Cycore Cult3D/Eyetronics ShapeSnatcher builds fully interactive 3D objects

Las Vegas (ots-PRNewswire) - Industry-first joint Cycore Cult3D/Eyetronics ShapeSnatcher solution builds fully interactive 3D objects from photos instantly without the use of lasers. E- marketers can now produce functional product demos on Web stores in a fraction of the time. NAB '99 Booth #S8748 -- Sands Convention Center, Las Vegas. Cycore Computers, the Sweden- based developer of Final Effects, Cult Effects and the Best of Comdex finalist Cult3D interactive web modeling tool, has partnered with Brussels-based modeling firm Eyetronics to deliver the ability to produce fully interactive 3D models at the touch of a button. Eyetronics' newest offering, The ShapeSnatcher System, turns any digital, analog or video camera into a powerful 3D acquisition device, allowing developers to capture 3D images easily, eliminating the need to spend hours on intricate modeling in CAD and design programs. Those images can then be integrated into Cycore's Cult3D Editor to produce fully functional web-based models that allow Web surfers to "interact" with the models in real-time. Patented by Eyetronics and awarded the European Information Technology Prize in 1998, ShapeSnatcher can turn a single photograph into a detailed 3D model. It works with a wide range of digital and analog cameras and converts photos into 3D models in one step. To provide interactive models, ShapeSnatcher objects can be imported into Cycore's Best of Comdex-recognized Cult3D Editor, which allows web developers to easily render "working" 3D models that allow Web surfers to try out products online. Cult3D features drag and drop interactivity and advanced compression that allow developers to quickly produce interactive Web models that can be viewed by end-users with any type of system, including first-generation Pentiums with 28.8k modems. Together, the Cycore-Eyetronics solutions offer the easiest, most accessible method for creating compelling e-commerce product sites on the Web. Why You Want It "There is no longer any reason for e-commerce sites not to use 3D images," said Jerry Pettersson, Vice President, Product Development, Cycore. "By allowing prospective customers to actually use products online, any Web marketer can use Cult3D and ShapeSnatcher to provide a more complete online shopping experience. Our new alliance with Eyetronics is part of our strategy to make the process of building and displaying high- quality, interactive 3D models available to a broad range of developers and consumers, regardless of their bandwidth, programming or hardware resources. Eyetronics has developed a tool, that like Cult3D, brings the power of multimedia to a broader range of applications and benefits end-users by addressing online shopping's limitations." "We've always been looking for faster and easier ways of creating 3D models," said Filip Defoort, General Manager, Eyetronics. "ShapeSnatcher's ease-of-use, scalability and flexibility, along with Cult3D's drag and drop interactive applications, are a natural choice for e-commerce, business, education and other vertical markets that can benefit from displaying photo- realistic 3D models on the Web." How It Works The ShapeSnatcher 3D-Toolkit turns your camera into a real 3D- acquistion device. Just insert the ShapeSnatcher Slide into any slide projector, project the slide onto any object, and capture the image. The ShapeSnatcher Software creates the 3D model. The software works with a broad range of cameras, ranging from low- to high-end models-the quality of the 3D model you can create is unlimited. The 3D models created with the ShapeSnatcher are exported into Cycore's Cult3D with a single mouse click. The Cult 3D Editor's drag and drop functionality adds interactivity to the 3D model without the need for extensive programming knowledge. Cult3D compresses the model at an extremely high rate-a typical1MB file can be reduced to approximately 10K without comprising image quality. When and How to Get It The Cult3D development tool and plug-in are available FREE for download at www.cult3d.com. A licensing fee of $3600 will be charged for all Cult3D objects that are posted to a website. For further details, contact info@cult3d.com. The Cult3D viewer can be used with Netscape 2.0 or Internet Explorer 4.0 and the following operating systems: Windows 95, 98, and NT; MacOS (PowerPC); UNIX (Linux, HP/UX, AIX, Sun); and BeOS. ShapeSnatcher will be available on May 15, 1999. The initial version will run on Windows 95/NT systems, with versions for Linux and SGI following soon after. The full ShapeSnatcher software package costs $4,999; for users with low-volume modeling needs, Eyetronics and Cycore offer a special subscription- based service package. Users pay $750/year to subscribe and $135 per 3D model. For more information, contact info@eyetronics.com. Where to See It in Action To see Cult3D in action, please download the plug-in from www.cult3d.com and then visit the following sites: -- Nokia - Nokia 9110 Communicator: http://www.nokia.se/products/data/9110communicator -- CNN - Media Showcase: http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/multimedia -- Nobel Foundation - The Nobel Medal for Physics and Chemistry: http://www.nobel.se/prize/medal3d.html Who Made It Possible About Cycore Computers Based in Uppsala, Sweden, Cycore Computers specializes in the development of special-effects and 3D technologies for both the Internet and the video and film post-production industries. Cycore's Cult3D(R) Animation is the industry's first real-time, multi-platform 3D-rendering engine for the Internet. Creators of the award-winning Final Effects(TM) and Studio Effects(TM), Cycore's Cult Effects product is a plug-in for Adobe After Effects used in the video and film post-production industries. Cycore Computers has a US sales office in San Mateo, CA. For more information on the company, please visit Cycore on the World Wide Web at either www.culteffects.com or www.cult3d.com. About Eyetronics Eyetronics was established in 1998 in Heverlee, Belgium. The company specializes in 3D-acquisition technology, ranging from consumer-oriented products to high-end special-effects for the film industry. Eyetronics' patented ShapeSnatcher technology is the world's first dynamic 3D-acquisition device. ots Original Text Service: Cycore Computers Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Lisa Melsted, (USA) 617-587- 2817, lmelsted@brodeur.com or Liora Bram, (USA) 617-587-2838, lbram@brodeur.com or cell phone at NAB, 617-791-0699 or Sten Kaiser of Cycore Computers, 46-18-65-65-60, sten@cycore.com Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT