce new users to digital design
processes through simple, fun and shared experiences. Mobile mixed reality is also a
fantastic way to create high-quality video documentation of mixed reality experiences that
may include other devices such as the HoloLens 1 and 2.
3. Installing Fologram for Mobile and Fologram for Rhino 

Fologram is a collection of apps and plugins that run on mixed reality devices and integrate
with Rhino and Grasshopper. To view your own models with Fologram, you will need both.

Installing Fologram for Mobile

Fologram for Mobile is a free app (with a paid subscription to save models and unlock
unlimited grasshopper parameters) and no account is required for download and installation.
You can get Fologram for Mobile for your phone or tablet by searching for Fologram on the
App Store​ (for iOS devices) or ​Google Play​ (Android). You may be prompted to update your
version of iOS or Android, or to install ARKit or ARCore. Make sure you do so if required.

Installing Fologram for Rhino (and Grasshopper)

Fologram for Rhino and Grasshopper is completely free to download and install on any
laptop or PC that runs Rhino 5 or above. You can get Fologram for Rhino from ​our website
here​, or from ​Food4Rhino​. To install Fologram for Rhino, follow these steps:

1. Download the Fologram for Rhino plugin​.

2. Close any open Rhino windows.
3. Double click the FologramForRhino.rhi installer file. Choose 'Just Me' when prompted
- this will allow you to install Fologram on shared PCs and without administrator
rights.
4. Hit Next to begin installation. Fologram should install for all detected versions of
Rhino that you have installed.
5. Start Rhino.
6. Type the ​Fologram​ command to launch the Fologram plugin window, or click on the
Fologram icon in the toolbar.
4. Viewing a saved model in mixed reality 

Now that you have Fologram installed it's time to take the app for a test drive. Fologram
comes with two example models to test mixed reality experiences at different scales. The
Villa Savoye model was created by VisualArq (a BIM modelling plugin for Rhino) and is
saved at 1:100 scale. The Steampunk Pavilion is the ​same design model we used to
assemble the pavilion in Tallinn​ and is saved at 1:1 so you can walk through and explore the
structure as if you were there.

Launching Fologram and granting permissions

Tap the Fologram icon from your home screen on your mobile or tablet to launch the
app. When Fologram is run for the first time, you will need to allow permission for the app to
access your microphone, camera and disk. Fologram needs camera access to run, so
without granting this you won't be able to go much further in this guide. We need microphone
and disk access to save images and video of mixed reality experiences.

Opening the models panel

After granting permissions, Fologram will display a camera feed and prompt you to scan a
QR code to connect to rhino, or load a saved model. Tap the Models button in the
bottom bar to open the models window. Then tap on the Steampunk Pavilion model to place
the model in physical space.

How to map your space for model placement

Your phone will now prompt you to move around to map your space. Slowly walk around
your room and take care to point your phone at surfaces that you will want to place your
model on (e.g. floors, desks etc). The goal here is to show enough of your space to your
phone that it can detect feature points and begin to track the movement of your device - so
try to avoid large blank surfaces (especially black or transparent ones). Floor boards and
cluttered desks tend to track well!
Placing your model and going for a tour

Try to map the floor of your space - once the floor is tracked Fologram will display a
placement surface as a white hexagonal grid. Move the target over one of this grid and then
tap on your phone screen to place your model in this location. Note - the model is at 1:1 so it
will be pretty large! You can now walk around your room and explore the pavilion. Be careful
not to accidentally cover your phone camera (or put it too close to a wall or blank surface) or
you might lose tracking and need to replace your model. Don't worry if you do, we will cover
that next.
Re-placing and scaling the Pavilion

You might have placed the pavilion model in a physical space that makes some parts of it
hard to see or access. You can easily re-place your model by opening the Edit panel and
then tapping the Reset button with the same icon. This will return you to the place screen
where you can tap on the hexagonal grid to place your model. While the edit panel is open,
you can also move, rotate and scale your model using multi touch gestures. Drag on the
square grid with one finger to move the model origin, perform a pinch gesture with two
fingers to scale the model up or down, and draw with two fingers to rotate the model around
the origin.

Take some happy snaps

Tap the camera trigger (the big circle in the bottom bar) to take a composite image of what
you are viewing in mixed reality. Tapping and holding the same button will record a video.

