AR for Engineering

Interactive 3D & AR for engineering and design

Let a reviewer, student, or client turn the part and place the assembly on a real bench — without a CAD license or a heavy file download.

Engineering work is created in 3D but shared as 2D drawings, screenshots, and PDFs that lose the spatial information that matters. AcademicAR publishes a CAD export as an interactive viewer with augmented reality, so a part, mechanism, or assembly can be rotated, examined, and placed at true scale on a desk or in a room — without anyone needing a CAD seat.

Export from SolidWorks, Fusion 360, Onshape, Blender, or any tool that writes GLB/OBJ/STL/FBX, upload, and share a QR code on a report, poster, datasheet, or course handout.

Why engineering needs interactive 3D

Drawings lose the third dimension.

An interactive model conveys fit, clearance, and form in a way orthographic views and renders can't.

AR validates real-world scale.

Placing a part or assembly at full size in the actual space catches size and ergonomics issues early.

No CAD seat to review.

Stakeholders open the model in a browser instead of installing software or wrangling a STEP file.

How it works

  1. 01

    Upload your model

    Drop in a GLB, STL, OBJ, or FBX file. It's converted and optimized for the web automatically.

  2. 02

    Get a viewer & QR code

    You get an interactive 3D viewer with tap-to-place AR, a short link, and a permanent QR code.

  3. 03

    Share anywhere

    Place the QR code on a slide, poster, handout, label, or paper — no app, no headset for your audience.

Ways engineering teams use it

Design reviews & reports

Share an interactive assembly so reviewers explore the geometry instead of flipping through rendered views.

Teaching mechanisms & CAD

Give students a rotatable model of the exact part on the slide to inspect features and tolerances.

Posters & capstone showcases

A QR code lets visitors open and place your design at full scale at a conference or expo.

Engineering FAQ

Which CAD exports work?

Export to GLB, OBJ, STL, or FBX from your CAD or 3D tool. (Tessellate solids to a mesh first — AcademicAR works with meshes, not native CAD or STEP files.)

Can I show an assembly with multiple parts?

Yes — export the assembly as a single mesh with its materials and it views as one interactive model.

Do reviewers need any software?

No. The viewer is a web page and AR placement runs in the browser on most modern phones and tablets.

Can I set the model to real dimensions?

Yes — set a scale reference so AR placement matches the part's true size.

Are my files kept private?

You choose whether a model is public. Private models are only reachable by you and the people you share the link with.

Explore other fields

Publish your first engineering model

Create a free account, upload a model, and share an interactive 3D & AR figure in minutes.