Geo Uv: 3dsmax Plug-In For Windows User Guide: 2006 by Geometric Informatics Inc

Geo UV: 3dsMax Plug-in for Windows
User Guide
2006 by Geometric Informatics Inc
11/28/06
Geo UV User Guide
1. Installing GeoUV......................................................................................................................... 7
2. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 7
2.1. What is Geo UV?.................................................................................................................. 7
2.2. Uniform Texture Mapping.................................................................................................... 8
2.3. Increased Continuity............................................................................................................. 9
3. A Little Theory .......................................................................................................................... 10
3.1. The Triangle or Quad Mesh Constraint.............................................................................. 10
3.2. The Manifold Constraint .................................................................................................... 11
4. 3dsMax Tools ............................................................................................................................ 13
4.1. Selection Modes Using the Edit Poly modifier or Editable Poly surface........................... 13
4.2. Viewing the Modifier Stack ............................................................................................... 16
4.3. Converting a Mesh to Triangles ......................................................................................... 19
4.4. Converting a Mesh to Quads .............................................................................................. 19
4.5. The Unwrap UVW Modifier .............................................................................................. 20
4.5.1. Normalizing Texture Coordinates ............................................................................... 21
4.6. Applying a Checkerboard Texture ..................................................................................... 21
4.7. Displaying Boundary Edges ............................................................................................... 23
5. Geo UV Tools............................................................................................................................ 24
5.1. Object Properties ................................................................................................................ 25
5.2. Slice (for Triangle Meshes) and Quad-Slice (for Quad Meshes) ....................................... 25
2006 Geometric Informatics
Page: 2 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5.3. Auto Slice (for Triangle Meshes) and Quad-Auto Slice (for Quad Meshes) ..................... 25
5.4. UV Coverage Area ............................................................................................................. 26
5.5. Mesh Loop Select ............................................................................................................... 26
5.5.1. Selecting Two Vertices................................................................................................ 26
5.5.2. Selecting Three Vertices.............................................................................................. 26
5.6. Get Bad Cover .................................................................................................................... 26
5.7. Geo UV Scale ..................................................................................................................... 27
5.8. Geo UV Layout .................................................................................................................. 27
5.9. Selection Sets...................................................................................................................... 27
6. The Process................................................................................................................................ 29
6.1. Manual Process................................................................................................................... 29
6.2. Automatic Process .............................................................................................................. 29
7. Separating the Mesh .................................................................................................................. 30
7.1. About Separating the Mesh ................................................................................................ 30
7.2. Manual Separation Using Geo UVs Mesh Loop Select .................................................... 32
8. Tutorials..................................................................................................................................... 37
8.1. Pipes ................................................................................................................................... 38
8.2. Automatically Mapping a Tree........................................................................................... 46
8.3. Manually Mapping a Tree .................................................................................................. 51
8.4. Automatically Mapping a Hand ......................................................................................... 70
8.5. Manually Mapping a Hand ................................................................................................. 70
Page: 3 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 1 - Pipe Mappings ................................................................................................................ 8

Figure 2 - Map Continuity Comparison .......................................................................................... 9
Figure 3 - Non-Manifold Mesh ..................................................................................................... 11
Figure 4 - Non-Manifold Single Vertex ........................................................................................ 11
Figure 5 - Object Selection............................................................................................................ 13
Figure 6 - Edge Selection .............................................................................................................. 14
Figure 7 - Face Selection............................................................................................................... 15
Figure 8 Modifier Stack.............................................................................................................. 16
Figure 9 - Viewing an objects state at some point in the stack .................................................... 17
Figure 10 Switching off a Modifier in the stack......................................................................... 18
Figure 11 - Convert Mesh to Polygons.......................................................................................... 19
Figure 12 - The Unwrap UVW Modifier....................................................................................... 20
Figure 13 Changing a textures density...................................................................................... 22
Figure 14 - Display Boundary Edges ............................................................................................ 23
Figure 15 - Geo UV Menu............................................................................................................. 24
Figure 16 - Selection Sets.............................................................................................................. 28
Figure 17 - Open Cylinder: No need to separate ........................................................................... 30
Figure 18 - Bendy Pipe: No need to separate ................................................................................ 31
Figure 19 - Selecting Three Vertices Around Torus ..................................................................... 32
Page: 4 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 20 - Separating Torus in Two Distinct Places.................................................................... 33

