November 13, 2017
For PCs equipped with an NVIDIA Quadro graphics card and running the Geomagic Design X software, we highly recommend adjusting certain parameters in the NVIDIA Control Panel. These adjustments are outlined further below and will allow the Design X software to utilize the full potential of the Quadro graphics card.
Due to Artec Studio's ability of directly transferring 3D meshes into Design X, many users have both programs installed on the same PC. We have therefore extensively tested the impact of the NVIDIA adjustments on Artec Studio.
It was concluded that all Artec Studio algorithms which make use of the NVIDIA GPU (i.e. the real-time fusion scanning mode, the texture mapping algorithm and the 3D rendering of large datasets) are either unimpacted or impacted positively by the suggested adjustments.
Note: In order for Artec Studio to function correctly in combination with an NVIDIA Quadro graphics card, a very specific driver version is required. Please click here and install the correct driver version before proceeding to any of the adjustments outlined below.
The NVIDIA Control Panel can be accessed through the Windows Control Panel, and the settings need to be adjusted as follows:
1. Adjust image settings with preview
Select "Use the advanced 3D image settings" option:
2. Manage 3D settings - Global Settings
Choose Dassault Systemes CATIA - compatible under "Global presets", then select High-performance NVIDIA processor under "Preferred graphics processor" (this last option is only available if your PC has Intel and NVIDIA dual graphics):
3. Manage 3D settings - Program Settings
Select 3D Systems Geomagic Solutions using the "Add" button and select Prefer maximum performance in "Power management mode":
4. In Design X, switch Hardware Multi-thread Rendering Support in Preferences to "True":
Additionally: working with huge datasets in Design X
Here are a couple of useful parameters, that 3D Systems team had shared with us. These parameters are especially beneficial, if you are using huge data sets and you have a lot of main memory (RAM):
- Consider to turn off the option "Use Video RAM for Rendering Acceleration" under "Menu > File > Preferences > Hardware > OpenGL Renderer Setup", because the Video RAM fills up quite fast and it might cause an overflow.
- Then you might also realize, that when you move the dataset in 3D workspace, it gets displayed as points only and in a much lower resolution, than if you don't move it around. Also, after releasing the mouse button, it takes a while until the static display comes back to the full resolution. To tweak this behaviour you can change the "Static Display Ratio" and the "Dynamic Display Ratio" in the Display Panel, so it shows only so much it can show to display the model fluently.
- In case you have a really fast CPU and GPU and lots of RAM, you can turn off "Dynamic Draw" completely in the Display Panel, to avoid the switching time.
We are here to help! If you have any questions or issues, please do not hesitate to contact our team by emailing support@artec-group.com or by clicking on "Ask Support" button on the upper part of the screen. We will always be happy to assist you and will get back to you as soon as we can.