Exporting models as X3D for the Web

Entering 3D data in a PostGIS database is not nearly as interesting if we have no capacity for extracting the data back out in some usable form. One way to approach this problem is to leverage the PostGIS ability to write 3D tables to the X3D format.

X3D is an XML standard for displaying 3D data and works well via the Web. For those familiar with Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML), X3D is the next generation of that.

To view X3D in the browser, a user has the choice of a variety of plugins or they can leverage JavaScript APIs to enable viewing. We will perform the latter, as it requires no user configuration to work. We will use X3DOM's framework to accomplish this. X3DOM is a demonstration of the integration of HTML5 and 3D and uses WebGL (https://www.khronos.org/webgl/) to allow for the rendering and interaction with 3D content in the browser. This means that our data will not get displayed in browsers that are not WebGL compatible. So, we trade...