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CGI Studio 3.10: faster, smarter, more direct

CGI Studio 3.10: faster, smarter, more direct

Candera significantly improves CGI Studio on all levels

After the successful release of CGI Studio 3.9, Candera has further improved several features in their new version CGI Studio 3.10. In the spotlight is the now established “Smart AI-based graphics Importer”, which automatically transforms graphics into fully functional HMIs.  The “Smart Importer” now also permits direct import from PSD, Sketch, or Axure RP. More highlights of CGI Studio 3.10 are the Japanese user interface, in addition to English, enhanced samples and tutorials for easy onboarding, and “Candera LINK” for remote services. All of which will help especially designers to save precious time and costs.

 

Designers and graphic artists are playing a crucial role in HMI development. They need to deliver quick results, implement many design iterations and create fully functional HMIs. With our focus on advanced usability features like ready-to-use HMI controls, automated workflows and integrated state machines, Candera makes HMI creation for users without coding skills easy. “With CGI Studio 3.10 we take another large step forward,” says Reinhard Füricht, CEO of Candera. “By further simplifying the composition process it is now even easier for designers to intuitively follow their creativity and get great HMI solutions in the process. Moreover, the Smart Importer allows to facilitate and speed up the HMI development process and so reduces costs. This enables a faster time to market and also creates space for creativity.”

 

Candera Smart Importer with extended functionality

 Users of CGI Studio 3.9 have gotten to know first features of Candera’s Smart Photoshop Importer in a preview, now CGI Studio 3.10 includes the Smart Importer with extended functionality.

Based on innovative AI detection algorithm technologies, Candera’s Smart Importer has one major goal: to speed up the whole HMI creation process. Indeed, whilst other HMI design tools oblige the user to manually add functionality to each single element of their UI artwork, Candera’s Smart Importer will handle this job automatically. It imports from Photoshop, Sketch or Axure RP files into CGI Studio and can be extended in the future for additional graphic or prototyping tools. Moreover, the Smart Importer detects relevant components like gauges, sliders, buttons and many more and adds the most probable functionality to each of these elements. Candera’s Smart Importer now supports a direct preview, a control mapping and control configuration, a full re-import for quickly importing design iterations, image merging to reduce the memory footprint and even allows the creation of state machines to support several scenes. For using the Smart Importer no programming skills are needed.

Figure 1: Axure RP is directly supported by Candera’s Smart Importer.

                                 

Scene Composer – now also in Japanese

Candera’s multilingual user-interface “Scene Composer” is now available in English and Japanese. To make sure every user gets on board quickly and can use the full potential of CGI Studio 3.10, the Candera team has enhanced samples and tutorials.

There is now for example a new “Quick Start Guide” for CGI Studio 3.10 for quick user onboarding, using an instrument cluster sample:

 

New Menu Control

In CGI Studio 3.10’s updated Menu Control a new menu list control was added allowing users to create menus for their HMI application. It lets the users easily create unique menus that fit their individual project or adopt it to their own requirements. All in Candera’s aim of speeding up the HMI creation process and saving time and resources.

 

Enhanced Candera LINK remote services

“Candera LINK” makes sharing content across process and operating system boundaries easy. It enables for example remote rendering, so that less powerful platforms can be used by streaming high end graphics to them. Candera’s remote service also allows platform independent data and service to be shared by multiple clients (for example in In Vehicle Infotainment, Cluster, AR Head up Display, or smartphones). Candera LINK simplifies holistic HMI via a domain computing architecture and, functioning as a One-System-on-Chip-Hub, connecting clients’ devises to clouds or remote services (for example smart assistants, Internet of Things devises etc.). Since it is not necessary to place a powerful SoC on each client, it enables to reduce costs and resources. If multiple suitable services are registered, the Candera LINK Hub will always make sure that the client receives the “closest” and fastest service.

Candera LINK is the flexible transport channel to exchange any kind of data – in even the most heterogeneous software environment.

 

Monotype Spark Engine

CGI Studio 3.10 now also supports Monotype Spark Engine, an alternative to iType in resource-constrained environments. It is designed for embedded application with low memory and low CPU speed. Monotype Spark Engine is the 4th supported CGI Studio text engine, following Monotype iType, Freetype, and Bitmap Font.

 

Extended target hardware support e.g. for Infineon Traveo II

Candera has been accredited as first certified partner within Infineon’s HMI Tool Certification Program. In a years-long cooperation, both companies worked on creating the perfect HMI solutions for the TRAVEO-series, starting with the reference board Amber S6J3200 up to TRAVEO II Graphic MCUs (CYT4DNxxx).

