Orbitimg/orbitale.jpg
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mouse · touch
Orbit
Rotate it, zoom in, study it from outside like a physical model. On mobile one finger turns the view, two fingers zoom and pan.
Buio Verticale — CAI Gubbio Caving GroupStep into a cave
Step into a cave
from your browser.
An open source web app that opens 3D cave surveys to anyone with a browser. Turn the model like a scale model, walk through it in first person, or step inside at 1:1 with a headset. Nothing to install.
scroll to descend
−8 m the idea
The survey, made walkable.
Cavers carry lamps, ropes and survey instruments underground. Whoever studies the cave afterwards is left with paper plans or CAD files that convey only part of what those spaces are like.
3D Cave Viewer started from a simple question: what if anyone could step into a cave from their own browser, even without ever having been there?
Every published model is not an artist's impression: it is the real survey of a real cave, georeferenced on the map and true to scale.
−22 m exploration
Three ways to explore the same cave.
From the same page, in increasing order of immersion.
First personimg/prima-persona.jpg
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wasd · joystick
First person
You are inside. Collision detection keeps you from walking through walls, and the space registers: the squeezes really are tight.
Virtual realityimg/vr.jpg
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webxr · 1:1 scale
Virtual reality
With a headset you enter the cave at full size. Teleport to where you point, snap turning and a comfort vignette so nobody feels sick.
−40 m field work
Tools that hold up in a technical report.
Built for people who actually use the models: cavers, geologists, surveyors.
Tools screenshotimg/strumenti.jpg
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csv 3D measurements
Place points on the model with automatic vertex snapping, eight colours for parallel measurements, units formatted for you and CSV export. Check a dimension without going back underground.
x · y · z Sections and views
Clipping planes on X, Y and Z with sliders, six preset orthogonal views and a scale bar that follows the zoom.
json Annotations
Labelled points of interest, saved per cave and exportable as JSON to hand over to the rest of the group.
png PNG export
One click on the camera saves the current view with transparent background, active sections, measurements, scale bar and group logo. Ready to lay out.
−58 m access
Works anywhere, including where there is no signal.
No installation
Any recent browser, desktop or mobile. Installable as an app: caves you have already opened stay available offline.
Four languages
Italian, English, French and Spanish. Adding one means translating a single JSON file.
Made for phones
44 px targets, safe areas respected, haptic feedback on the main actions and panels that fold away into a pill.
When something breaks
Network errors with a Retry button, stalled loads caught, graphics context restored on its own. Never a black screen.
−85 m who it is for
Who it serves.
Caving groups and clubs
To archive and share their surveys in a form that opens with a link, and to reuse the platform under their own name.
Researchers and geologists
To study morphology, measure and produce sections without specialist CAD software.
Schools and outreach
To take students and the public inside a cave, VR included, with no risk and no gear.
Press and communication
To tell the story of an exploration with high-resolution images, shareable links and social previews generated automatically.
−96 m code
Free software, reusable under your own name.
A PHP backend with no framework, Three.js for the 3D, Leaflet for the maps, zero build steps. It runs on ordinary PHP hosting and can be maintained by any caving group, with no development team.
Anyone can adopt it, change its name, logo, colours and text, and publish their own surveys.
GNU GPL v3 · original author must be creditedSupport the project.
The project is free and built in spare time, with no sponsors. If you find it useful or want to see it grow, a donation helps cover hosting costs and development hours. Even a small contribution makes a difference.
PHP 7.4+ Three.js Leaflet WebXR three-mesh-bvh Draco PWA GLB / GLTF / OBJ
−108 m contact
Get in touch.
If the project sparks your curiosity, get in touch. Fill in the form and I'll reply personally.