3D Interactive Proposals — Installer Guide

Overview

Your online proposal now opens with an interactive 3D model of the customer's roof. The customer can rotate it, zoom in, switch between system options, see how shadows move through the day and year, and view a sunlight (irradiance) heat map — all from the link you share, on their phone, with no app and no login.

The 3D view loads first, before the rest of the proposal, because it is the fastest and most engaging thing to show. When the customer is ready, they tap 'Continue to Proposal' to see pricing, savings, and payment options.

This feature is only available in India.

When the 3D view appears

• Org: The org must be part of the India rollout (the feature is enabled per region).
• Design: Every system option in the proposal must have a 3D design built in the Studio.
• Fallback: If the design is 2D-only, or if even one option is missing a 3D design, the customer sees the regular proposal exactly as before — no 3D view, no overlay.

You don't switch anything on. If you designed in 3D and your org is in the rollout, the customer gets the 3D view automatically.

How to share the proposal (installer workflow)

Step by step

1. Design the system in the OpenSolar Studio in 3D as you normally would. If the proposal has multiple options, design every option in 3D.
2. Open the project and go to the online proposal, then copy the proposal link (or use the built-in WhatsApp share).
3. Share the link with your customer over WhatsApp, SMS, or email. The WhatsApp preview shows the project address and a thumbnail so it looks credible before they even tap.

4. The customer taps the link and lands directly on the 3D view — no setup needed on their side.
    

   

If you send a PDF instead

• The PDF proposal includes a 'View in 3D' button. Tapping it opens the same online interactive 3D view in the browser.
• This is useful for customers who prefer a PDF or a printout — they still get one tap into the full 3D experience.

Tip for the strongest first impression

• Ask the customer to open the link on their own phone while you're on the call — then walk them through it live using the talk track in Section 7.

What the customer sees at their end

When the customer opens the link, the 3D roof loads first and fills the screen, with a set of light cards floating on top (the overlay). The layout adapts to their device:

• On a phone: the 3D fills the screen; controls sit as compact cards and a bottom strip so they never cover the roof.
• On desktop: the 3D fills the main area with the controls in a side panel.

The overlay shows: your logo, the customer name and address, the system size, the system-option selector, the key financial figures, the shading controls, the irradiance control, a compass, and the 'Continue to Proposal' button. Editing tools are always hidden — the customer can look but cannot change the design.

Every control in the 3D view, in detail

Moving the model — rotate, zoom, pan

These are the core gestures. They mirror how the design behaves in the Studio.

First-time hint: On the first open, a short hint appears (an animated hand on mobile, or a shortcuts tooltip on desktop) showing how to move the model. It disappears after the first interaction.

How to explain it: Tell the customer they can 'grab' the roof and turn it, and pinch to get closer — just like a map.

Compass

Where: A small compass sits in a corner of the 3D view.

What it does: It shows which way the model is facing as the customer rotates, so they always know North / the true orientation of their roof.

How to explain it: Use it to point out which roof faces get the most sun — e.g. 'your south-facing slope is where most of the panels sit'.

System-option selector

Where: Option cards near the top of the overlay (each shows the option name, system size in kW, and battery size in kWh where relevant).

How to open / use: The customer taps an option card to select it. The selected card is highlighted.

What updates: Switching an option updates the 3D scene to that design and updates the financial figures — all without reloading the page (updates in under ~3 seconds, no flicker).

How to explain it: Use it to compare a smaller vs. larger system side by side — 'watch the roof fill up and the savings change as I switch to the bigger system'.

Key financial figures

Where: Shown as cards in the overlay; they update when the customer switches options.

What's shown: Net price, annual savings, payback period, and lifetime savings.

• Net price — the total cost of the selected system.
• Annual savings — how much the customer saves on electricity each year.
• Payback period — how long until the system pays for itself.
• Lifetime savings — total saved over the life of the system.

Detailed pricing, the bill breakdown and payment options live in the full proposal — the customer reaches them by tapping 'Continue to Proposal'. The 3D view deliberately keeps only the headline figures so it stays focused on the design.

Shading analysis (sun path)

Where: A shading panel with two sliders (a side panel on desktop, a bottom strip on mobile) plus a 12-month shading chart.

How to open / use: The sliders are visible in the shading panel. There are two:

• Time-of-day slider — drag it left to right to move the sun from morning to evening. Shadows on the roof move in real time as you drag, and the current time is shown.
• Month slider — drag it to change the month of the year. The sun's height changes with the season, so the customer can see winter vs. summer shading.

The 12-month chart: Shows how much shading affects the roof across the year, so the customer can see the seasonal pattern at a glance.

How to explain it: This is the tool that removes the #1 doubt — shading. Walk the sliders through a full day, then through the seasons, and show that the panels are placed to avoid the worst shade.

Say: "Let me show you your roof at 9 in the morning… and now at 4 in the afternoon — see how the shadow from that tree moves away from your panels."

Irradiance heat-map

Where: An 'Irradiance' control (toggle) in the overlay. Off by default.