In Infineon’s latest HMI Tool Certification Program, Candera successfully implement the defined requirements: setting up a full virtual animated dashboard as well as a warped dual Head up Display using CGI Studio and the TVII-C CPU boards, while leveraging all the HW features that the GPU offers.

CGI Studio 3.10 now provides extended target hardware support for Wayland Device Package for NXP iMX8 as well as STMicroelectronics STM32.

 

Performance Improvements

All of the above listed improvements for CGI Studio 3.10 were made possible by performance improvements, one example being the enhanced moving and zooming options of the state machine in the refined Scene Composer.

 

To learn more about CGI Studio 3.10 or request a 30days trial version please visit: www.cgistudio.at

 

About Candera

Candera, is a leading HMI tool provider and development partner for worldwide automotive and industrial customers. It supports its customers with the CGI Studio tool environment as well as provision of software services mainly in the areas of HMI development and embedded software. Candera GmbH in Linz, Austria and Candera America Inc. are part of KAGA FEI Co., Ltd., situated in Yokohama / Japan.

Candera CGI Studio Release 3.9

Candera CGI Studio Release 3.9

Welcome to CGI Studio 3.9, Candera’s software development platform for creation of hybrid 2D and 3D graphical interfaces. Learn more about the most important features added since the last release.

CGI Studio Smart Photoshop Importer *Preview*

In CGI Studio 3.9 we integrated a preview of our innovative Smart Photoshop importer with one major goal: speed up your HMI creation process. It helps you importing your PSD files into CGI Studio, will automatically detect relevant components, such as gauges, sliders or buttons, and add the most probable functionality to each of these elements.

Smart Photoshop Importer

Import your PSD files and easily transform them into controls

This smart way of importing Photoshop files will make the time-consuming export of Photoshop files to separate graphics and the manual mapping to controls obsolete.

It will save time and also simplify the HMI composition process as much as possible.

Android Native View Control

The Native View control for Android allows you to seamlessly integrate native CGI Studio solutions  in your Android applications. This enables HMI experts to leverage the benefits of both tools.

For example, you can reuse a highly performant, CGI Studio based, 3D GUI and enhance Android’s native capabilities.

The communication between Android app and the CGI Studio solution is handled via JSON format. A Kotlin-based Android sample project shows you how to integrate and use the Native View.

Android Candera Integration

Fill your Android applications with a native and seamless 2D/3D CGI Studio solution

CGI Studio Player Value Generator

This simulation feature allows to animate controls, e.g. automotive gauges or progress bars without any additional configuration. It will enable rapid prototyping and the possibility to present a “living” and functional HMI to internal and external stakeholders.

 Candera Control Center

Create living HMIs with the new player value generator

CGI Studio Control Center

The CGI Studio Control Center has been designed as a central application for experienced CGI Studio users in order to manage their solutions for different platforms (e.g. iMX6, R-Car D3 and many more), directly access the CGI Studio Player, start the CGI Analyzer and open recent solutions or available samples. Moreover, you can build SCHost/application with just a click and adopt the Control Center (via scripts) to your needs, such as managing builds or modifying for complex processes.

Manage your solutions for different platforms in the new control center

CGI Studio Tutorials

Aside from the new technical features, CGI Studio 3.9 also brings a host of helpful (video) tutorials, which will enable especially new users an easier start into CGI Studio. These step-by-step guides, starting with a general tool overview and continuing with topic by topic related videos, can be found at the start screen of Scene Composer and in the help menu.

Browse through our new tutorials and get an easy start with CGI Studio

Redesigned Controls

Apart from the major features, CGI Studio 3.9 also provides an innovative redesign of all controls. This new redesigned controls allow a fast drag-and-drop based creation of excellent looking HMIs for any kind of application.

Experience our new predesigned control

Improved Getting Started and Advanced Cluster Samples

Just as the controls the getting started and advanced cluster samples have got a new look & feel as well as new features, such as themes, additional inputs, improved graphics and many more.

ASTC texture compression

For improving rendering performance, bitmaps can now be converted to an ASTC texture compression feature allows to use limited or low-end embedded devices more efficient to create sophisticated HMIs, even on devices with limited memory bandwidth.

Minor Improvements

Besides the major improvements of our CGI Studio 3.9, we also improved minor issues, such as new settings for new solutions (e.g. dimensions, resolution, colors); quick-actions for the scene tree or improvements for the animation group.

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