Figure 21 - Torus, Edges Automatically Selected......................................................................... 34
Figure 22 - Torus in Two Pieces ................................................................................................... 35
Figure 23 Detach Dialog Box..................................................................................................... 36
Figure 24 - pipe.max...................................................................................................................... 38
Figure 25 - Mapping, Single, Continuous Piece............................................................................ 39
Figure 26 - Selected UVs a third of the way up ............................................................................ 40
Figure 27 - Select Convert Vertex to Edge.................................................................................... 41
Figure 28 - Pipe in Geo UV Layout .............................................................................................. 43
Figure 29 - Pipes Normalized........................................................................................................ 44
Figure 30 - Pipe Texture Final....................................................................................................... 45
Figure 31 - tree.max ...................................................................................................................... 46
Figure 32 - Tree (Select 2 Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Base of the Tree) .............. 47
Figure 33 - Tree With Checkered Pattern (With Repeat Values of 40)......................................... 48
Figure 34 - UV Map, Final Layout................................................................................................ 50
Figure 35 - tree.max ...................................................................................................................... 51
Figure 36 - Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Base of the Tree....................................... 52
Figure 37 - Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Top of the Tree ........................................ 53
Figure 38 - Tree with Checkerboard Pattern (with Repeat Values of 40) ..................................... 54
Figure 39 - Tree Selection Face Mode .......................................................................................... 55
Figure 40 - Geo UV Bad Cover..................................................................................................... 56
Page: 5 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 41 - Tree with Broken Branches ........................................................................................ 57

Figure 42 - Selected Edges at Tip of Branch................................................................................. 58
Figure 43 - Geo UV Slice Processing............................................................................................ 59
Figure 44 - Face Selection Mode................................................................................................... 60
Figure 45 - Geo UV Bad Cover..................................................................................................... 61
Figure 46 - Geo UV Separate ........................................................................................................ 62
Figure 47 - Checkered Tree........................................................................................................... 63
Figure 48 - Object Selection Mode................................................................................................ 64
Figure 49 GeometryAttatch Options .......................................................................................... 65
Figure 50 - Tree Scaled ................................................................................................................. 67
Figure 51 Shells Laid Out in Approximate Square .................................................................... 68
Figure 52 - Final Map.................................................................................................................... 69
Page: 6 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
1. Installing GeoUV
Copy the GeoUV.dlm file to the plugin directory of 3ds Studio Max 9. It resides at
"Autodesk\3ds Max 9\plugins". A typical location might be:
C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max 9\plugins
Once the plug-in is copied into that directory, it loads automatically when starting 3ds Studio
Max 9.
2. Introduction
This chapter introduces you to:
What Geo UV is and how it simplifies the mapping process.
How Geo UV creates a 2D plane from a 3D surface that may contain thousands of
faces.
How Geo UV provides better memory management than other texture mappers.
2.1. What is Geo UV?

Geo UV is a tool that automatically produces a map from a 3D surface to a 2D plane.
Traditionally this process was done by hand. Each polygon of the 3D mesh was chosen and
placed, one by one, onto the UV plane. When meshes consisted of only tens of faces, this process
was feasible but time consuming.
However, meshes with thousands of faces are commonplace; the traditional methods are
inadequate. Geo UV automates this mapping process, including meshes with complex geometries
with only a little guidance from the user. Geo UVs methods are founded in new mathematical
research that keeps the angles on the 3D surface and the 2D plane consistent with each other.
Page: 7 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2.2. Uniform Texture Mapping

Geo UV generates as uniform a mapping as possible while keeping the UV shell count to a
minimum. Notice how nicely the texture follows the surface in the following figure.
Figure 1 - Pipe Mappings
Page: 8 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2.3. Increased Continuity

Geo UV maximizes texture map continuity providing more detail and better memory usage. In
Figure 2 - Map Continuity Comparison, the image on the left uses 29% of the UV plane while the
image on the right uses 69% of the UV plane. The image on the right provides much greater
detail using the same memory requirements used to produce the image on the left.
Figure 2 - Map Continuity Comparison
Greater continuity means that painting with a patterned brush covers the surface completely
without breaks or cracks.
Page: 9 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3. A Little Theory
Converting polygonal meshes to either triangle or quad meshes.
Manifold and non-manifold meshes.
3.1. The Triangle or Quad Mesh Constraint

A mesh that describes a 3D surface can be composed of any number of polygons. 3dsMax allows
any polygon on the mesh to have any number of faces. For example, when creating a teapot from
the Standard Primitives objects, a mesh is generated, composed mostly with four-sided
polygons. Geo UV requires that each mesh contain either triangles or quads. 3dsMaxs built in
TurnToPoly modifier can convert any polygonal mesh into a mesh made of triangles or quads.
Geo UV requires a triangle or quad mesh in order to simplify processing and increase calculation
performance.
Page: 10 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3.2. The Manifold Constraint

