We received quite a surprising request for a shipyard 3D model suitable for virtual reality (VR) training last year. Such locations look close to the ports that we regularly create for professional applications (simulation, training, and visualization) with many standard features – piers, water breaks, storage facilities like tanks and warehouses, loading, carriage, and unloading machines, etc. Thus, we were able to use a vast 3D library of standard props, vehicles, and textures, and this project seemed not too difficult for us, and we got down to work immediately.

We can see Geospatial Systems everywhere nowadays – from food ordering applications in our mobile phones to global transportation and goods tracking platforms. The fourth industrial revolution has given rise to an unlimited number of data sources – satellite-based systems, various sensors, mobile devices, the Internet of Things (IoT), 5G networks, and many others. Regardless of the purpose, clear and understandable visualization is a critical component of such applications, whatever data source is used.

When 3D visualization is used, the models can be derived from BIM, CAD applications, 3D scanners, photometry, or 3D modeling software. For low-end platforms such as mobile devices, WEB applications, or office workstations, the performance of 3D models is essential, so using unoptimized graphics data is still problematic despite a widespread increase in computing power. The hand-made accurate real-time models look most suitable in this case.

One of the most complicated terrain databases we have made recently is Ras Laffan Port, located 80 km from Doha, Qatar’s capital. It is one of the largest Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) ports and the world’s biggest artificial harbor.

We have been developing our ship 3D models library for several years. We’re passionate about this turnkey project and drawing maximum attention to our models’ quality and relevance. After we have created the main types of merchant ships, our team faced making one of the most impressive ships – a cruise liner.

We created a short virtual experience of modern architecture. This free VR application allows one to look at the iconic skyscrapers in Qatar’s capital: World Trade Center Doha, Burj Doha Tower, Al Bidda Tower, and others.

Rail transport is an essential element of the surface transportation system. Both freight and passenger services have been increasing competition with road and air over the past years and going through the modernization of infrastructure, hardware, and software. Authorities all around the world are making efforts to expand the role of railways in transporting goods and passengers.

That is reflected in the computer training and simulation systems – they require more and more realistic and complex 3D content. Being a modern technology company, EDGED follows these changes and offers customers its best expertise in making real-time 3D models and terrain databases.

We make several terrain databases a year. But all of them are proprietary to our customers and, of course, we can’t use them for our needs. That’s why we decided to make our own port 3D model, which we could use as a playground for experiments, marketing purposes, and sell it as an off-the-shelf product in the future.

We didn’t want to waste too much 3D modeling resources, so at the first stage, we concentrated on the selection of the right geographical location. Old European or US ports are good candidates to be built, but they look too complicated and are distributed in large areas. We decided to choose a young and compact port and narrowed down the investigation to the African and Asian regions.

Oil platforms are one of the most magnificent engineering structures nowadays. Many resources are required for their construction and maintenance. They are massive and complex. Except for the equipment involved in oil extraction, platforms contain many extra modules to provide their work and self-sufficiency. And their re-supply is carried out by aviation and special class of vessels (OSV).

Naturally, the functionality of such a complicated system is impossible without a highly-qualified staff of a dozen of various professions. And modern technologies like computer simulation, virtual reality systems, safety briefing videos, and others are used to train this staff.

Based on this, we decided to include the offshore oil rig 3D model into our COTS library. We chose the Malikai Tension-Leg Platform (TLP) located 100-kilometers off the coast of Sabah (Malaysia) as a prototype. This choice was affected by the classic appearance and source materials’ availability on the Web.