Proving real-time 3D product design works in a browser
A client wanted to know whether real-time 3D product visualisation was technically feasible for their e-commerce platform. Could customers design custom apparel on a 2D canvas and see it rendered on a 3D model instantly? We built a working prototype to answer that before anyone committed to full development. It was never shipped as a product, and the client remains confidential under NDA.
- Industry
- E-commerce / 3D visualisation
- Duration
- 3 months
- Location
- New York, USA
The question
The client wanted to explore whether real-time 3D product visualisation was feasible in the browser before committing budget to it. That makes this a different kind of engagement: the deliverable is an answer, not a product.
The design canvas
A Fabric.js-powered editor where users add text, images and graphics to their design, with control over positioning, scaling, opacity and layering.
Real-time 3D preview
Three.js renders the design onto a 3D shirt model instantly. Users rotate and zoom the model to see the design from every angle.
The interesting part is that both halves run at once. The canvas is live while the 3D model is live, and every edit has to propagate without the user waiting for a render.
Texture mapping
The 2D canvas output maps directly to the 3D model’s UV coordinates, so the preview represents how the finished product would actually look rather than approximating it.
UV mapping is where this kind of prototype usually falls down. A design that looks correct flat can distort badly once wrapped onto a garment, and getting that right is the difference between a demo and a tool somebody would buy from.
What it proved
Smooth 60fps rendering with complex designs and multiple layers. WebGL rendering working across modern browsers without plugins. Touch-friendly controls for tablets and phones.
The prototype answered the question: yes, this is feasible in a browser.
Where else it applies
The same technical approach applies to furniture customisers, jewellery designers, vehicle configurators, and any product that benefits from real-time 3D visualisation.
Client details remain confidential under NDA. This project was a feasibility prototype and was not taken to production.
Screens
What next
Running something like this?
The engineers who built this are the ones you would work with. Tell us what you have and we will tell you plainly whether it is work we should take.