Unfold.rb script: useful for UV-mapping?

kwistenbiebel · 1 Jun 2008, 19:37

Blender is such a pain.
I would love to be able to do things in SU as much as possible.

lewiswadsworth · 1 Jun 2008, 20:16

Blender is such a pain.

Yes, it is.

And without a doubt, if you folks ever get your wish for a multi-processing, high-polygon-capable, NURBS-capable, IK-capable, super-dooper-Krytonite-resistant SU, it will also be a pain.

remus · 1 Jun 2008, 20:40

better not mention that kryptonite resistance thing too loudly lewis, might get people speculating again...

kwistenbiebel · 1 Jun 2008, 21:06

@Lewiswadsworth,
It's just a wish Lewis...just a wish.

I tried Blender, and yes it made me feel as if I miss some million brain cells to get control over it. (or a million spare hours to learn it).

Sketchup has a tradition of making otherwise difficult 3D tasks a whole lot easier.
So why wouldn't it be capable of making a complex thing like texturing easy?

howardhong · 2 Jun 2008, 03:44

uv mapping coordination of .3ds model is reserved when imported to SU.

so i think it can be done by ruby script like other program used to do.

we all see the impossible things be done with script like ffd or subsmooth.

im expectintig somebody can make that kind of script.

solo · 2 Jun 2008, 04:05

This is an interesting thread, so in a nutshell what you are saying Chris is that say for instance the apple above, you first create the mesh then 'unwrap' it. You then export the 2d unwrapped image to an editor like Photoshop and you create the texture, the completed texture is then imported back into SU and applied to flattened mesh and then when folded the texture is perfectly mapped?

kwistenbiebel · 2 Jun 2008, 04:54

@solo said:

This is an interesting thread, so in a nutshell what you are saying Chris is that say for instance the apple above, you first create the mesh then 'unwrap' it. You then export the 2d unwrapped image to an editor like Photoshop and you create the texture, the completed texture is then imported back into SU and applied to flattened mesh and then when folded the texture is perfectly mapped?

Exactly, that's the idea.

Richard · 2 Jun 2008, 05:21

Beibel

Mate yourn the money again! I thought about this the other day, even for simple models like context buildings or for examples like your idea for baked textures from podium. A simple form could be built and textured in SU - unwrapped - image edited to add details such as windows, doors etc and then rewapped to include the added details. Or when modelling with photomatch the unwrapped image could be edited easily to take out detail such as plants etc in the photo as needed to clean up the model.

Seems to me like a must for direct integration of SU for google with regards to google earth purposes!

I must say this really drives home the general need for better mapping functions in SU like spherical mapping!

kwistenbiebel · 2 Jun 2008, 05:26

@richard said:

Seems to me like a must for direct integration of SU for google with regards to google earth purposes!

Just mention Google earth some times more on the forum....maybe that wakes up the G-SU team

HFM · 2 Jun 2008, 07:16

I Must say this idea is briliant, but instead of folding it back together why not try to make it like components? Unfold one, aplie texture and see the effect directly on another...

Would be awesome and very usefull!

kwistenbiebel · 2 Jun 2008, 07:34

Oh yes HFM,
Wonderful idea.
That way it would work like Whaat's subsmooth where you work on the proxy and the subsurface gets updated automatically.

Gaieus · 2 Jun 2008, 07:44

Too big silence from Jim's side IMO. I guess he is already thinking on it!

sepo · 2 Jun 2008, 08:39

It could be mighty useful script.

plot-paris · 2 Jun 2008, 12:58

what I truly would love to see is the possibility to add (and delete) pins to get an extended amount of control over the distortion of a texture (should of course work on curved surfaces too).

I think this idea was mentioned already somewhere in the forum.

the workflow of unfolding a shape to texture it could work almost like adjusting a texture today in SketchUp:

you right click the object and choose "Texture > 2D Mapping" - then you get an unfolded version of the shape (while you still see a pale version of the original geometry- like the rest of a model is shown when you edit a component) with the texture projected on it. now you use the pins (or even add some... ) to position the image. then you hit "Enter" to confirm.

now that would be an incredibly easy but nevertheless flexible way of mapping textures!

kwistenbiebel · 2 Jun 2008, 15:12

Plot Paris.
Your method with the pins would be simple and very effective.
Very Sketchup-like.

solo · 2 Jun 2008, 16:10

I have downloaded the unfold .rb and it unfolds as expected, how does on refold back to original shape after that?

Is there anyway it can auto unfold and refold?

solo · 2 Jun 2008, 17:12

This is how i would imagine it to work.

ivyball.skp

Whaat · 2 Jun 2008, 18:12

I think this can be done. I was meaning to ask Jim about this myself but you beat me to it, biebel!

Jim,

Manipulating uvs with the SketchUp API is very finicky. I gained a fair bit of experience with it when I implemented multiple UV sets in SkIndigo. I would be happy to help you out with this.

solo · 2 Jun 2008, 18:17

I smell a solution on the horizon!!

kwistenbiebel · 2 Jun 2008, 19:08

Cool!
By the way, I think Plot-Paris' suggestion about 'pin control' on 3D surfaces (just like we now have on 2D) is really worth investigating as well.

It's by far the simplest concept, and no need to go to Photoshop.
I can imagine e.g having a sphere (or any other freeform), assigning a texture to it and moving pins around the spherical surface to 'correct' the distortions of the texture until it looks good. Than hit 'bake texture' (or just 'apply') and the new UV's are in place.
Just like it works now on 2D surfaces.

Awesome!