html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd"3D scanning tools developer Kiri Innovations has released 3DGS Render 2.0, the latest version of its open-source tool for visualizing 3D Gaussian Splats inside Blender.The add-on makes it possible to import 3DGS scans of real-world objects in PLY format and manipulate them in real time inside Blender, rendering them with the Eevee renderer.Version 2.0 also makes it possible to edit 3DGS data inside Blender, including the options to crop or decimate the scanned object, and to apply simple animated effects.A new technique for generating 3D scans from images of real-world objectsBased on research published last year, 3D Gaussian Splatting is a new 3D scanning method.Like photogrammetry, it begins by generating a point cloud of a 3D object or scene from a set of source photos, but rather than converting the point cloud to a textured mesh, it converts it to gaussians, using machine learning to determined the correct color for each.The result is a high-quality and potentially fast-rendering 3D representation of the object or scene being scanned.An increasing number of 3D scanning tools now support 3D Gaussian Splatting, one obvious example being Kiri Innovations own Kiri Engine.However, native support for 3DGS data in CG applications is currently limited, although it has recently been implemented in both V-Ray 7 and D5 Render 2.9.Manipulate and render 3DGS data directly inside Blender with 3DGS Render3DGS Render is intended to address some of the pain points with existing workflows, making it possible to manipulate 3DGS scan data inside Blender like a standard 3D object.The add-on converts 3DGS data imported on PLY format into an object that can be transformed, scaled, rotated or duplicated like conventional geometry.The scan can then be lit and rendered inside Blender, although currently only using Eevee, Blenders real-time renderer, not Cycles, the main production renderer.3DGS Render 2.0: edit 3DGS data inside Blender, and apply simple animationsTo that, 3DGS Render 2.0 adds new options for editing and animating 3DGS data.A new Point Edit mode makes it possible to edit the point cloud before importing the 3DGS object: for example, to isolate an object from the surrounding scanned environment.There are also new Modifiers for camera culling, cropping the 3DGS scan, and decimating and removing artifacts from the 3DGS object inside Blender.In addition, a new Modify Animate mode makes it possible to apply simple animated procedural effects to 3DGS objects, including noise displacement and pixelation.Pricing and system requirements3DGS Render 2.0 is compatible with Blender 4.2+. Its a free download. The source code is available under an Apache 2.0 license.Read more about 3DGS Render 2.0 in the online documentationDownload 3DGS Render from Kiri Innovations GitHub repositoryHave your say on this story by following CG Channel on Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter). As well as being able to comment on stories, followers of our social media accounts can see videos we dont post on the site itself, including making-ofs for the latest VFX movies, animations, games cinematics and motion graphics projects.