A mesh is non-manifold if:
Any edge in the mesh is common to more than two faces.
Figure 3 - Non-Manifold Mesh
The surface shrinks to a single vertex.
Figure 4 - Non-Manifold Single Vertex
Page: 11 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3dsMax does not permit a polygonal mesh to be non-manifold. If you attempt to load a
non-manifold polygonal mesh into 3dsMax it will automatically convert it to a manifold
polygonal mesh but the resulting mesh may not be what you want. It is therefore recommended
that you always load manifold meshes into 3dsMax. Geo UV requires a manifold mesh in order to
simplify processing and increase calculation performance.
Page: 12 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4. 3dsMax Tools
Useful tools for manipulating mesh data.
Critical functions that are outlined in this section and are referred to throughout the
rest of this manual.
Please familiarize yourself with these commands before you begin working with Geo UV.
4.1. Selection Modes Using the Edit Poly modifier or Editable Poly surface
1. Use the Select Object cursor or select Edit Poly in the modifier list.
Figure 5 - Object Selection
Page: 13 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2. Expand the Edit Poly modifier or Editable Poly object and select Edge" to go into edge
selection mode. Pressing CTRL + left mouse button will allow you to select or deselect edges.
Keeping CTRL key pressed allows you to select multiple edges. Note that if a texture is
applied to the object, it might be tricky to view the edges. To get around this problem right
click on the top left of the view (for example, at Perspective) and select Wireframe.
Figure 6 - Edge Selection
Page: 14 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3. Expand the Edit Poly modifier or Editable Poly object and select Polygon" to go into face
selection mode. Pressing CTRL + left mouse button will allow you to select or deselect faces.
Keeping CTRL key pressed allows you to select multiple faces.
Figure 7 - Face Selection
Page: 15 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4.2. Viewing the Modifier Stack

To understand the history of an object you need to view the Modifier stack. When performing
repeated modifications to an object they will appear as a stack of modifications in the Modifier
stack, the oldest starting at the bottom and the most recent at the top. For example if you select
edges, then change the texture, then select vertices (in that order), they will appear as a stack of
three modifiers, with the edge selection at the bottom in a Edit Poly modifier followed by a
Unwrap UVW modifier and then finally another Edit Poly modifier containing the vertex
selection.
1.
To see the modifier stack for an object, select the object using the select object cursor
and click the Modify tab on the column on the right:
Figure 8 Modifier Stack
Page: 16 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2.
To view the state of an object at a particular stage in the history, click on the modifier
in question. Ensure the Show End Result On/Off Toggle is not pressed (pressing
this button gives you the state of the object after all the modifications have been
applied).
Figure 9 - Viewing an objects state at some point in the stack
Page: 17 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3.
To see how the object would appear if a modifier were not applied, switch off the
light bulb next to the modifier.
Figure 10 Switching off a Modifier in the stack
Page: 18 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4.3. Converting a Mesh to Triangles

Geo UV operates on triangle and quad meshes. To convert a mesh made of polygons to a mesh
made entirely of triangles, perform the following steps.
1. Make sure you are in object selection mode and select the mesh you want to convert.
2. From the drop down Modifier list add a Turn to Poly modifier to the modifier stack.
3. In the parameters box change Limit Polygon Size to 3.
Figure 11 - Convert Mesh to Polygons
4.4. Converting a Mesh to Quads

To convert a mesh made of polygons to a mesh made entirely of quads, do the same as above,
except change Limit Polygon Size to 4.
Page: 19 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4.5. The Unwrap UVW Modifier

The Unwrap UVW Modifier is accessible from the list of modifiers available in the drop down
Modifier List. Alternatively you can access it from the menu by selecting Modifiers UV
Coordinates Unwrap UVW. In either event it will add a new modifier to the stack.
To view the UV coordinates, select the modifier. In the Parameters box, select Edit.
Figure 12 - The Unwrap UVW Modifier
Page: 20 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4.5.1. Normalizing Texture Coordinates

UV coordinates must be normalized within the range of 0...1 on both the U and V axes for many
applications to function properly. To normalize the UV mapping of an object:
1. Add a Unwrap UVW modifier to the stack and go into Edit mode. You will see that the
01 range is clearly marked in the editor as an outlined blue rectangle.
2. Go into freeform mode (this is actually the default mode), and drag the mouse around all
the UVs to select them all.
3. Select the top right corner of the selection area and shrink the selection area by dragging
the mouse, so that all the UVs now appear within the default blue area.
4.6. Applying a Checkerboard Texture

