3D Tiles Service - Cesium 3D Tiles
GISBox is a one-stop 3D GIS data editing, conversion and publishing platform that supports editing in multiple GIS formats such as OSGB/GEOTIFF/RVT, converting to 3DTiles/Terrain and publishing.
Introduction
3D Tiles service is a map slicing service built based on the 3D Tiles specification developed by Cesium. It is designed to efficiently visualize and distribute large-scale three-dimensional spatial data and is an important technical foundation for modern Web GIS. It is mainly used to achieve high-speed rendering and interaction in Web browsers for complex data such as BIM, CIM, point clouds, three-dimensional models, and terrain. The client can browse interactively through visualization engines such as CesiumJS, while the server is responsible for organizing and distributing data hierarchically based on the 3D Tiles format. Through spatial segmentation technology based on LOD (level of detail) and streaming transmission mechanism, the 3D Tiles service achieves lightweight and fast data loading, which is especially suitable for city-level models and point cloud data, and is widely used in smart cities, urban planning, disaster prevention, infrastructure management and other fields.
Data Format Overview
- **tileset.json: **The core JSON file, which contains the hierarchical structure, boundary range, referenced binary file path and other information of the entire 3D Tiles dataset.
- **.b3dm (Batced 3D Model): **A binary file used to package multiple 3D models in glTF format, suitable for scenes such as building groups.
- **.i3dm (Instanced 3D Model): **Suitable for efficient visualization of large-scale repeated objects, such as poles and trees, which can greatly improve rendering performance.
- .pnts: A format dedicated to point cloud data, with a structure similar to LAS/LAZ, but optimized for Web applications.
- .cmpt (Composite Tile): A composite tile format used to combine multiple tiles such as b3dm, i3dm, pnts, etc. into a unified tile unit.
Pros
- High-speed streaming display: Based on the layered mechanism of LOD, only the minimum data required for the current perspective is loaded, and the loading speed is extremely fast.
- Multi-platform support: Developed based on WebGL, it supports browsing on multiple terminals such as PC, tablets, and mobile phones.
- **Compatible with various 3D data: **Supports multiple formats such as point cloud, BIM, building model, and city model.
- **Open standard: **Developed by Cesium, it is open and transparent, and can be flexibly used and expanded for commercial and non-commercial use.
- **Strong scalability: **It can be deployed through CDN or distributed services to meet large-scale or high-concurrency data access needs.
Cons
- High initial conversion costs: Special tools and certain technical knowledge are required to convert raw data into 3D Tiles format.
- Poor compatibility with old formats: Some old format data cannot be directly imported and need to be converted manually.
- Dependence on terminal performance: When browsing high-precision models, the graphics processing capabilities of browsers and devices become performance bottlenecks.
- Deployment costs: In large-scale applications, high server, storage and traffic costs may be involved.
Application Scenario
3D Tiles service has shown great advantages in the visualization and data distribution of city-level 3D maps. It is widely used in many fields such as smart city construction, urban planning and design, disaster prevention and mitigation management, transportation and infrastructure supervision, etc.
Example
- Visualization of over 1.1 million OpenStreetMap building models in New York City.
- 3D display of point cloud data of Sainte-Marie Church in Chapelle, France.