To learn more about the Steampunk Pavilion, check out this ​short video that takes a behind
the scenes look at its design and construction.
5. Preparing your Rhino models for mixed reality 

Now that you've learned how to map your space, track surfaces, place and re-scale the
Steampunk Pavilion model you're ready to start working with your own designs. This means
learning a little bit about what Fologram is doing under the hood in order to avoid common
pitfalls and issues that can arise from streaming messy, complex, massive, tiny, imported or
transparent models. Let's take a look at each of these issues one by one.

Mesh generated from NURBS patches.

Fologram works with meshes, even if your model is NURBS.

Most of the time when you are modelling in Rhino you will be working with NURBS
geometry. NURBS geometry is generated by interpolating curves and surfaces through
control points, and is very useful for accurately describing curving shapes. Meshes on the
other hand describe geometry as finite lists of vertices and faces. Meshes are used by
computers to render shapes to the screen, and Rhino will secretly mesh all of your geometry
for exactly this reason using something called the ​Render Mesh​. You can see how Rhino is
meshing your model for display using the ​ShowRenderMesh ​command. You can think of
Fologram as working with a similar mesh - Fologram converts your curving shapes to a
bunch of triangles. If your model is already a mesh then Fologram will simply stream this
directly without doing any conversion.

Every Triangle Counts.

Every triangle has to be streamed over WiFi from your PC running Rhino to your mobile
phone. Large models often have hundreds of thousands of triangles, and these can take a
second or more to appear on your device, losing that delightful sense of instant feedback.
Every mobile device will have different maximum polygon counts and performance limits, but
a good rule of thumb for mixed reality experiences is that less is more. Try to keep
experiences simple and responsive.
This means model details matter

Because Fologram meshes your geometry you should be careful when working with very
detailed surfaces such as those created by the Pipe, Sweep or FilletEdges commands.
These typically create very detailed meshes and as a good rule of thumb if the
ShowRenderMesh​ command is looking very detailed, you may also be streaming a lot of
geometry with Fologram - even detail that would be too small to see.

And it also means that you can custom mesh your own models

You can use the ​Mesh​ command in Rhino to create a mesh from your NURBS geometry
using custom parameters or a simple sliding scale. This will allow you to create simpler
meshes from complex shapes like pipes, or more complex meshes from very small shapes
(where Fologram's meshing may not be detailed enough).

Working with huge meshes already?

If you are working with 3D scans or models created using photogrammetry then you are
likely already working with very large mesh models that will take a long time to stream or
may not load at all. You can use the Rhino ​ReduceMesh c​ ommand, or the Fologram
Decimate Mesh component to simplify .

Imported models and blocks

You can use Fologram with any model type that can be imported into Rhino (.obj or .ply etc).
Some software packages export objects as block instances that are not currently supported
by Fologram. Explode these blocks using the ​SelBlockInstance​ command to select them all
and the ​ExplodeBlock​ command to remove block data before streaming them with Fologram.

Work around the Origin

When working with referenced models your design might be in a specific location relative to
a known setout point or GIS data. This can make it very difficult to find your model in a mixed
reality experience because Fologram asks you to place the origin (0,0,0 point) of your Rhino
model in mixed reality (while your model may be very far away). Make a copy of your Rhino
document and move your model to the origin to ensure you can easily find it first time.

Working at scale

Typically designers will model in Rhino at 1:1 and scale prints and other media as required.
Placing very large models at 1:1 in mixed reality can be difficult as your view of the design
may be obscured by large walls or other surfaces in your model. Use the Apply Scale button
in the Fologram plugin window to reduce the model scale to something more manageable
before placing in mixed reality.
6. Understanding advantages to mixed reality models 

Mixed Reality models can be an excellent substitute for physical models in design
presentations and reviews, and can even be used to augment and overlay physical sites,
prototypes, spaces, maquettes, drawings, tools, people, clothes and objects of any type.
Mixed reality models have several advantages over their physical counterparts:

1. They can be experienced at any scale.

2. They are very fast (instant) to make and modify.
3. The can be animated, from functional to cinematic.
4. They can be interactive like a physical model, or interactive like an app.
5. They are effectively free and produce no waste.
6. They can be as realistic or magical as required.

