VPS scenes
Show AR content at an exact spot in a real place, with no markers on the walls. This page takes you from scanning the place to a working scene.
Most AR scenes attach to something the camera recognises: a picture, a code or a flat surface. VPS (visual positioning) works out where the visitor is inside a place you scanned beforehand, and shows your content at the spot you chose.
This is how a museum label appears on the right exhibit, or an arrow points down the right corridor, without a marker on the wall.
A marker works anywhere you can print it and needs no preparation. VPS needs the place scanned first, but then it works across the whole space with nothing on the walls.
From scan to scene
1. Scan the place
Scan the place with the AR Clip Mapper app. A phone is enough — you do not need LiDAR.
For large or demanding sites, you can also build a map from LiDAR, 360° cameras, existing CAD or BIM data, panoramas and video. → LiDAR · 360° and video · CAD and BIM · custom imagery
2. Wait for processing
The scan is processed and becomes a map your team can use. Each map gets an id.
3. Create the scene
In Studio, add a scene and set its trigger to Surface. Turn on Use VPS, then in Locations choose which of your team's maps the scene should use to find the visitor.
→ Scenes
A VPS scene without a map cannot work, and the editor warns you about it. You can choose several maps — this helps when a place was scanned in parts.
4. Place your content
Place objects in the scene as usual. Their positions are relative to the scanned place, so a visitor standing there sees exactly what you arranged.
5. Plan for the wait
Finding the visitor takes time. If you do not plan for this, the experience can feel broken.
When visitors arrive, they point their phone around, and the system tries to recognise where they are. This is called localisation, and it can take several attempts. Four events tell you what is happening:
| Event | What to do |
|---|---|
| VPS ready | positioning has started — show "look around" |
| VPS localized | the visitor was found — show your content |
| VPS localization failed | this is normal — keep encouraging, do not show an error |
| VPS error | positioning cannot run at all — this is a real failure |
VPS localization failed fires again and again while someone looks for a spot the system recognises. An error message on every miss makes a working experience look broken. Show tips instead, such as "point at the building" or "try moving closer", and give up only after many attempts.
Unlike in a marker scene, VPS content is not shown or hidden for you. Otherwise a missed attempt could show your content in the wrong place. Show it yourself, on the VPS localized event.
Tips for a good scan
What helps a camera recognise a picture also helps it recognise a place:
- Texture and detail work better than blank surfaces. Brick, signs and clutter are good; a white corridor is hard.
- Steady, overlapping passes work better than a quick sweep.
- Keep the lighting the same. A place scanned at night may not be recognised at noon.
- Scan what will stay. Furniture moves; walls do not.
Test the scene
You cannot test VPS at your desk. You need a phone, in the real place, with the map processed.
- Build and check everything else first — layout, interactions and interface — in a plain 3D scene.
- When the content is right, switch the trigger to Surface and turn on Use VPS.
Next: Figma and Sketchfab — bring in designs and 3D models.