[Plugin] Normal Map Maker

TIG · 25 Jan 2011, 15:31

ah...
But a skewed texture only needs tree co-ordinates - why are these troublesome for triangles?

Maybe I use the wrong wording... it's textures that are somehow rotated/skewed/sheared that need four UVs ?

thomthom · 25 Jan 2011, 15:51

Only distorted textures needs four points.

Normal size (based on material width and height): 1 point
Uniformly scaled: 2 points
Non-uniformly scaled: 3 points
Skewed - sheared: 3 points
Distorted: 4 points

TIG · 25 Jan 2011, 16:50

It's distorted then - do you mean that we CAN export these already using a TW and the material's actual face front-material?
If so, how do we 'know' a face has a 'distorted' texture as opposed to a 'skewed' or 'rotated' one ?
Let's say I have a face with a material that has its texture distorted and some other faces use that material 'undistorted'.
The material is exported 'undistorted' and used with most faces with the simple 3-point UV-mapping...
I need to know how to find which face has which type of texture, then if it's distorted then export that texture as a 'variant' using the TW with the very face, and then use that image-file for that face in the exported data.
Is this what the built-in OBJ-Exporter does when it makes distorted texture files for some faces...

The main issue is how do I tell if a face's material's texture is 'distorted' and needs this extra step...
It would greatly improve my OBJexporter and some 3rd party tools I am involved with...

AcesHigh · 2 Feb 2011, 15:06

sorry for the stupid question but...

1 - whats the advantage of normal map over bump and displacement maps (both of which can use the same grayscale bitmap)?

2 - VRAY doesnt use normal maps, does it?

thomthom · 2 Feb 2011, 15:15

@aceshigh said:

1 - whats the advantage of normal map over bump and displacement maps (both of which can use the same grayscale bitmap)?

http://www.spinquad.com/forums/showthread.php?4478-Normal-maps-vs.-Bump-maps&s=157424c55a8e268f44d84e57618a04cb&p=54371&viewfull=1#post54371

a) is a bump map
b) is a parallax/normal map
c) is a relief map (normal map with self shadowing)

@aceshigh said:

2 - VRAY doesnt use normal maps, does it?

Not sure what V-Ray 2 does - but the version V-Ray for SketchUp currently use doesn't.

tomasz · 2 Feb 2011, 19:22

@tig said:

The main issue is how do I tell if a face's material's texture is 'distorted' and needs this extra step...
It would greatly improve my OBJexporter and some 3rd party tools I am involved with...

http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=23947&hilit=distorted&start=60#p204899

Pixero · 2 Feb 2011, 19:45

@aceshigh said:

1 - whats the advantage of normal map over bump and displacement maps (both of which can use the same grayscale bitmap)?

A bumpmap is like: Hey, change your normal (surface direction) by this grayscale amount!
A normal map is more like: Yo, use this normal instead of your old one!

tspco · 19 Mar 2011, 13:34

I just downloaded and installed this plugin, but it doesn't seem to work, I am sure I missed something, nothing shows up in the plugins menu. Anybody have a step by step?

RepulsiveBoy · 21 Jan 2012, 22:07

@tspco said:

I just downloaded and installed this plugin, but it doesn't seem to work, I am sure I missed something, nothing shows up in the plugins menu. Anybody have a step by step?

It doesn't work for me either

driven · 22 Jan 2012, 12:01

hi, did you look in the right place?
UI.menu("File").add_item("Export normal map")
john

TIG · 22 Jan 2012, 12:28

Didier's version says this quite clearly
@unknownuser said:

You'll find the command under the **File** menu -> Export normal map

Tuttlet · 24 Jun 2012, 22:52

Great to find this Normal Map script. Thanks.

I found that slows down if you have the Materials Windows open to "In Model" textures. So remember to have that closed.

Was there any way to get a bump map from this ruby? I found some threads relating to bump mapping in Sketchup, but nothing conclusive, unless I missed it
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=18024&start=15
http://forums.sketchucation.com/viewtopic.php?f=180&t=16660&hilit=plugin

Gaieus · 24 Jun 2012, 23:46

You can quite easily create bump maps from (raw) geometry if you project a greyscale image from one side and then export an image from the other side.

Bob James · 25 Jun 2012, 05:27

Just browsing through, got interested, and don't understand your reply.

@gaieus said:

You can quite easily create bump maps from (raw) geometry if you project a greyscale image from one side and then export an image from the other side.

project (from what onto to what?) a greyscale image from one side (of what?)

export an image from the other side (of what?)

Tuttlet · 25 Jun 2012, 07:31

I believe this is the procedure:

Make a rectangle with a greyscale texture in the z direction, scale it to 1.001 to ensure the top face is white
Make the texture a projection
Select and apply the texture to the model
Set the time to noon, date to 3/21, location to near the equator (in File, Geo-location). Set light & dark to 100
With a parallel projection and no edges, the top view is your bump map

thomthom · 25 Jun 2012, 07:37

You can do the same without a texture, use white Fog on black geometry.

Tuttlet · 25 Jun 2012, 08:01

@thomthom said:

You can do the same without a texture, use white Fog on black geometry.

Hey, that's even easier. Thanks.

But aren't white areas usually interpreted as higher than black. I seem to get the right result with black fog on white geometry.

thomthom · 25 Jun 2012, 08:05

@tuttlet said:

@thomthom said:

You can do the same without a texture, use white Fog on black geometry.

Hey, that's even easier. Thanks.

But aren't white areas usually interpreted as higher than black. I seem to get the right result with black fog on white geometry.

Ah, yea - my logic is inverted this morning!

sicksickisck · 16 Sept 2012, 11:15

great plugin and real deserves to update :]

ideas ;]
-read well smoothing groups!
-Z-grab [without the need of the selection of the polygons; works with components and groups]

AO version hehe [dream:p]

v66995 · 2 May 2016, 05:42

May i ask if this works on Sketchup 2015(i am using window 10)?
I'm a total noob to sketchup , I've tried putting the rb file into sketchup tool folder, and it shows some error when i start up my sketchup ,so i downloaded the rbz file at extension warehouse.

I try to test the plugin with a simple cube.
Then i select everything?->extension->Normal map maker-> export
After its done , i went check the file , it only shows a purple square cube without the depths of other colors like the youtube tutorial shown.

I did everything i can , things like : changing to parallel view/ top view first before activiating the normal map maker or applying material and then try again.
It didn't work. did i do anything wrong or ?

Please help /_\ ....

Thanks all..

Vic.