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Blender Applink "Simple3DCoat" (Fork of the official) by mifth


mifth
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Hi Taros.

 

The last version of the addon is here https://github.com/mifth/mifthtools/tree/master/blender/addons/io_simple_3dcoat

Entire my zipped repo from master https://github.com/mifth/mifthtools/archive/master.zip

 

I cannot modify my first post. Sorry for that. The link at the first post is old. As Google closed GoogleCode service.

 

FBX should work in master.

 

Hierarchy position cannot be saved. Because 3DCoat does not save position of objects. 3DCoat has always 0,0,0 position. Sorry about it. This is 3DCoat issue.

 

About export/impoort modifiers - I don't want to make some hacks about it too. There are some limitations obout it.

 

I would like to add all you say but blender and 3dcoat have many limitations. Sorry.

Edited by mifth
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Hierarchy position cannot be saved. Because 3DCoat does not save position of objects. 3DCoat has always 0,0,0 position. Sorry about it. This is 3DCoat issue.

 

I solved this in the Max applink by having the objects sent from 3DC transfer the hierarchy of their old versions directly as they were being overwritten during import.

Alternatively, you could save a seperate txt (like hierarchy.txt) file next to the import/export txt that holds the hierarchy info which you could then source from when importing to Blender.

Edited by PolyHertz
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I solved this in the Max applink by having the objects sent from 3DC transfer the hierarchy of their old versions directly as they were being overwritten during import.

Alternatively, you could save a seperate txt (like hierarchy.txt) file next to the import/export txt that holds the hierarchy info which you could then source from when importing to Blender.

 

But i think this looks like a hack. If you move object in 3d_coat and the move it back to blender there will be offset. Or if you change position in blender then import again.

 

If i complicate the addon it will be difficult to support it also. 

 

3DCoat team should add local coordinates system to every object for better import/export. For fbx/collada at least.

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But i think this looks like a hack. If you move object in 3d_coat and the move it back to blender there will be offset. Or if you change position in blender then import again.

 

If i complicate the addon it will be difficult to support it also. 

 

3DCoat team should add local coordinates system to every object for better import/export. For fbx/collada at least.

 

I think so long as the users understand the limitations of the method employed it's fine.

As for it becoming too complex...The code itself shouldn't be complex at all (you're basically just transferring a bunch of values). But I have no clue how to code in Blender so maybe it really is way more complex then I'd expect. Just trying to make helpful suggestions.

 

Btw, I'm curious why you bothered implementing DAE/FBX in your applink over just OBJ? Does 3DC support anything in them that it doesn't in obj (afaik 3DC discards everything that makes those formats unique)?

Edited by PolyHertz
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I think so long as the users understand the limitations of the method employed it's fine.

As for it becoming too complex...The code itself shouldn't be complex at all (you're basically just transferring a bunch of values). But I have no clue how to code in Blender so maybe it really is way more complex then I'd expect. Just trying to make helpful suggestions.

 

Btw, I'm curious why you bothered implementing DAE/FBX in your applink over just OBJ? Does 3DC support anything in them that it doesn't in obj (afaik 3DC discards everything that makes those formats unique)?

 

In Mudbox I export/import fbx file and all object origins are at the same place in all apps. I'm sure this should work without hacks which can brake a project. 

Just imagine if you rename some objects? You can lost them during export/import with such hacks. As everything will be based on object name.

 

About fbx - it can export normals. This is the only feature why i added it. As far as I know Obj format cannot export custom normals. But possibl i'm wrong.

Normals are needed to baked models with normal maps.

 

I also added dae as it was simple to add. Just 2 lines of code. And 3dc supports dae. But not linux version. :(

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About fbx - it can export normals. This is the only feature why i added it. As far as I know Obj format cannot export custom normals. But possibl i'm wrong.

Normals are needed to baked models with normal maps.

 

I also added dae as it was simple to add. Just 2 lines of code. And 3dc supports dae. But not linux version. :(

 

OBJ format itself can handle custom normals (I think Blender also added support for this a few versions ago), though 3D-Coats custom normal support seems to be limited to just basic smoothing groups / hard edges (for all formats).

Vertex color is the one thing I've seen 3DC work for with FBX but not OBJ, but this is again a 3DC limitation and not one of the format itself (in fact I was fairly sure OBJ vertex colors were supported in 3DC at one point...). Vertex colors don't matter much atm for applinks since the SDK doesn't support vertex painting (aka. polypaint), but fbx may be worth supporting anyways just so there's one less thing discarded by 3DC when switching between apps.

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OBJ format itself can handle custom normals...

Fwiw...You are correct that obj can deal with custom normals and Blender since 2.74 may retain normals assigned

in 3rd party programs. I however got far better result with fbx when bringing CAD files (with non standard geometry

from a mesh modellers point of view) into recent versions of Blender. Having the fbx option in the Applink sure can't

hurt and results in smaller files + potentially faster load times.

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  • 2 months later...
  • 4 weeks later...