To see the checkerboard pattern on the surface of the mesh:
1. Select the material editor from the main toolbar at the top.
2. Press the selector box marked M on the right of Diffuse and choose the Checker
texture.
3. Click the checkered blue cube (Show Map in Viewport) to ensure you can view the
texture in your scene when it is applied to the object.
Page: 21 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4. Drag the spherically mapped texture from the material editor onto the object in your scene
using the left mouse button. You should now see the texture on the object in your scene.
5. The default checker density is usually too coarse. To adjust it, change the Tiling
parameters for that texture in the Material Editor. The default is 1.0. Changing it to a
value such as 40.0 will increase the texture density.
Figure 13 Changing a textures density
Page: 22 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4.7. Displaying Boundary Edges

To display Boundary Edges, select a mesh with the Edit Poly modifier, expand the modifier, and
go to the Border sub-object selection mode. You can now select border edges with the left
mouse; pressing CTRL+A will select all the boundaries.
Figure 14 - Display Boundary Edges
Page: 23 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5. Geo UV Tools
The Geo UV plug-in (accessible from the Modifier list) to access Geo UV.
The following selections: Object properties, UV Coverage Area, Auto Slice, Slice,
Auto Slice for Quads, Slice for Quads, Layout, Mesh Loop Select, Get Bad Cover,
Scale, and Selection Sets.
Figure 15 - Geo UV Menu
Page: 24 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5.1. Object Properties

Use the Object properties command to display information about the selected object. The object
must be a manifold, triangle or quad mesh. The following information is shown:
Vertex Count
Edge Count
Face Count
Genus Number
Number of Boundaries
Number of Components (you can view these components in Edit Poly mode by selecting the
separate parts of the mesh under Sub-Object Element selection mode)
A textual description of the surface
5.2. Slice (for Triangle Meshes) and Quad-Slice (for Quad Meshes)
A slice generates the mapping coordinates for the selected object. The object must have two
boundaries, existing or specified by selection edges. This command makes one pass over the
object that results in a single, rectangular UV segment.
5.3. Auto Slice (for Triangle Meshes) and Quad-Auto Slice (for Quad Meshes)
Auto slice automatically generates the mapping coordinates for the selected object. The object
must have one or two boundaries, existing or specified by selecting edges. This command makes
many passes over the object generating multiple rectangular UV segments.
Page: 25 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5.4. UV Coverage Area

The UV coverage area calculates the percentage of UV area used. Coverage greater than 100%
indicates overlapping UV shells or shells that do not fit within the UV space.
5.5. Mesh Loop Select

The Mesh Loop Select command selects the edges between selected vertices that indicate the
shortest path across the surface. The object must be a manifold, triangular or quad mesh.
5.5.1. Selecting Two Vertices

Select two vertices on the same surface and then choose Geo UV Mesh Loop Select. Choose
to have Geo UV automatically select the edges along the shortest path between the two points.
5.5.2. Selecting Three Vertices

Select three vertices on the same surface and then choose Geo UV Mesh Loop Select. Choose
to allow Geo UV to automatically select the edges along the shortest paths between the three
points. The resulting edge selection is a closed loop around the three selected vertices.
5.6. Get Bad Cover

Select a group of faces on a surface that exhibit the mapping density that looks nice. Choose Geo
UV Get Bad Cover to have Geo UV automatically select all the faces that have a
disproportionately less-detailed UV mapping.
Page: 26 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5.7. Geo UV Scale

Select an object and select Geo UV Geo UV Scale to have Geo UV scale the UV shells based
on the surface area. This helps make the shell mappings have a more uniform mapping. The mesh
does not need to have any special characteristics. Use Geo UV Layout, after scaling, to arrange
the shells so they do not overlap.
5.8. Geo UV Layout

Select an object and select Geo UV Geo UV Layout to have Geo UV arrange the UV shells
into a square. This helps pack the shells to get maximum area coverage. The shells have small
gaps between them to prevent bleed-over while painting. After layout, use 3dsMaxs built-in
commands to normalize the arrangement as described in section 4.5.1. Normalizing Texture
Coordinates on page 21.
5.9. Selection Sets

When auto slice is used, Geo UV generates a number of selection sets. The selection set names
begin with Geo UV_ShapeNodeName_. The types of sets generated are:
*ManualCut the edges selected before the slice
*AutoCut the edges selected during subsequent automatic slicing
*shell the faces making up the final separated shells
For easy viewing of the selection sets, expand the GeoUV plugin in the modifier panel, and
choose Selection Sets. Then select the drop down list from the main toolbar at the top of the
window to display the selection sets.
Clicking a selection set in the list selects the corresponding items in the scene.
Page: 27 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 16 - Selection Sets
Page: 28 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
6. The Process
Manifold meshes using either a manual or automatic process.
Manual process and the automatic process.
6.1. Manual Process

