TracePro

What is TracePro?

TracePro is optical design and analysis software based on non-sequential Monte Carlo ray tracing, developed by Lambda Research Corporation for illumination, optical and imaging engineering, which simulates light propagation through 3D solid models and measures irradiance, luminous intensity and luminance on any surface of the model.

The architecture combines an ACIS solid modeling kernel with a 3D CAD interface, so rays are traced on geometry imported the mechanical design without remodeling. It runs on 64-bit Windows 10 and Windows 11 and replaces physical prototype cycles: instead of building a headlamp, a luminaire or a light guide to measure in a photometric lab, the engineer evaluates optical behavior while it is still a model. It addresses two expensive causes of failure — stray light that degrades contrast in imaging systems, and photometric distribution that misses the homologation standard.

Key features

TracePro traces rays in two modes: Analysis Mode, with hundreds to thousands of rays for interactive, surface-by-surface evaluation, and Simulation Mode, which processes millions of rays for the final result.

• Ray Splitting — splits each ray into reflected, refracted and scattered components, which makes stray light analysis quantitative rather than merely visual.
• Interactive Optimizer — optimizes reflectors, lenses and light guides against targets for flux, uniformity, intensity profile, beam width and color in CIE xy and CIE u'v'.
• Lighting Toolkit — applies the ECE, SAE, FMVSS, StVZO and ABYC regulation tables and returns pass or fail criteria per standard.
• Analysis Toolkit — brings together Road Luminance, Beam Illuminance and spectral analyses, plus 2D and 3D irradiance maps, candela plots and luminance maps.
• RepTile and Texture Optimizer II — model and optimize repetitive microstructures in display films and light guides without multiplying the geometry count.
• Property catalogs — glasses Schott, OHARA, Hoya, CDGM, Sumita and Hikari, plus plastics, metals, coatings, biological tissue and commercial LED sources.
• Sequence Editor and Scheme macros — sequential ray tracing with spot diagram and PSF inside TracePro, and scripted automation of repetitive routines.

Benefits

Fewer physical iterations come Analysis Mode: because results appear surface by surface during the trace, the engineer finds which face creates the unwanted reflection before running the full simulation. Predictable homologation comes the Lighting Toolkit, which measures the model at the angles defined by the standard itself rather than on a generic grid. Continuity with the mechanical design comes the ACIS kernel and the native importers, which preserve the original CAD surfaces instead of approximating them with a triangular mesh — a difference that changes results in precision optics. And the entry cost is tiered across the three editions: a team starts on TracePro LC for analysis and moves to Standard or Expert once it needs optimization or microstructures.

Who it is for

TracePro serves optical engineers, illumination designers, product engineering teams and R&D groups already working in CAD. Four concrete scenarios: homologating an LED headlamp to the ECE standard before cutting a mold; fixing display backlight uniformity by tuning the RepTile microstructure of the diffuser film; quantifying the stray light reaching the sensor of an embedded camera by isolating the responsible path in the Path Sort Table; and designing endoscope illumination, where irradiance uniformity on tissue is a clinical requirement.

Differentiators

Three things separate TracePro simulating outside the CAD environment. The first is the RayViz add-in, which stores optical properties inside the SOLIDWORKS file itself: mechanical and optical engineering share a single model, with no intermediate export at every revision. The second is built-in compliance — the Lighting Toolkit already carries the automotive and lighting standards, instead of requiring an external spreadsheet to check approval. The third is its stray light heritage: TracePro originated in NASA SBIR contracts for stray light analysis in space telescopes, at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1993 and the Goddard Space Flight Center in 1996, and has been under continuous development since 1994.

