Particle & VFX Technical Specification

This document defines the technical standards, technology solution classifications, and optimization guidelines for Particle Effects / Visual Effects on the Xense AR platform, clearly distinguishing between the Web AR and Native App environments.

I. OVERVIEW OF PARTICLE EFFECTS IN XENSE AR

1. What are Particle Effects?

A Particle System is a computer graphics technique that uses hundreds to millions of small images or volumetric points (particles) moving according to physical rules to simulate natural phenomena and unstructured visual effects, such as:

• Smoke, fire, welding sparks, explosions.
• Weather: Rain, snowstorms, fog, atmospheric dust.
• AR interactions: Navigation light trails, POI halos, and sparkle effects when selecting virtual objects.

Instead of modeling and animating effects using complex polygonal 3D models, small and simple particles can significantly reduce computational resource usage while still providing vivid and visually appealing effects.

2. Operating Principles in AR Environments

In augmented reality (AR), particle effects are placed at real-world coordinates and respond to the user’s camera perspective. Managing the number of particles and simulation mechanisms plays a critical role in maintaining a smooth AR experience on mobile devices.

II. TECHNICAL SOLUTION CLASSIFICATION & COMPARISON

The Xense AR platform supports two primary particle-effect systems provided by the Unity engine:

1. Particle System (CPU-based)

• A traditional particle system whose calculations are performed directly by the central processing unit (CPU).
• Provides the highest compatibility and operates reliably across platforms, including WebGL / Web AR.

2. Visual Effect Graph – VFX Graph (GPU-based)

• A next-generation visual effects system that leverages the superior parallel processing capabilities of the graphics processing unit (GPU).
• Uses a flexible node-based architecture capable of processing a massive number of particles (hundreds of thousands to millions of particles simultaneously) with high detail without overloading the CPU.

3. Detailed Technical Comparison

Note

• Web AR supports Particle System (CPU) only.
• VFX Graph runs only on native applications.