The Virtual Reality Modeling Language
Introduction
Version 2.0, ISO/IEC WD #14772
August 4, 1996
Purpose
The Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) is a file format
for describing 3D interactive worlds and objects. It may be used
in conjunction with the World Wide Web. It may be used to create
three-dimensional representations of complex scenes such as
illustrations, product definition and virtual reality
presentations.
Design
Criteria
VRML has been designed to fulfill the following requirements:
- Authorability
- Make it possible to develop application generators and
editors, as well as to import data from other industrial
formats.
- Completeness
- Provide all information necessary for implementation and
address a complete feature set for wide industry
acceptance.
- Composability
- The ability to use elements of VRML in combination and
thus allow re-usability.
- Extensibility
- The ability to add new elements.
- Implementability
- Capable of implementation on a wide range of systems.
- Multi-user potential
- Should not preclude the implementation of multi-user
environments.
- Orthogonality
- The elements of VRML should be independent of each other,
or any dependencies should be structured and well
defined.
- Performance
- The elements should be designed with the emphasis on
interactive performance on a variety of computing
platforms.
- Scalability
- The elements of VRML should be designed for infinitely
large compositions.
- Standard practice
- Only those elements that reflect existing practice, that
are necessary to support existing practice, or that are
necessary to support proposed standards should be
standardized.
- Well-structured
- An element should have a well-defined interface and a
simply stated unconditional purpose. Multipurpose
elements and side effects should be avoided.
Characteristics
of VRML
VRML is capable of representing static and animated objects
and it can have hyperlinks to other media such as sound, movies,
and image. Interpreters (browsers) for VRML are widely available
for many different platforms as well as authoring tools for the
creation VRML files.
VRML supports an extensibility model that allows new objects
to be defined and a registration process to allow application
communities to develop interoperable extensions to the base
standard. There is a mapping between VRML elements and commonly
used 3D application programmer interface (API) features.
Conventions used in the specification
- Field names are in italics. File format and
api are in
bold, fixed-spacing.
- New terms are in italics.
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