The Virtalis Reach Edge
Use the Virtalis Reach Edge to view and interact with visualisations that you have been granted access to on the Visualisations home page.
The Virtalis Reach Hub
Use the Virtalis Reach Hub to add and publish new content to a visualisation or project that you have been granted access to. Assets can be uploaded to the server, transformed and optimised. Projects are also created and assets are added to them to create visualisations.
You can edit existing and create new Projects and Assets.
Access the Virtalis Reach Hub by adding /hub to the Virtalis Reach web address. For example https://reach.domain/hub.
Please Note: Only authorised users can access the hub and this is enabled by the server administrator.
Once connected, you will see three icons on the left-hand side of the screen. These are, from top to bottom, the Projects, Library and Job Status pages. Click an icon to open the relevant page.
Projects
Use this page to configure how data is processed to create visualisations. You can select and edit a project from the list of available projects you have access to or create a new project. Click a project in the list to open it or click + New project.
Refer to Create a New Project for further information.
When you open a project, you can use the General, Visualisation, Access and Publication tabs to view and edit the project properties.
Click Advanced to view and edit the advanced configuration options for the project.
Click Syntax Reference in the advanced project configuration page to display an example project structure and project information requirements.
Refer to Appendix A - JSON Template Processor Rules for further information.
Click Save changes (if available) or Publish Now when you have finished editing/creating a project.
Switch to the Job Status page to view the status of the jobs being processed.
Once completed, to open the project click:
- The project in the Job Status page
- The project in the Projects page
- The yellow icon on the bottom left-hand side of the page to return to the Visualisations page
If the project was configured to publish when the source data changes, then it will be published when you initially save it.
Create a New Project
Follow the steps outlined below to create a new project.
1. Project Settings
From the Projects page, click + New project.
Enter a project name, select who can edit the project and if you want to allow scripts.
When completed, click Next to open the Configure Visualisation page.
2. Configure Visualisation
Use this page to select and configure the assets to add to the project.
Click Add asset to open a list of assets that are available in your Library. Select the asset or assets you want to add to your project. Refer to Import assets for further information.
You can add multiple assets, if available, to the project.
You can also add custom rules that will apply to the entire project. The rules are specified as JSON and can be used to change the property of any node within the product, for example changing the diffuse value of a specific material or removing nodes from an asset for security reasons. Refer to Appendix A - JSON Template Processor Rules for further information.
Once you have selected the asset or assets, click Add.
When completed, click Next to open the Share Settings page.
3. Share Settings
Use this page to select the groups that can access the published visualisation. These groups are user-specific and have been added by the server administrator.
When completed, click Next to open the Ready to Publish page.
4. Ready to Publish
Use this page to select one of the following publication schedule options from the drop-down list:
- Manually (default option)
- Daily at a specific hour
- When the source data changes
Select a publication schedule option and click Save or Save and publish. You can switch to the Job Status page to view the status of your project publication.
Please note: Publication times are shown in the user's local time.
Once completed, to open the project click:
- The project in the Job Status page
- The yellow icon on the bottom left-hand side of the page to return to the Visualisations page
Library
Library
Use this page to browse all the assets available for use in projects. You can update existing assets or, if no assets are available, click + New asset to upload and add new assets.
Import Assets
Follow the steps outlined below to import assets.
1. Choose Data
Use this page to upload your asset file or folder by dragging it onto the page or click to browse for your file. You can choose Visionary Render data, or, for example, some Siemens or PTC CAD formats. If the model is made up of many parts, select the radio button of the main, or header file.
Once selected, the file will automatically begin to upload. When the upload is complete, click Next to open the Configure Access page.
2. Configure Access
Use this page to set the groups that can access the visualisation. The groups are system and user specific and have been added by the server administrator.
Once configured, click Import. The Ready for Import page will open and display the upload status.
Use the Job Status page to view the status of the jobs being processed.
3. Ready for Import
Use this page to view the upload status of your asset data import.
When the upload is complete and has been processed into an asset, you can switch to the Projects page and add it to your project or create a new project.
Job Status
Use this page to view data that has been, or is currently being, processed by Virtalis Reach.
Job Cancellation
Click Cancel to cancel an in-progress job on the Job Status page. Virtalis Reach will attempt to cancel the job by halting the current process and then cleaning up any data that had already been written.
The time it takes to cancel a job can vary and is affected by factors such as the job’s current stage of completion and how much clean-up is required after cancelling.
Please note: It may not always be possible to cancel a running job. In such cases the job will continue to completion.
Click OK on the confirmation dialog to request cancellation of the job.
When the job cancellation has been completed the Job Status will change accordingly.
View Visualisation
Click View, to the right of every completed project publish job, to open the visualisation.
Please note: The View button is only available for Project Publish jobs. It will not appear against Data Added jobs.
