Sketching

In the spirit of architectural tracing paper, freehand sketching can be done on all 2D surfaces and frames in Arkio. The sketch tool makes it easier to communicate ideas and present your work in meetings with other users.

2D sketching

The sketch tool can be found in both the main flat UI and the circular immersive UI. The default mode for sketching on non-spatial devices, such as an iPad or PC, is 2D sketching. The starting point of a sketch determines its drawing plane, and pressing and holding the mouse button, touching the screen or drawing with a stylus will create sketches on that plane until release.

In non-VR, you can select the sketch color using a favorite color picker in the top right of your screen, or any other color from your paint tab. In VR, you can select the sketch's color using your favorite circular menu or use materials from the expandable drawer on the right.

In VR, you can change your sketch thickness using the slider and change the line style from the center of the main VR menu while in sketch mode. The lines can be solid, dashed, or dotted for Arkio's colors.

3D sketches

When sketching with VR devices, you can also create volumetric sketches to draw more spatial 3D shapes and wireframes of your design ideas, comments, or objects. 3D sketching is the default sketching mode in VR, and you can switch to 2D sketches from the wristband on your controller or hand.

Auto grouping sketch lines

2D and 3D sketches will also automatically group together when they are in close proximity, so you can pick up and move several sketches that belong together (like a written text or arrows and other shapes using Arkio's move duplicate and delete tools to work with these sketches.

Deleting a sketch removes the entire group of sketches, making it easier to clean up sketches in your scene.

Sketching on frames

When working with Frames in Arkio (AI photos saved in the scene as 2D planes), you can use the sketch tool directly on top of these frames, like a 3D trace paper or ideation board, on any device. If you are using non-spatial devices, such as an iPad or PC, 2D sketching is your default sketch mode, so you can directly draw on these frames. If you are using a VR device and you want to draw on planes, you can switch to 2D mode from your wristband.

You can learn more about working with Arkio's Frames on the Frames page. Sketching on frames is especially helpful for collaborative meetings on mobile devices like tablets or smartphones, as 2D planes are easier to work on than drawing on a 3D model, especially when using a pen or stylus.

View only temporary sketches

When a free Arkio user joins a professional meeting, they will join as a viewer and can only make temporary sketches that automatically disappear after 10 seconds. This way, the users can still draw shapes in the scene to communicate and collaborate on top of the model without permanently affecting the design.

Logitech MX Stylus for Quest

Arkio supports the Logitech MX stylus for Quest, so if you are a fan of using a pen as an input device, this will be a nice upgrade to your Meta Quest controllers and hand tracking. The stylus works like a Quest controller, with input buttons for Arkio's grab and tool laser interactions and for panning and scaling the world, but it also has a pressure-sensitive tip that allows sketching on any 3D surface.

The stylus has a great form factor, making it easier to sketch in Arkio. It's also great for overtracing existing 3D shapes in your environment, which you can then load into your other design tools via Arkio.