These advantages are well worth considering when preparing a model for a presentation in
mixed reality. You should ​design the experience​ for the audience. Which parts should they
walk through and which should they view at scale? Should the design be changed during the
presentation? Should you show several options? How will the mixed reality model benefit
from its physical context? What opportunities are there for surprise? How can you engage
the audience with interactive elements?

Keep these in mind as we move through the guide.

7. Streaming models from Rhino 

Make sure you have been through the articles on preparing your own models and designing
mixed reality experiences before continuing with this guide. We will use the Barcelona
Pavilion (modeled by Christopher McAdams from Temple University and ​Plural​) as an
example since while the geometry is very simple we have the opportunity to work a lot with
different materials and can create a sequence of spatial experiences (from 1:1 walk throughs
to interacting with the geometry of the structure) that capitalize on the Mies van der Rohe's
design.

You can download the model from the attachment on this page.

Streaming the model to Fologram for Mobile

Make sure your PC and Mobile are on the same WiFi network, then open the Barcelona
Pavilion model in Rhino. Type ​Fologram​ to open the Fologram plugin window, and click on
the ​Connect A Device​ button to display your connection QR code.

Now launch Fologram on your mobile phone and scan the QR code to connect. Move your
phone around the room until you detect a surface on the floor, then tap to place the pavilion
model. I've placed the origin on the corner of the pool so you will either be standing in the
water or right next to it. Don't fall in!

Playing with materials

I've already assigned a few materials to this model. Since we're connected to Fologram we
will be able to preview and adjust the materials and texture mapping in real time in mixed
reality and make sure everything is looking exactly how we want it. Go ahead and make a
few changes - note that things like reflection aren't well suited to mixed reality as the real,
physical environment isn't being reflected in your digital objects(yet).

Playing with scale

Try setting the scale factor to 0.02 (1:50) in the Fologram plugin window. Replace the model
on a table surface using the Edit panel in Fologram. Try moving the model a little bit, then
scaling it back to 1:1. This is can be a good way to rapidly move from one place to another
with large models.

Interactivity and design games

It can be fun to interact with designs in mixed reality at both 1:1 and at scale. While the
model is at 1:1, try walking inside the pavilion and moving the Onyx wall around by tapping
on it and dragging. Maybe move it outside! How is the space changed?

At 1:50 scale, try taking the roof off the model (you can also do this by toggling the visibility
in the Fologram Layers panel). How are the shadows changed? How is the experience
different when you go back to 1:1?

Making changes in Rhino

Finally, try adding to the model in Rhino. Make a new sculpture for the pool, or design a new
roof. Keep checking your design at 1:1 in mixed reality. Is the experience the same in Rhino
and in Fologram? Try assigning different materials (concrete and timber work really well) and
asking yourself the same questions. Don't forget to save your Rhino model (or save to your
device if you have a subscription) if you want to keep your changes for later.
8. Learn to share models with QR codes then join the Fologram 
Community to find examples, ideas, projects, help and more 

Now that you've learned how to create interactive, mixed reality presentations from Rhino
models it's time to take the next step and learn about some of Fologram's more powerful
features.

First work your way through our 3 simple articles that cover how to create shared sessions
and accurately place models using Fologram's QR codes.

Then get started with Fologram for Grasshopper. Fologram's grasshopper components allow
you to:

● View your mobile phone or Hololens in real time in Rhino

● Detect taps, gestures and hand rays and use these as inputs to your parametric
models
● Read and track QR codes and Aruco markers
● Stream the mesh of any detected surfaces or spaces
● Interact with parametric geometry
● Animate geometry and materials
● Control sliders, buttons, toggles and drop down menus on your mobile phone and
Hololens
● Build custom mixed reality user interfaces
● Control physical simulations like Kangaroo or Karamba in mixed reality

... and a whole lot more. The best way to start learning Fologram for Grasshopper is to work
through the ​examples on our Community​. You can also get help with learning Rhino and
Grasshopper, learn how to use ​Fologram for fabrication and construction​, ​solve common
technical issues​, find ​academic literature on mixed reality​ and ​explore projects that our
community have built with Fologram.​ See you there.