======================================================================
http://3dcoat.com/mantis/view.php?id=2128
======================================================================
Reported By:                ebitz
Assigned To:
======================================================================
Project:                    3D-Coat v4.5
Issue ID:                   2128
Category:                   Sculpt room General (All Categories)
Reproducibility:            always
Severity:                   major
Priority:                   normal
Status:                     new
======================================================================
Date Submitted:             2016-05-15 00:40 EEST
Last Modified:              2016-05-15 16:05 EEST
======================================================================
Summary:                    Applinks_Blender- Not consistent with object
transforms
Description:
To match scene scales between blender and 3d coat, I export a model with the 3d
coat applink(transfer for voxelization)from blender. 3D Coat asks me to "keep
scene scale". I say yes. The scene scale is changed as proof in the
Geometry-Scene Scale menu. If I again immediately create another object in
blender and trasfer it to 3D coat, scale and transforms are remembered. It seems
to work.  However, if I then say, go into the models menu and choose a .obj and
fiddle with the scale and location to place in the scene, Blenders applink seems
to inherit those new values for the "Import" tool. If I again create a object in
blender and transfer to 3d coat the objects scale and transforms no longer match
the scene in blender. So, what worked the first time in now lost.

Steps to Reproduce:
Refer to above statement.

Additional Information:
Exporting objects back to blender from 3D Coat with the "File", "Export Voxel
Mesh To", "Blender" menu does however remember the scale and transformations of
objects created in 3d Coat and appear as they should relative to each other in
Blender after pressing the "Update" command in the applink.

I believe the issue lies with the Import Tool inside 3D-Coat and its
relationship with the applink tool.  More specifically the "Transfer" of objects
to 3D Coat. If the import tool is used in anyway to adjust "Models" in 3d coat
after an initial import from blender, blenders "Transfer" option will only
remember what the last transforms were in the 3D Coat "Import" tool. Now one has
to rescale the import proxy mesh from Blender and guess it's scale and position
in the scene before applying it.

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  • 3 months later...
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Hi, 

I installed thia addon last night and it seems to be working fine, with one exception. When returning an object back to Blender with the import function, a new version of the object is produced with a new name. For instance:

1) Export object "cube" to 3dcoat via simple3dcoat

2) paint on cube in 3dcoat

3) open in original app -> blender

4) in blender, use simple3dcoat import

5) Blender produces a new, seperate object called "cube_cube.001" or something similar to this.

Any ideas?

Thanks for the addon and the help.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
On 9/29/2016 at 11:17 AM, vladius said:

Doesn't work for me for Blender 2.78rc2. Sais something about bad exchange folder. The 3D coat app however exports to that directory just fine.

Set exchange path in the addon settings. Read the first page of the thread.

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On 12.10.2016 at 4:57 PM, mifth said:

Set exchange path in the addon settings. Read the first page of the thread.

I did and tried different paths, actually.

I'm no longer using the AppLink mechanic. Just importing and exporting stuff through FBX.

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Hello - 

I am interested in the plugin but the installation process is not clear. Why are two .py files required ? Installing simple_coat.py gets me the following addon descriptor, which lacks the input field for the exchange folder

2016-10-31 02_55_04-Blender User Preferences.png

 There needs to be a readme file clearly stating the minimum, necessary steps for installation. What does  __init__.py does ? Will it change my user preferences ?

Also the name of the addon should be related to the name of the py. It is not logical to have to filter for "3d..." after installing an addon with a name starting with "simple". Either call them both with a name starting in "3DCoat", or both with a name starting with "simple" (with "3DCoat" being the obvious, logical choice).

Lastly, what is the difference between  "MifthTools" and the 3DCoat/Blender bridge ?

Thanks !

[Edit] Installing through the ini py gives the same result - still no input field.

Edited by pior
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4 hours ago, pior said:

Hello - 

I am interested in the plugin but the installation process is not clear. Why are two .py files required ? Installing simple_coat.py gets me the following addon descriptor, which lacks the input field for the exchange folder

2016-10-31 02_55_04-Blender User Preferences.png

 There needs to be a readme file clearly stating the minimum, necessary steps for installation. What does  __init__.py does ? Will it change my user preferences ?

Also the name of the addon should be related to the name of the py. It is not logical to have to filter for "3d..." after installing an addon with a name starting with "simple". Either call them both with a name starting in "3DCoat", or both with a name starting with "simple" (with "3DCoat" being the obvious, logical choice).

Lastly, what is the difference between  "MifthTools" and the 3DCoat/Blender bridge ?

Thanks !

[Edit] Installing through the ini py gives the same result - still no input field.

I noticed this, too, and thought I was missing a step somewhere.

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4 hours ago, mifth said:

My addon is a fork of the original applink. Read first page.

Original one is in blender by default.

I am not even seeing the SIMPLE 3D Coat applink in the ADDONS section of the User Preferences Panel, in Blender 2.78....even after downloading the two py files and choosing INSTALL FROM FILE. Nothing happens. Tried everything I can think of.

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  • 8 months later...
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Seems like it's not working with Blender 2.79:

Edit:

The export folder contains my cube FBX file and it's correctly displayed with Microsoft's 3D-Viewer.

Edited by Haunted
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Hi,

Sorry for late response. It looks like you have incorrect folder.

Check it in your local folder. Something like" c:/User/Documents/3DCoatX/Exchange/"

3DCoat already has this folder. It created it for you during installation.

Selection_119.png

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23 hours ago, mifth said:

Hi,

Sorry for late response. It looks like you have incorrect folder.

Check it in your local folder. Something like" c:/User/Documents/3DCoatX/Exchange/"

3DCoat already has this folder. It created it for you during installation.

Selection_119.png

Is there any way the Blender Applink could finally import texture maps into Blender, perhaps using the new Principle Shader? It was my understanding that Cycles materials setup made it difficult to do so, before. In the 3ds Max Applink, I can pre-select a render, such as Mental Ray/iRay and when sending the model from 3D Coat to Max, all the material nodes would be all setup to render in that render engine. Wish this could work in a similar fashion, inside Blender.

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