1. Logically Separate the Mesh - Select sections of the object so that each section is in the
shape of a cylinder using the Detach commands of the Edit Poly modifier.
2. Combine the pieces. Use 3dsMaxs Edit Poly modifier
Attach command.
3. Triangulate or quad the Mesh.
4. Cut edges. Select edges in the mesh to open the closed ends of cylinders.
5. Process with Geo UV. Use the Geo UV Slice command on the mesh on any remaining
selected edges.
6. Merge the vertices. Use the 3dsMax Weld Vertices tool in the Edit Poly modifier to
re-combine the pieces of the mesh that were separated in step one.
6.2. Automatic Process

1. Triangulate or quad the mesh.
2. Cut Edges if needed. The automatic process needs 1 or 2 open boundaries.
3. Process with Geo UV. Use the Geo UV AutoSlice command on the mesh while any edges
that were selected in step 2 are still selected.
Page: 29 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
7. Separating the Mesh

The necessary steps to separate a mesh.
This chapter discusses this process and also explains how to separate a mesh manually.
7.1. About Separating the Mesh

Separate the mesh into cylinder shaped pieces by selecting faces. Use the Edit PolyDetach
command to split the selected faces off into a separate object. Separate the object keeping the
following guidelines in mind:
Each segment must have no more than 2 open ends.
Be careful not to move or modify any of the pieces if the results need to be transferred to the
original copy of the mesh.
Figure 17 - Open Cylinder: No need to separate
Page: 30 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 18 - Bendy Pipe: No need to separate
Page: 31 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
7.2. Manual Separation Using Geo UVs Mesh Loop Select

The Geo UV Mesh Loop Select tool also separates meshes. The following steps illustrate how a
torus is split into two halves.
1. Select a torus from Standard Primitives. In this example we also want the torus to
consist of triangles, so we add a Turn To Poly modifier and limit the polygon size to 3.
Allow editing of this polygonal object either by adding an Edit Poly modifier to the stack
or by right clicking on the object and selecting Convert to Editable Poly.
2. Select three vertices around the torus using the vertex mode of the Edit Poly modifier.
Figure 19 - Selecting Three Vertices Around Torus
Page: 32 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
3. Add a GeoUV Modifier to the stack and select Geo UV Mesh Loop Select. The edges
are automatically selected. Because this selection opens the torus into a tube with open
ends, it can be processed with Geo UV Slice. However, the following steps illustrate how
to separate the torus into 2 distinct pieces.
Figure 20 - Separating Torus in Two Distinct Places
4. Reselect the Edit Poly beneath the GeoUV modifier and go into vertex mode. Click
anywhere to deselect the 3 vertices you selected in (1). Use the left mouse button to select
another three vertices around the torus on the opposite side. Holding down the Ctrl key
keeps the edges selected.
Page: 33 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5. Add another Geo UV Modifier to the stack on top of the existing Geo UV Modifier.
Choose Geo UV
Mesh Loop Select within the top modifier. The edges are automatically
selected.
Figure 21 - Torus, Edges Automatically Selected
Page: 34 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
6. There are two closed loops on opposite sides of the torus. Add an Edit Poly modifier to the
stack, and go into Edge Selection mode. Check both loops are highlighted. Select Edit
Edges Split. This breaks the torus into two pieces that can be selected and moved
independently. Highlight each piece by going into Edit Poly
Element and selecting
each half.
Figure 22 - Torus in Two Pieces
Page: 35 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
7. Select Edit Poly

Element, select one of the pieces and then select the options box to the
right of Edit GeometryDetach. This brings up the Detach options box. On
clicking OK, this turns that piece into its own object, so that each piece is now a separate
object.
Figure 23 Detach Dialog Box
Page: 36 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
8. Tutorials
Working with Pipes
Automatically Mapping a Tree
Manually Mapping a Tree
Automatically Mapping a Tree
Manually Mapping a Hand
Page: 37 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
8.1. Pipes
1. Open the example file pipe.max.
Figure 24 - pipe.max
2. Triangulate the pipe with a Turn To Poly modifier (see section 4.3. Converting a Mesh to
Triangles on page 19).
3. Add a GeoUV modifier to the modifier stack.
4. Select MaxScriptMaxScript listener from the main menu at the top, to ensure you can
view the calculation output.
5. Choose Geo UV Object properties. Geo UV reports that the pipe is an open surface
with 2 boundaries. Geo UV can process this mesh as it is.
Page: 38 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
6. Choose Geo UV Slice. Processing begins and will take about a minute. Monitor the
output window for progress as calculations proceed. The message done computing will
appear.
7. To view the mapping, add an Unwrap UVW Modifier to the stack and select Edit within
the modifier panel (section 4.5. The Unwrap UVW Modeler on page 20). Geo UV creates
a mapping with a single, continuous, rectangular piece.
Figure 25 - Mapping, Single, Continuous Piece
8. With the pipe object selected, reselect the Geo UV modifier and choose Geo UV UV
Coverage Area. Geo UV reports that about 8.88% of the UV plane is used. This
information is available through the MaxScript Listener. If no other objects share the same
texture image, this coverage is not acceptable. It looks like splitting the single piece into
three pieces allows arrangement into a square. The segment may be left as it is to
maximize continuity but it would require almost 9 times more memory to get the same
amount of detail.
9. Using the middle mouse button and middle mouse wheel, pan and zoom into the UV map
section at about a third of the way up the V axis.
Page: 39 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
10. Select a row of UVs about a third of the way up. You can drag a rectangle around the
UVs to select them.
Figure 26 - Selected UVs a third of the way up
Page: 40 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
11. From the Edit UVW toolbar, choose Select Convert Vertex to Edge.
Figure 27 - Select Convert Vertex to Edge
Page: 41 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
12. Choose Tools

