The hardware gives you three rotations. Firmware, the Rotatrix app, and a plugin inside each 3D app turn them into 3D control — every behavior deeply customizable.
As much software as hardware.
Why native 3D integrations
A 3D controller is more than just a six-axis input.
Usable 3D control takes help from the app itself. It might seem like a 3D controller just streams three rotations and three translations; the hard part is deciding what they should mean, and that depends on geometry the driver can't see.
Choosing the right pivot is key to controllable motion
A faraway pivot — the model swings around uncontrollably.
Pivot under the cursor — it turns in place.
Two-way communication
The pivot is a point in the 3D scene — for example, where your cursor meets the model. Only the app holds that geometry, so only the app can find it. Pan needs that geometry too: the farther away the model, the farther the camera must travel to move it a consistent amount on screen. So Rotatrix asks the app for the camera view and pivot, computes your motion around it, and streams the result back.
Rotatrix
navigation engine 3D app
- You enter 3D motion mode — e.g. hotkey or button press
- App finds the pivot in the 3D sceneCursor, selection, screen center, model bounds
- App sends 3D pivot + camera view
- Engine computes updated camera viewsUses 3D pivot + ball motion
- Rotatrix streams the result as you turn the ball
That back-and-forth takes a plugin inside each app that can see the scene — the native integration. It also gives Rotatrix absolute control of the camera, so the view can snap to aligned angles, lock a turntable spin, and keep up with quick flicks of the ball.
One-click install
The integration manager installs and updates the plugin for every supported app in a single click.
Works with
FusionBlender4.2+OnshapeFreeCAD1.0+Inventor2022+Rhino7 & 8
Profiles & bindings
How can a single 3-axis trackball do so much?
Profiles and bindings change the meaning of the ball based on the active app, buttons, keyboard modifiers, and app context. The defaults are tuned from community input and a lot of testing, so it's usable right away — and every behavior is yours to change.
Example profile
fusion
activates when
App:
Fusion360 Ball mode:
mouse Binding
3D Rotate
triggers when
Button held:
btn4 Ball mode:
rotatrix Axis map:
obj_rotate HoverTap a term to see where it lives.
A playground for power users
It's such a new kind of device that I built the editor for experimenting — try new mappings and keep whatever works for you.
Axis maps
An axis map decides what each way of moving the ball does in 3D.
The ball turns the model 1:1, as if you were holding it.
Additional behavior
Gain
Customize sensitivity per axis or use case.
Position / Rate
Move the ball to set output position for precise orbiting and panning, or output velocity for long, smooth motion.
Axis Dominance
Keeps you from mixing axes you didn't mean to. Pick a preset, or fine-tune further.
The mouse experience
It's a better trackball mouse, too.
Scrolling, polling, and customization all go far beyond the stock hardware.
Twist to scroll
Kept from the stock trackball. On Windows and Linux it's now hi-res: pixel-level steps, not chunky notches.
Drag to scroll
Hold a button and the ball scrolls vertically and horizontally, hi-res on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
1 kHz polling
Movement reports every millisecond, so the cursor never falls behind a fast flick of the ball.
Customization engine
The same profile and binding system can also customize mouse behavior by app, button or hotkey.
Status
Everything in play, on one screen.
The status page draws it all live — the ball, buttons, and keys you're holding, the active app and its connected integration, and the mapping they all resolve to.
OpenAxis
The open protocol behind every integration.
Rotatrix app
OpenAxis
- 3D navigation engine
- Raw axis data
Official integrations
- Fusion
- Inventor
- Onshape
- Rhino
- FreeCAD
- Blender
Third-party apps & integrations
OpenAxis is Rotatrix's output protocol to talk to apps. The goal is an experience that's extensible yet consistent across every integration.
It's WebSocket-based, so it works for both web and native clients, and it carries rich state in both directions — in addition to 3D scene data, app context can be used to dynamically trigger different bindings. It's openly documented, so third-party developers can build their own app support with the same access the official integrations have — nothing is held back.
Coming soon The final OpenAxis spec and developer SDK ship in a later release this year. A draft spec and examples are available to purchasers today.
Feel what direct 3D control is like.
US$149 self-install for your SlimBlade Pro, or US$299 fully assembled (+ shipping and tax)
Reservations open through August 5
See the editions →Not ready? Get updates on new integrations, demos, and availability.
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Ready to pick one? Rotatrix comes in two editions — see which fits and grab yours, or get notified for Rotatrix Wired.
Questions? david@rotatrix.com