How to open / use: The customer clicks the irradiance control once to turn it on. The roof surface becomes colour-coded by how much sunlight each area receives over the year, with a 5-step colour legend (low to high). Clicking again turns it off and returns to the normal view.

How to read it: Warmer / higher-scale colours mean more sunlight (better for panels); cooler / lower colours mean less. It visually justifies why panels sit where they do.

How to explain it: Use it to show you've placed panels on the best parts of the roof — 'the brighter areas get the most sun all year, and that's exactly where your panels are'.

Continue to Proposal

Where: A prominent button (sticky, so it's always reachable), with a short summary line showing the selected system and net price.

What it does: Tapping it takes the customer from the 3D view into the full proposal — pricing, savings detail, and payment / acceptance options.

Returning: The customer can go back to the 3D view and out again; the proposal returns to where they left off.

Full-screen & exit

Full-screen: On mobile the 3D already fills the screen. Where a full-screen / expand control is shown, it opens the viewer edge-to-edge for the clearest view.

Exit: An exit control (X) is always visible in full-screen; tapping it returns the customer to where they were.

What happens on a slow connection or if loading is low

The 3D view is built to work on low-end phones over 4G, but connections vary. Here's exactly what the customer experiences in each case:

While it's loading

• A loading state is shown until the 3D view is ready to use. The customer never sees a blank or broken screen — there's always either the loading state or the 3D view.
• The 3D view is designed to become interactive quickly (the target is under 4 seconds on a low-end Android over 4G). On faster devices and connections it's quicker.

If the connection is slow

• The 3D may take a little longer to appear; the loading state stays until it's ready. Encourage the customer to open the link on Wi-Fi or a stronger signal for the smoothest experience.

If the 3D view can't load at all

• Fail-safe fallback: if the device can't support the 3D view, or it errors or times out, the proposal automatically falls back to the regular proposal. The customer is never left stuck on a broken screen — they still get the full proposal with all the information.
• This means a customer on an old device or a very weak connection still receives a working proposal; they just won't see the interactive 3D.

Inside WhatsApp / Instagram / Twitter

• The proposal is built to open correctly inside these apps' in-app browsers.
• Swipe note: in some in-app browsers a swipe can accidentally close the view. If this is detected, a small tooltip suggests opening the link in the normal browser (Chrome / Safari). Tapping that gives the smoothest 3D experience.

What to tell a customer with issues: Ask them to open the same link in Chrome or Safari (not inside the chat app) and, if possible, on Wi-Fi. That resolves the large majority of loading and gesture problems.

How to explain the proposal to your customer

A suggested talk track for a live call or an in-person demo. Adapt it to the customer, but this order works well: design first, then confidence (shading), then value (options + savings), then next step.

5. Open on their device. Ask the customer to tap the link on their own phone so it feels real and hands-on.

Say: "Open the link I just sent — that's your actual roof in 3D."

6. Show the design. Have them rotate and zoom to see the panels on their roof; use the compass to point out orientation.

Say: "Turn it around with two fingers, pinch to zoom — those are your panels, exactly where they'll be installed."

7. Build confidence with shading. Move the time slider across a day, then the month slider across the seasons.

Say: "Watch the shadows as I move through the day — and across the year. We've placed the panels to avoid the worst shade."

8. Show sunlight with irradiance. Turn on the irradiance heat-map.

Say: "The brighter areas get the most sun all year — and that's exactly where your panels sit."

9. Compare options. Switch between the system options and let them watch the roof and the savings change.

Say: "Here's the standard system… and here's the larger one — see how the savings go up."

10. Move to the numbers. Tap 'Continue to Proposal' to walk through pricing, savings and payment options.

Say: "When you're happy with the design, tap Continue and I'll take you through the numbers and payment options."

Device & browser support

• Modern Android phones and iPhones, and desktop browsers (Chrome, Safari).
• Opens inside WhatsApp, Instagram and Twitter in-app browsers; for best results open in the normal browser.
• Optimised for low-end Android over 4G — the devices most India customers use.

Troubleshooting & FAQ

The customer sees the normal proposal, not the 3D view

• Expected if the design is 2D-only, or any option lacks a 3D design. Re-design all options in 3D and re-share.
• Confirm the org is included in the India rollout.

It showed the normal proposal after trying to load 3D

• The 3D view couldn't load on that device/connection, so it fell back automatically. Ask the customer to reopen in Chrome / Safari on a stronger connection.

A swipe closed the view in WhatsApp

• Some in-app browsers treat a swipe as 'close'. Open the link in the normal browser (a tooltip prompts this) for the smoothest experience.

Can the customer change the design?

• No — the 3D view is look-only. They can explore but cannot edit anything.

Where are the detailed pricing and payment options?

• In the full proposal. The customer taps 'Continue to Proposal' to reach them; the 3D view keeps only the headline figures.

Does it work if I send a PDF?

• Yes — the PDF has a 'View in 3D' button that opens the same online 3D view.