Break from the Edit UVW window menu.
13. Repeat steps 10-12 to make a cut about two-thirds up the V axis. This leaves the UV map
cut into 3 pieces roughly the same length. (Note that you can select multiple rows of UVs
at the same time by keeping CTRL depressed while dragging selection rows of UVs).
14. Add a new GeoUV modifier to the stack.
15. Return to object selection mode and select the pipe object. Choose Geo UV Layout, and
then add a further Unwrap UVW modifier to the stack. Select that modifier and then edit
the UVs as previously explained.
Page: 42 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 28 - Pipe in Geo UV Layout
Page: 43 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
16. Normalize the map to use as much of the UV plane as possible as described in section
sub:Normalizing-Texture-Coordinates.
Figure 29 - Pipes Normalized
Page: 44 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
17. With the pipe object selected, choose Geo UV UV Coverage Area. Geo UV reports
that about 75% of the UV plane is used. This is a much better use of UV space and allows
for much greater detail when painting.
Figure 30 - Pipe Texture Final
Page: 45 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
8.2. Automatically Mapping a Tree

1. Open the example file tree.max.
Figure 31 - tree.max
Page: 46 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2. Triangulate or quad the tree (see section 4.3. Converting a Mesh to Triangles on page 19)
to satisfy the mesh constraint. You can do this by adding a Turn to Poly modifier to the
stack.
3. Add a Geo UV modifier to the stack and choose Geo UV Object properties. Geo UV
reports that the tree is a closed surface with 0 boundaries. Geo UV cannot process this
mesh as it is. The end of the mesh must be indicated by selecting the edges.
4. In Editable Poly Edge mode, select 2 connected edges in a straight line at the base of
the tree. Remember you might find it easier to do this with the mesh in wireframe mode
(see page 14 for more information on this mode).
Figure 32 - Tree (Select 2 Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Base of the Tree)
Page: 47 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5. Choose Geo UV Auto Slice. Processing begins and takes about 30 seconds. Monitor the
output window for progress as calculations proceed. The message done computing
appears.
6. Apply a checkerboard pattern to the tree with repeat values of 40 (see section 4.6.
Applying a Checkerboard Texture on page 21).
Figure 33 - Tree With Checkered Pattern (With Repeat Values of 40)
Page: 48 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
7. Add a Unwrap UVW Modifier. In the UVW Edit window, break the long piece a little
above the halfway point using the techniques in the Pipe Tutorial.
8. Add another Geo UV Modifier to the stack, and choose Geo UV Geo UV Layout.
9. Add another UVW Modifier. Normalize the UV map to get the final result.
Page: 49 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
Figure 34 - UV Map, Final Layout
Page: 50 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
10. Choose Geo UV UV Coverage Area to see that the coverage area to about 88%.
8.3. Manually Mapping a Tree

