Getting Started

Zapworks Designer streamlines the creation of immersive headset experiences, allowing you to effortlessly build captivating mixed reality experiences.

Creating a headset experience

There is no extra setup necessary to create a headset experience in Zapworks Designer compared to the usual handheld experience. You simply need to choose which type of device you want to build for.

To start creating immersive experiences for headsets with Designer:

Start a new Zapworks Designer project
Select Headset devices

Choose device type modal

The primary difference between building experiences for a headset and a handheld device is that some features are not possible in headsets:

Feature	Handheld	Headset
Image tracking	✓	X
Face tracking	✓	X
World tracking	✓	✓
AR Web Embed	✓	X
Screen UI	✓	X
Enlarges Action	✓	X
Take Photo Action	✓	X

You can build World Tracking scenes as you regularly would, with Actions, Applets, and all Components.

Understanding headset interactions

In headset experiences, raycasters are used as a pointer to select items within the augmented reality environment.

A raycaster is a virtual line drawn from a point in space that can detect what it intersects within the scene. It allows users to aim and interact with virtual objects.

As the user moves their head or controller (depending on device), the direction of the raycaster adjusts accordingly, always indicating where the user is currently looking or pointing. This makes it possible for users to select and interact with objects in the AR scene as if they were physically touching them.

Placement and Interaction Mode

There is a circle at the end of each raycaster to highlight exactly where it's pointed.

Using headset controllers

Below is a table of the controller actions that are automatically enabled for headset experiences, with no additional set-up required. These are the actions that users will be able to take within the experience.

Meta Quest Controller Buttons

These controller actions are currently specific to the Meta Quest 2 & 3, but will be similar in most headset devices with controllers.

Number	Name	Action(s)	Description
1	Grip Button	Scale & Rotate Scene (Interaction Mode)	Press and hold both buttons. The raycaster turns yellow for Scale & Rotate mode. For scaling, move controllers together or apart. For rotation, move one controller forward and the other backward simultaneously.
2	Trigger	Placement, Tap	Placement: Places the scene once loaded or after resetting. Tap: Allows users to interact with scene components.
3	Thumbstick	Scale & Rotate Scene (Placement Mode)	Allows you to scale (joystick up or down) and rotate (joystick left or right) your scene before you place it in your space.
4	Controller Buttons (Left: B & Y) (Right: A & X)	Reset (B or Y) Placement (A or X) Tap (A or X)	Reset: Initiates placement mode again, there is a visual tooltip appears on the controller buttons. Placement: Places the scene once loaded or after resetting. Tap: Allows users to interact with scene components.

Interacting with your experience

Below are images to showcase how to interact with your scene once it's been placed.

Rotating your Scene

Rotate the scene by pressing and holding both Grip Buttons. Move the right controller forward and the left controller backward to rotate counterclockwise. Reverse the directions for clockwise rotation.

Rotating placed WebXR scenes

Scaling your Scene

Scale the scene by pressing and holding both Grip Buttons. Move your controllers apart to enlarge the scene or bring them closer together to reduce its size.

Scaling placed WebXR scenes

Interacting with Scene Components

Using the Trigger on either controller, the A button on the right controller, or the X button on the left controller, you can tap on any components to trigger any Actions attached to them. This is also how you place your scene when the experience begins or when you reset it.

Scaling the scene using the controllers

Next article: Previewing, Publishing and Sharing