Introduction

This article provides best practices for optimizing 3D content in WorkLink Create and the WorkLink App. Optimizing your project for performance is critical to ensuring a smooth and reliable AR experience across supported platforms, including mobile devices and HoloLens 2.

Scenarios with high triangle counts, large object hierarchies, or uncompressed textures can overwhelm the GPU or CPU of target devices, leading to low frame rates, slow loading times, thermal throttling, or even application crashes. This guide outlines specific limits and practical optimization techniques to help authors create performant and scalable AR content.

Real-Time Rendering Performance Factors

Rendering performance is affected by a wide range of variables. While triangle count and node count are two of the most visible metrics, they are only part of the equation. Below is a summary of factors that influence real-time rendering in WorkLink:

1. Device Resources

• GPU & CPU capability: Varies drastically across devices (e.g., HoloLens 2 vs. iPad Pro).

• Available RAM & storage bandwidth: Impacts asset streaming, texture loading, and video decoding.

• Running background processes: Can reduce available resources for AR rendering.

2. Scene Complexity

• Triangle count: Higher triangle counts increase GPU workload per frame.

• Node count (draw calls): Each object incurs overhead; Unity and three.js batch where possible, but batching is limited when materials differ.

• Animations: Vertex animations are heavier than transform animations. Complex rigs or baked mesh deformations should be minimized.

• Video assets: High-resolution videos, especially with alpha channels, can consume GPU bandwidth and impact playback smoothness.

3. Asset Composition

• Texture resolution & compression: Use compressed formats (e.g., JPG, PNG, or Basis Universal) with power-of-two dimensions (512 px, 1024 px, etc.).

• Shaders and materials: Simple opaque shaders are cheaper than transparent, additive, or masked shaders. Avoid complex materials for line-based models and depth-based effects unless necessary.

• UI complexity: Overlapping UI layers, dynamic content, or large insets can introduce performance overhead—especially on HoloLens 2.

By being mindful of all these elements, authors can ensure consistent performance across supported platforms.

 

File Size Limits

• Cloud: 2GB 
• Enterprise (On-Premise): Max upload size in MBs, MAX_UPLOAD_FILE_SIZE = 2000. This information is only relevant to Admins (not Create authors.)

 

Triangle Count Guidelines

Triangle count refers to the total number of rendered polygons in a scene or step. These directly impact frame rendering time. For a smooth end user experience, a framerate above 20-30 frames per second (fps) is advised.

Android and iOS devices

• Recommended: Under 1,200,000 triangles per step

• Maximum: Varies by device generation

  • Older phones may struggle beyond 800K triangles

  • Newer iPads (e.g., M2) can render 4M+ triangles and still maintain 20–30 FPS

HoloLens 2

• Recommended: Under 800,000 triangles per step

For both platforms, triangle count should be measured per step, not per project.

 

Node Count Guidelines

Node count refers to the number of discrete parts or draw calls being rendered simultaneously. A higher number of nodes increases the CPU overhead due to additional GPU instructions per frame.

Android and iOS devices

• Recommended: Under 800 nodes per step

• Maximum: On high-end devices, node counts may scale into the thousands, on the condition triangle count and material complexity are low.

HoloLens 2

• Recommended: Under 300 nodes per step

Reducing node count is especially effective on constrained hardware like HoloLens 2, where CPU and memory resources are tightly limited.

 

Monitoring Triangle and Node Counts

A rule of thumb is to keep your triangle count for objects rendered at the same time (on each individual step) under 1,200,000, and your node count under a 1000 nodes.

You can monitor triangle and node counts in WorkLink Create:

• Step Hierarchy: Each imported object displays its triangle count and node total

  
  Imported object: 186,626 triangles, 91 nodes

• Asset Library: Tooltip or detail panel shows the triangle and object count before import

  
  Asset preview: 190,686 triangles, 63 objects
• Bottom toolbar: Shows the fps (frames per second), triangle count and object count on the current step
  
  Example: 58 fps, 334 579 triangles and 465 objects.

Optimization Techniques

When data exceeds recommended limits or rendering performance is poor, use the following strategies:

General Recommendations

• Load only the parts necessary to convey the instruction

• Spread data across multiple steps rather than rendering everything at once

• Avoid rendering unnecessary parts (e.g., internal geometry not visible to the user)

• Use the minimum resolution needed on images, with a power of 2 resolution (eg. 512 px, 1024 px), and lowest framerate needed for videos.

Use the Built-in 3D Optimizer

WorkLink Create offers a 3D Asset Optimizer that allows you to:

• Decimate geometry (reduce triangle count)

• Merge or delete parts

• Simplify assemblies without re-exporting from CAD

External Optimization Tools

For advanced scenarios, consider:

• Pixyz Studio: Retessellation, LOD generation, part merging

• CAD cleanup in upstream tools: Remove internal features, suppress small parts, apply lightweight export settings

• • •  

HoloLens 2 case study example

The following table illustrates FPS performance on HoloLens 2 as triangle and node counts vary. 30+fps is recommended for use in AR, recommended not to go lower than 25 fps for a good user experience.

 

Triangle count	Node count	FPS (Frames per second)	Triangle/Node ratio
19K	414	35	46
94K	440	32	214
639K	300	31	2131
890K	200	27	4462
140K	660	25	214
852K	400	25	2131
28K	605	23	46
1000K	500	22	2131
1300K	300	21	4462
39K	847	18	46
188K	880	18	214

Observations:

• High node counts significantly reduce FPS, even when triangle counts are low

• High triangle counts can be tolerated when node counts are minimized

Conclusion

Optimizing 3D content for AR delivery requires balancing triangle count, object complexity, and asset efficiency to fit the resource budgets of target devices. By staying within recommended thresholds and using WorkLink's optimization tools, you can create high-impact, immersive AR experiences that perform reliably.

If you need help with optimization, contact our support for additional information.