1. Open the example file tree.max.
Figure 35 - tree.max
Page: 51 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
2. Triangulate or quad the tree (see section 4.3. Converting a Mesh to Triangles on page 19)
to satisfy the mesh constraint. You can do this by adding a Turn to Poly modifier to the
stack.
3. Add a Geo UV modifier to the stack and choose Geo UV Object properties. Geo UV
reports that the tree is a closed surface with 0 boundaries. Geo UV cannot process this
mesh as it is. The mesh ends must be indicated by selecting edges.
4. In Editable Poly Edge mode, select two connected edges in a straight line at the base of
the tree.
Figure 36 - Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Base of the Tree
Page: 52 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
5. Use the alt+middle mouse button to rotate around the tree to the top end. Ctrl-Select 2
connected edges in a straight line at the top of the tree. Four edges are selected all together.
Figure 37 - Connected Edges in a Straight Line at the Top of the Tree
Page: 53 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
6. Choose Geo UV Slice. Processing begins and takes about 30 seconds. Monitor the
output window for progress as calculations proceed. The message done computing
appears.
7. Apply a checkerboard pattern to the tree with repeat values of 40 (see 4.6. Applying a
Checkerboard Texture on page 21).
Figure 38 - Tree with Checkerboard Pattern (with Repeat Values of 40)
Page: 54 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
8. This option provides a nice uniform mapping down the trunk between the selected sets of
edges. Branches attached to the trunk are not mapped very well. To fix this, reselect the
Editable Poly modifier, ensure Show end result on/off toggle is pressed, and change the
selection mode to Polygon and select a group of faces that look nice.
Figure 39 - Tree Selection Face Mode
Page: 55 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
9. Geo UV examines the mappings of the selected faces and automatically selects faces that
are much worse. With the nice faces selected, add another GeoUV Modifier to the top of
the stack. Within this modifier, choose Geo UV Get Bad Cover and Geo UV
automatically selects the branches.
Figure 40 - Geo UV Bad Cover
Page: 56 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
10. Add another Edit Poly modifier to the stack. Expand it and select Element. Select
Detach within the Edit Geometry category of the modifier to break the branches off into
a separate object. Note that the branches, though separated from the trunk, are still part of
one object; so to separate the branches into their own objects, select the branches object,
and sub-select Element in the Edit Poly modifier. You can now select each branch with
the left mouse button. Select each branch, and then Detach again. You can now create
a separate object for each branch.
Figure 41 - Tree with Broken Branches
11. Each branch now looks like a miniature tree. The base of each branch is open so there is
no need to select these edges. Only edges on the tips of the branches need to be selected.
Start with the branch closest to the base of the entire tree.
Page: 57 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
12. In Editable Poly (edge mode), select two edges at the tip of the branch.
Figure 42 - Selected Edges at Tip of Branch
Page: 58 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
13. Add a GeoUV Modifier, and choose Geo UV Slice. Processing is quick. The message
done computing appears.
Figure 43 - Geo UV Slice Processing
Page: 59 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
14. Go back to Editable Poly->Polygon mode (ensure Show end result on/off toggle is
pressed) and select some nice looking faces.
Figure 44 - Face Selection Mode
Page: 60 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
15. Add another GeoUV Modifier to the stack. Choose Geo UV Get Bad Cover and Geo
UV automatically selects the sub-branches.
Figure 45 - Geo UV Bad Cover
Page: 61 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
16. Add an Edit Poly modifier to the stack. Use EditPoly

Detach commands as described
above to break the branches off into their own objects.
Figure 46 - Geo UV Separate
Page: 62 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
17. Repeat steps 12-13 for each object that has no sub-branches. Repeat steps 12-16 for each
object that has sub-branches. Do not worry about the relative density of the sub-branches.
Figure 47 - Checkered Tree
Page: 63 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
18. Switch to object selection mode (you can do this either by selecting the Object Select
cursor, or by selecting Edit Poly) and select the central part of the tree.
Figure 48 - Object Selection Mode
Page: 64 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
19. In Edit Poly, go to the Edit GeometryAttach options box. Select all the objects and
then click Attach.
Figure 49 GeometryAttatch Options
Page: 65 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
20. In the same Edit Poly modifier, subselect Vertex. Use CTRL+A to select all the
vertices. Select Edit Vertices Weld to merge the duplicate vertices.
Page: 66 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
21. With the tree object selected, add another GeoUV modifier and choose Geo UV Geo
UV Scale from the main menu. Notice that the mapping is more uniform on the model.
Figure 50 - Tree Scaled
Page: 67 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
22. Add an Unwrap UVW Modifier, select Edit. Observe that the shells are overlapping
each other.
23. Add another GeoUV Modifier, and select Geo UV Geo UV Layout to lay the shells
out into an approximate square.
Figure 51 Shells Laid Out in Approximate Square
Page: 68 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
24. Break the long piece a little above the halfway point using the techniques in the Pipe
Tutorial. Add another GeoUV modifier and choose Geo UV Geo UV Layout.
Figure 52 - Final Map
Page: 69 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
25. Add another Unwrap UVW Modifier, and normalize the UV map to get the final result.
26. Geo UV UV Coverage Area will reveal the coverage area as approximately 76%.
8.4. Automatically Mapping a Hand

