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Electronic Theatre Controls Inc

Importing Vectorworks fixture information into Eos Augment3d without a plugin

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"How do I import fixture data into Augment3d?"

There have been changes over the years since the introduction of the Augment3d programming tool into Eos in how to import fixture data into the model. 

Current process (v3.2.0 and higher)

Eos v3.2.0 introduced the feature to import MVR type formats. With that in mind, the need for a special plug-in to install into newer versions of Vectorworks is not needed. 

  1. Create the MVR from Vectorworks
  2.  Take the .mvr file to the Eos desk and choose File > Import > MVR / Capture Model. The same mapping prompts come up and then the fixtures will appear in the model.

History (Prior to v3.2.0)

Augment3d was introduced with Eos v3.0.0 and included many features. One of those features was to be able to bring in fixture information from a Vectorworks file into the Augment3d model. This is how this would work:

  1. The user would install a plug-in provided by ETC into their Vectorworks program
  2. The user would use that plug-in to export the fixture layer to a specially converted .a3d file that Eos could read.
  3. The user would take that file into their Eos platform and use File > Import > Augment3d (from Vectorworks). The user would follow the prompts to map the fixtures to profiles/channels within the Eos showfile.
  4. Fixtures would appear within the Augment3d model with data such as position, labels, and gels.
  5. Scenery from Vectorworks would be imported separately and then brought into the Augment3d model via File > Export > Export COLLADA (3D Only).

 

Vectorworks would release an annual update to the software, so the Eos team would update the plug-in to accommodate the newer version. This was a process done for Vectorworks 2019,  2020, 2021, and 2022.  The rules for a functional plug-in are the following:

  • The newer released plug-ins were backwards compatible. So the version of the plug-in from 2022 could work with Vectorworks 2019.
  • Newer versions of Vectorworks would not work with an older version of the plug-in. So installing the plug-in from 2019 into Vectorworks 2022 would not work.

Is MVR better?

There is actually two big benefits towards moving towards a more universal file format:

  1.  There is no longer a need make sure you have the right version nor need to wait on development of an updated plug-in .
  2. MVR can also contain scenery so now it can be one single import.

 

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