3D rendering and control framework for automotive companion apps

[pannonianknight]

Built a cross-platform 3D rendering and control framework
for mobile applications using Filament as the rendering backbone.

Not a configurator — a real-time 3D layer that sits inside
existing apps. App sends state commands (open door, deploy roof,
toggle rain) → 3D model responds with animations instantly.

Architecture: shared C++17 core with thin native platform wrappers
(Metal on iOS, OpenGL ES + Vulkan on Android) — no Flutter or
game engine substrate.

Reasoning:

• Direct GPU access (no abstraction overhead)
• Deterministic frame timing (critical for 60 FPS HMI)
• Native platform feel (Metal on iOS = what Apple expects)
• 25MB total footprint

PoC demo (automotive companion app, iOS + Android, same C++ core):
https://youtu.be/rNOtqV05zX4

Interesting context: Toyota's Fluorite (FOSDEM 2026) went
Flutter + Filament. Different tradeoff — faster UI dev vs
native performance ceiling. Curious where this community lands.

Also built a small open-source tool for glTF optimization
specifically targeting Filament pipelines — Draco + KTX2
with Filament-specific texture format presets:
https://github.com/pannonianknight/GLTF-Studio

Questions:

1. Anyone using Filament with thin native wrappers vs higher-level
   substrate — what tradeoffs did you hit in production?

2. Any gotchas with OpenGL ES → Vulkan migration on Android
   worth knowing before committing?