By Bryan Chris Brown

I was a part of the team from HighRock that attended the Future of Home Conference in New York City. We had a ton of fun at the conference, and our team got to learn more about new design and digital trends. The best part, though, was that we had the opportunity to build a collaborative VR experience for attendees to try, using design elements and pieces from some of the other vendors present.

The VR experiences that we build for most customers are built for customer-ease. The user is able to switch furniture and finishes, but the system automatically scrolls through options. For the Future of Home, we wanted designers to be able to do what they do best – design. So, we rebuilt the entire user interface system for our AR experience. Instead of clicking a button to scroll through options, users could select an object and trigger an animated menu that allowed them to view and select different options.

For the walls, we loaded the Color Trends of 2019 from Benjamin Moore. We rendered rugs from Annie Selke, lamps from Currey & Company, other furniture from Universal, and the Google Home and Nest Thermostat.

Creating an AR experience with customizable options is a pretty typical project for us. However, we usually have design files to work from; renders are based on annotated drawings of furniture and other décor details from the client. This project was unique: we modeled items from scratch, based on photos of products from each vendor’s website.

The VR experience was a hit! Designers remarked on how easy it was to switch details and move furniture immediately and not have to wait for a new render. We also built a feature that allowed designers to pre-build several schemes and instantly switch between them, which is a great feature to use with their clients. There was no need to choose every small detail every time, source the materials, and create a material board; everything was easily and immediately accessible.

Want to get started on setting some 2020 trends? The team at HighRock can help! Check out our other 3D work and give us a call.

Bryan Chris Brown

As HighRock’s resident VR specialist, Bryan (aka BCB) has a passion for creating virtual spaces.  When he started as an intern, his first project was “game” design – using Unreal Engine to create architectural experiences that allowed the user to walk through a space in virtual reality. This technology has expanded the services we can offer and has resulted in some very cool marketing tools for our clients.

Bryan’s interest in architecture and technology developed during high school, where he focused on creating spaces through design and carpentry. Internships at GWWO Architects and ADW Architects allowed Bryan to sharpen his skills with modeling tools, design visualization, and problem-solving. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Environmental Design (BSAED) at Morgan State University and now works full-time in HighRock’s Baltimore office. His interests include the video game Smash Bros., computers, playing the guitar and sustainable buildings.

HighRock is a Capitol Communicator sponsor.