[Plugin] Chronolux for Sketchup

Panga · 10 Oct 2011, 07:52

Awesome tools !! Thanks a lot!!

Pixero · 10 Oct 2011, 08:54

Is there any way it can take transparent materials in account?
In my tests it acts as if a glass surface is opac.

kirill2008 · 10 Oct 2011, 09:18

Is there any way it can take transparent materials in account?

Yes it is possible. It's necessary to set "Handle transparency" flag in "Global Settings" dialog to "Yes". It is also necessary to pay attention to "Transparency threshold" value.
!["Handle transparency" flag in "Global Settings" dialog.](/uploads/imported_attachments/LgeC_handletransp.png ""Handle transparency" flag in "Global Settings" dialog.")
This flag is set to "No" by default because it takes a little bit more time to handle transparency so when it's set to "Yes" it slows down script processing.

Edson · 10 Oct 2011, 11:52

have you tested it on mac? perhaps all one has todo for it to run on mac is to perform a manual installation. if this is the case, could you please instruct us on how to make a manual installation? should I place the whole thing in my plugins folder?

driven · 10 Oct 2011, 12:55

@edson said:

should I place the whole thing in my plugins folder?

NO...

the manual installation requires placing different folders in different locations.

the 'Help' button in tools won't work from inside SU so I suggest you 'first' open the 'Help Pages' in safari to check if you want to instal it.

to do this 'unzip' Chronolux 1_0 beta.zip and you'll have a new folder Chronolux 1_0 beta,
follow the path to Chronolux 1_0 beta/Resources/en-US/chronolux/index.html and double click to open in Safari.

If you still want to instal manually he's a pic of the paths...

I haven't tested the whole thing yet, but you do need to turn on the toolbar in 'View' >> 'Tool Palates'
john

Edson · 10 Oct 2011, 13:14

thanks, john. it seems easy enough o install. I will give it a try soon.

mirale999 · 24 Oct 2011, 08:25

Wonderful thing! This is a good plugin for me to decide the shape of a building intuitively

"Test face results presenting" can give us one more choice: Pseudo-color map, like that in ecotect,
and in qpik's plugin: simple rays, the ray casting is more even and smooth. I think with this great plugin, we can get rid of the ecotect! haha~

kirill2008 · 25 Oct 2011, 16:30

@mirale999 said:

we can get rid of the ecotect! haha~

Well, actually solar radiation studies is not the only merit of ecotect but thanks anyway

urgen · 26 Oct 2011, 07:05

....супер!

georglorenz · 5 Nov 2011, 03:13

This is incredible. This is unbelievable awesome. I was amazed by simple rays but now years after. And working with Revit all the time. This is incredible.

georglorenz · 5 Nov 2011, 03:35

Ok this is really interesting and the user interface is just great.

I do understand that it calculates the shading from a specific test point but could you elaborate a little bit on the difference between short rays and long rays and what exactly they do?

Thank you so much / gxl

georglorenz · 5 Nov 2011, 03:36

Oh and then there are construction points and test points? I understand test points but what are construction points? Thank you / gxl

EarthMover · 9 Nov 2011, 17:41

Kirill, looks amazing. I am also trying to find a sketchup plugin method which will chart sun path and perform a reflection/glare study. I need it for solar panel applications to determine the amount of glare produced based on the angle of the panels per geolocation and it's affect on neighboring buildings in a given radius. I was wondering if something like this could be adapted from the tools you have created here, with a similar raytrace, but charting also a single light bounce for a visual representation? Or, if anyone is aware a software/plugin on the market that will accomplish this?

kirill2008 · 25 Nov 2011, 10:18

@georglorenz said:

Oh and then there are construction points and test points? I understand test points but what are construction points?

Well it is possible to place construction points using Sketchup "Tape Measure" tool instead of placing test points using Chronolux "Add Test Point..." tool. Then it is possible to select construction points and process all of them at once using "Make Ray Cluster(s)" or "Calculate SVF" commands. So it's just an optional usage scenario.
I think it could be more convenient sometimes to use construction points for some reason.

@georglorenz said:

I do understand that it calculates the shading from a specific test point but could you elaborate a little bit on the difference between short rays and long rays and what exactly they do?

Short rays and long rays are only for graphical representation of calculation results. It is possible to adjust their length if it is necessary for drawing layout.

@earthmover said:

I am also trying to find a sketchup plugin method which will chart sun path and perform a reflection/glare study.

Adam, I think, it is possible to implement. I think, I need to read somewhere about how to calculate reflection/glare amount and then think of how to represent calculation results. I suspect, that glare amount depends on direct sunlight duration, but I don't know how exactly. I'm not sure but I guess the other thing, that glare amount depends on, is an angle between sunlight direction and panel plane. In short it is necessary to search for some additional information on this subject.

boilingsnow · 28 Dec 2011, 19:38

Hi,kirill2008
Thank you for your wonderful tools.
Just as brilliant as your earlier plugins such as ControlPoints...
It's sad that most of your earlier plugins dont work in Sketchup 8....Could you please update them? I would pay for these great tools.

kirill2008 · 29 Dec 2011, 04:07

@boilingsnow said:

It's sad that most of your earlier plugins dont work in Sketchup 8....Could you please update them?

Yes, I'm going to update "LSS Toolbar", but I don't know exactly when. I'll try to make it in the coming months.

boilingsnow · 1 Jan 2012, 00:02

@kirill2008 said:

@boilingsnow said:

It's sad that most of your earlier plugins dont work in Sketchup 8....Could you please update them?

Yes, I'm going to update "LSS Toolbar", but I don't know exactly when. I'll try to make it in the coming months.

Glad to hear about this!

DOD3R · 22 Aug 2014, 02:03

Hello Krill,
Can your plug in do this somehow ?
Any plans or info about any of your plug-ins. I am big fan of those.

D.

kirill2008 · 22 Aug 2014, 04:13

Hello,

@dod3r said:

Hello Krill,
Can your plug in do this somehow ?

Unfortunately plug-in can not estimate daylight in Lux. It can only measure time of direct sunlight and sky view factor.

@dod3r said:

Any plans or info about any of your plug-ins.

I planned to update LSS Toolbar to make it compatible with Extension Warehouse requirements, but due to significant load at my official work I'm not sure when I'll finally complete this task.

unearthed · 22 Aug 2014, 09:45

DOD3R - have you had a look at this http://sketchucation.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=21077 - I haven't played with it yet but the images and discussion look very promising.