1. Open the hand.max file.
2. Select the hand with the Select Object cursor.
3. Turn the mesh into quads or triangles with the TurnToPoly modifier.
4. Add A Geo UV modifier to the stack.
5. Because the wrist is an open boundary, this mesh is processed automatically as it is. Geo
UV Auto Slice will quickly generate a mapping.
6. In the Unwrap UVW Modifier, normalize the UVs.
7. Geo UV UV Coverage Area will indicate roughly a 71% coverage.
8.5. Manually Mapping a Hand

The Hand model is a very simple mesh. It is an example of a problem an artist encounters
frequently. The basic idea is to break the fingers leaving a palm with two open ends.
There are some considerations that you need to keep in mind. If a triangle or quad on the open
hole is only connected to the mesh by one edge and the other two (three) edges are along the open
boundary (the hole) it does not have an acceptable mapping (it looks like a single color).
The way to work around this is to make sure that for each triangle or quad on the edge, only one
of the edges of the triangle or quad are open and the other two (three) edges are connected to the
mesh. This applies to any mesh but on the hand it is clearly evident because the mesh is so
simple.
1. Open the hand.max file.
2. Select the hand with the Select Object cursor.
3. Turn the mesh into quads or triangles with the TurnToPoly modifier.
Page: 70 of 71
Geo UV User Guide
4. In Editable Poly->Edge mode, select edges around the thumb. Make a loop with the
intention of separating the thumb from the palm. Keep in mind that only one edge of each
triangle or quad should be selected.
5. In Editable Poly->Edge mode choose Edit Edges Split.
6. In Editable Poly->Element mode, select the thumb and then choose Edit Geometry
Detach. The thumb is now a separate object from the rest of the hand.
7. Make a similar loop of selected edges around each finger. Make sure that only one edge of
each triangle or quad is selected. When selecting the edges, around the index finger,
choose the edge that the thumb shares. Do this as you make each finger into its own object,
ensuring a continuous open boundary is created where the fingers and the palm meet. Each
finger, the thumb and the palm should be separate objects.
8. Reselect the thumb in Object Select mode. In Editable Poly->Edge mode, select two
edges at the end of the thumb.
9.
Add a GeoUV Modifier and activate Geo UV Slice.
10. Repeat steps 9 and 10 for each finger. At this point, each of the six separate objects are
recognized as cylinders and ready for Geo UV to process.
11. In Object Select mode, select the palm (largest part) of the hand.
12. In Edit Poly, go to the Edit Geometry->Attach options box. Select all the other objects
in the list and then click Attach.
13. Drag the checkerboard pattern from the Materials Editor onto the hand using the left
mouse button. Apply a Tiling UV value of 40, (see section 4.6. Applying a Checkerboard
Texture on page 21).
14. In Edit Poly->Vertex mode, use CTRL+A to select all the vertices. Select Edit
Vertices Weld to merge the duplicate vertices.
15. Add a GeoUV Modifier and apply Geo UV Scale.
16. Add a GeoUV Modifier and apply Geo UV Layout.
17. In the Unwrap UVW Modifier, normalize the UVs.
18. Geo UV UV Coverage Area should reveal a 75% coverage.
Page: 71 of 71

Geo Uv: 3dsmax Plug-In For Windows User Guide: 2006 by Geometric Informatics Inc

Încărcat de

Informații document

Titlu original

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Geo Uv: 3dsmax Plug-In For Windows User Guide: 2006 by Geometric Informatics Inc

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

Geo UV: 3dsMax Plug-in for Windows

Geo UV User Guide

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 1 - Pipe Mappings ................................................................................................................ 8

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 20 - Separating Torus in Two Distinct Places.................................................................... 33

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 41 - Tree with Broken Branches ........................................................................................ 57

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

What Geo UV is and how it simplifies the mapping process.

2.1. What is Geo UV?

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

2.2. Uniform Texture Mapping

Figure 1 - Pipe Mappings

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

2.3. Increased Continuity

Figure 2 - Map Continuity Comparison

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Converting polygonal meshes to either triangle or quad meshes.

Manifold and non-manifold meshes.

3.1. The Triangle or Quad Mesh Constraint

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

3.2. The Manifold Constraint

Any edge in the mesh is common to more than two faces.

Figure 3 - Non-Manifold Mesh

The surface shrinks to a single vertex.

Figure 4 - Non-Manifold Single Vertex

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Useful tools for manipulating mesh data.

Figure 5 - Object Selection

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 6 - Edge Selection

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 7 - Face Selection

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

4.2. Viewing the Modifier Stack

Figure 8 Modifier Stack

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 9 - Viewing an objects state at some point in the stack

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

Figure 10 Switching off a Modifier in the stack

2006 Geometric Informatics

Geo UV User Guide

4.3. Converting a Mesh to Triangles

Figure 11 - Convert Mesh to Polygons