Basics - Import models and collaborate

Get Arkio on your devices
Arkio runs on many devices making it easy to share models and collaborate. Simply download Arkio for free at https://www.arkio.is/download or get the app from the iOS/Mac App Store, Google Play Store, Oculus or Steam. The Windows installer of Arkio comes with plugins for Revit, Rhino and SketchUp.

Starting with Arkio

The best way to learn about using Arkio is by watching some of our in-app tutorials or starting the demo scenes that take you through the basics in Arkio from the Home panel>Getting Started>Tutorial Scenes (Quest store only)

This will take you through 4 scenes to learn about the basics of navigation and modeling in Arkio and will show you what is possible using the mixed-reality features of your Quest device.

Switching between scenes

You can switch between saved models or create new design options and access your imports and exports tabs using Arkio's scene viewer.

Import models to Arkio

We recommend using the Arkio Cloud to import models to Arkio on mobile devices like the Meta Quest. You can import models from other design tools using the plugins included with our windows installer and can also load images or 3D models like GLB and OBJ files directly to Arkio. 

1) Use the our Revit, Rhino, SketchUp or Unity plugins on Windows to export your model to Arkio

2) After exploring you can load the file directly in the Windows version of Arkio from the create tool drawer. Or you can upload the created ZIP to a linked Arkio cloud group directly on your mobile device.

3) Place the model in Arkio by origin to place a locked version of that model 

4) This model is now ready to be created on or shared with other devices using a meeting

Inviting others to your model
You can start a meeting inside Arkio to share the active scene and all your placed imported models. Just give the meeting a name and a password and hit connect to start hosting the meeting. You can now share these meeting details with others to talk, explore and create together in real time.

You can join the same meeting with up to 24 devices. If you have a paid Arkio license you will have hosting and edit rights for that meeting and free users will join as viewers

Hosting and sharing models in a meeting
The Host of the meeting (star icon) has special meeting permissions like the ability to mute others, switch between design options, and gather all other users. Arkio Enterprise also allows hosts to give temporary edit rights to free Arkio users in a meeting.

To share one of your existing local models in a meeting you need to be the meeting host, select a model in the front row of your scene viewer, and click the share icon. This will share the model with all meeting participants.

Modeling with Arkio

Modeling with Arkio can be best compared to modeling with physical volumes that automatically snap, glue and carve into each other. The best way to experience this is using a VR headset and your hands to interact with the model and UI but you can also apply the same physical modeling operations from a flat-screen device. The Arkio modeling tools are beyond the scope of this basic introduction but you can learn all about this in our in-app tutorials and our other support pages.

Exporting your work back to other 3D tools
Importing and collaboratively creating something on your imported models is just half the fun. The real magic starts when you load your creations back to native Revit, Rhino, Sketchup, Unity or BIM 360 so you can continue your work with the ideas and shapes you just created together.

To export your model you select the model you want to export in the scene viewer, click Export, then select the desired 3D tool and wait for the export confirmation.

Once exported you can open Revit, Rhino or Sketchup and use the Arkio plugins that come with the Windows installer which will convert these prepared Arkio files to native families and components.

Once you got through some of these basics you can learn more about the various features of Arkio from our in-app tutorials, sample models, and other pages on our support pages that go more in-depth on the various topics.

Happy creating everyone, and let us know what you think about Arkio!