Nvidia has unveiled a new 3D rendering system which takes complete advantage of cloud computing.
Called the Nvidia RealityServer the system has been created in partnership with 3D modelling specialists Mental Images (a subsidiary of Nvidia) and takes the hard work out of rendering complex 3D graphics, transferring the rendering process from your computer to the web.
Nvidia is so impressed with the RealityServer that it has called the launch as a "culmination of nearly 40 collective years of hardware and software engineering by Nvidia and Mental Images" and something which "enables developers to create a new generation of consumer and enterprise 3D web applications, all with remarkable levels of photorealism."
Photo-realistic
For the end user the RealityServer will mean that websites could come complete with photo-realistic renders which take moments to load as it's not your system doing the hard work but Nvidia's own servers.
It will also mean 3D interactivity on the web like nothing we have seen before.
Nvidia's list of examples of just what the RealityServer could bring is as follows:
- Automobile product engineering teams will be able to securely share and visualize complex 3D models of cars under different lighting and environmental conditions.
- Architects and their clients will be able to review sophisticated architectural models, rendered in different settings, including day or night.
- Online shoppers will be able to interactively design home interiors, rearrange furniture, and view how fabrics will drape, all with perfectly accurate lighting.
Speaking about the launch, Dan Vivoli, Senior Vice President, Nvidia said: "This is one giant leap closer to the goal of real-time photorealistic visual computing for the masses.
"Mental Images fully embraced the concept of GPU co-processing to enable Interactive photorealism anywhere, any time – something that was science fiction just yesterday."
A developer edition of RealityServer 3.0 software will be downloadable free of charge, including the right to deploy non-commercial applications.
If, however, you are a website looking to use the tech for commercial gain, then licensing fees start at $3,000 per GPU.