System requirements

TracePro 26.3 runs on 64-bit Windows 11 and Windows 10, with 8 GB of RAM minimum and 16 GB or more recommended, a 64-bit processor with as many cores as possible — the trace is multithreaded and scales with cores — and a dedicated graphics card compatible with OpenGL. An SSD speeds up the stages where Simulation Mode writes data to disk. There is no macOS or Linux version; running in a virtual machine and over Windows Remote Desktop is supported. Native import covers SOLIDWORKS, Creo/Pro-E, Autodesk Inventor, Solid Edge, CATIA V4, CATIA V5, NX and AutoCAD. The SAT (ACIS) format is native for read and write, while the STEP and IGES translators are add-on features of the license. IES and LDT photometric files are read and analyzed, and sequential lens designs OSLO are imported directly.

Editions and modules

There are three editions, sharing the same ray tracing engine with increasing functional scope.

• TracePro LC — non-sequential ray tracing in both modes, Ray Splitting, all source types, full catalogs, IES and LDT import and analysis, Solar Emulator, Analysis Toolkit and Lighting Toolkit.
• TracePro Standard — adds Interactive Optimizer, Sequence Editor, the Scheme macro language with Macro Recorder, importance sampling and reverse raytrace, plus polarization, diffraction, diffraction gratings, bulk scatter, GRIN, thin film stacks, BSDF and temperature-dependent properties.
• TracePro Expert — adds RepTile surfaces and 3D textures, Texture Optimizer II, fluorescence with its property generator, birefringence, wire grid polarizers and temperature distributions.

How much does TracePro cost?

TracePro is licensed per software license, in two topologies: single-computer (node-locked), where the license is tied to one machine, or floating network, where the number of licenses purchased defines how many concurrent uses the team has on the LAN, with a license server handling the workstations. Each license is delivered on a portable USB key, transferable between computers, or as a soft license bound to the machine identifiers. Terms are annual (subscription) or perpetual, with 12 months of maintenance and support included in the initial purchase and optional annual renewal.

There is no single list price because the investment depends on sizing: the edition chosen among LC, Standard and Expert; the number of licenses or concurrent uses; the node-locked or floating topology; whether the STEP and IGES translators are included, since they are add-on features; and whether it is a new purchase or a maintenance renewal. A counting example: a team of eight engineers in which at most three work at the same time is sized at three floating licenses, not eight — the team composition is illustrative, but the concurrent-use rule is official.

To buy TracePro in Brazil, OSB Software maps this scope with you, sends the commercial proposal, issues the Brazilian invoice and delivers the licenses — request a quote to get the exact figure for your scenario.

Frequently asked questions

Does TracePro work with SOLIDWORKS? Yes, in two ways: it imports the SOLIDWORKS file natively, without requiring the CAD to be installed, and it has the RayViz add-in, which applies optical properties and traces rays inside SOLIDWORKS itself.

Does TracePro use the graphics card to speed up the trace? No. The trace runs on the CPU, is multithreaded and scales with core count; the graphics card is used by the OpenGL display.

Can the number of licenses be increased later? Yes. On the floating topology, concurrent uses are added to the license server; on single-computer, licenses are added.

Does TracePro replace lens design software? It coexists with it. TracePro focuses on non-sequential tracing and on illumination and stray light analysis; sequential designs OSLO are imported, and the Sequence Editor brings spot diagram and PSF into TracePro in the Standard and Expert editions.

Why buy TracePro OSB Software?

OSB Software is an official Lambda Research Corporation partner in Brazil and supplies 100% genuine TracePro licenses to companies, with Brazilian invoicing, local contracting in Portuguese and full legal compliance — the safe way to buy imported software under a Brazilian corporate entity, with no risk of irregular licensing.

When you buy TracePro OSB Software, you get:

• Consultative, specialist support — specialists who size your single-computer or floating network licensing to your actual operation, avoiding over- or under-buying.
• Fast, secure processes — purchase order to delivery of genuine licenses, traceable at every step.
• Dedicated commercial follow-up — quote to delivery and renewal, with advance notice before your license expires.
• Invoicing that fits your company — Brazilian invoicing and terms adapted to your corporate procurement process.
• Proven track record — thousands of customers served across Brazil.

If you are looking for where to buy TracePro in Brazil with legal certainty and properly licensed imported software, request a quote: OSB Software delivers reliable technology, qualified support and a simple, transparent purchase.