MultiviewGraphics3D

MultiviewGraphics3D[g] shows a 3D graphic from several standard views at once: top, front, side, isometric, or any layout you give it. All views share one scale, one orientation convention and one lighting setup. The function is written for submission to the Wolfram Function Repository.

Motivation

The obvious approach looks easy:

GraphicsRow[Show[g, ViewPoint -> #] & /@ {Front, Above, Right, {1, -1, 1}}]

It fails in predictable ways:

• Scale drift. Each pane fits its own region, so the object is a different size in each view. The side view above shows the teapot's body larger than the front view does.
• Perspective. The views are perspective projections unless you know to set ViewProjection -> "Orthographic".
• Orientation. For a set of views to fit together, each view needs its own ViewVertical.
• Lighting. Default lighting follows the camera, so each view lights the object differently.
• Conventions. Where each view goes depends on whether the drawing uses first-angle or third-angle projection.

MultiviewGraphics3D handles all of these. Its output is interactive by default: panning, zooming and rotating one pane updates the others.

Installation

Until the function is published in the Function Repository, load the package file:

Get["path/to/MultiviewGraphics3D.wl"]

Examples

The examples use these two objects:

teapot = ExampleData[{"Geometry3D", "UtahTeapot"}];
lblock = Graphics3D[{Cuboid[{0, 0, 0}, {3, 1, 1}], Cuboid[{0, 0, 1}, {1, 1, 3}],
    Red, Cylinder[{{2, 0.5, 1}, {2, 0.5, 1.5}}, 0.3]}];

Quad view (the default)

Top, front and right orthographic views, plus a free view. By default the output is axis-locked: panning or zooming one pane does the same in the others, and you can rotate the free pane. With "CameraInteraction" -> "RigLocked", rotating any pane rotates all of them together.

MultiviewGraphics3D[teapot]

Third-angle and first-angle projection

"CameraInteraction" -> None gives a static figure for print. "ProjectionConvention" switches between the third-angle (US) and first-angle (ISO) arrangements.

Row[{
  MultiviewGraphics3D[lblock, "ThreeView", "CameraInteraction" -> None],
  Spacer[40],
  MultiviewGraphics3D[lblock, "ThreeView", "CameraInteraction" -> None,
   "ProjectionConvention" -> "FirstAngle"]}]

Unfolded glass box

MultiviewGraphics3D[lblock, "Net", "CameraInteraction" -> None]

Isometric corners

"Isometric" shows the four upper corners; {"Isometric", All} shows all eight.

MultiviewGraphics3D[teapot, {"Isometric", All}, "CameraInteraction" -> None, ImageSize -> 500]

View labels

MultiviewGraphics3D[lblock, "ThreeView", "CameraInteraction" -> None,
 "ViewLabels" -> <|Above -> "Plan", Front -> "Elevation", Right -> "Side"|>,
 LabelStyle -> Directive[Bold, 14]]

Legends and plot labels

A legend or PlotLabel on the input appears once, for the whole figure.

MultiviewGraphics3D[
 Plot3D[Sin[x] Cos[y] + x/4, {x, -3, 3}, {y, -2, 2}, Mesh -> 12, ColorFunction -> "Rainbow",
  PlotLegends -> Automatic, PlotLabel -> "Surface", Axes -> False],
 "CameraInteraction" -> None]

More

(* Your own layout: named views, a direction vector and a perspective free pane *)
MultiviewGraphics3D[teapot, {{Front, {1, -2, 1}}, {Above, "Free"}},
 ViewPoint -> {-2, -1, 1}, ViewProjection -> "Perspective"]

(* Regions and molecules also work as input *)
MultiviewGraphics3D[Ball[], "ThreeView"]
MultiviewGraphics3D[Molecule["caffeine"], "ThreeView"]

(* In Manipulate, the camera stays where you left it when a control changes *)
Manipulate[
 MultiviewGraphics3D[Plot3D[Sin[a x] Cos[y], {x, -3, 3}, {y, -3, 3}, Mesh -> None]],
 {a, 0.5, 3}]

(* For print, export the static figure *)
Export["lblock.pdf", MultiviewGraphics3D[lblock, "ThreeView", "CameraInteraction" -> None]]

Options

Option	Values	Default
"CameraInteraction"	"AxisLocked", "RigLocked", None (static)	"AxisLocked"
"ProjectionConvention"	"ThirdAngle", "FirstAngle"	"ThirdAngle"
"LightingAttachment"	Automatic, "Camera", "Rig", "Object"	Automatic
"ViewLabels"	Automatic, None, an association from pane spec to label, a function	Automatic
LabelStyle	style for the view labels	{}
PreserveImageOptions	keep the camera when a surrounding Dynamic rebuilds the output	True
ViewPoint, ViewProjection	start and projection of the free pane	{1, -1, 1}, "Orthographic"
ImageSize	size of the whole figure	Automatic

The layouts are "QuadView", "ThreeView", "Net", "Isometric", {"Isometric", Above | Below | All}, or a rectangular matrix of pane specs. A pane spec is Above, Below, Front, Back, Left, Right, a direction vector, "Free" (at most one) or None (an empty cell).

Limitations

• The function has not been tested in the Wolfram Cloud. It may work there, but use it at your own risk.
• Copy Graphic on interactive output copies the default view, not the view you have explored.

Tests

wolframscript -file Tests/run.wls