Go Back   AC3D Forums > Resources > AC3D Tutorials and How-To's
Register FAQ Members List Calendar Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 3rd October 2010, 03:43 AM   #1
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default UV mapping odd directions

hello I am wondering if someone could explain how to UV map an object that is rotated to face 45 degrees off of the box plane... how can I map it straight on to the face but still have the object rotated.

http://www.bringnthepain.com/odd_uvw_angle_001.jpg

http://www.bringnthepain.com/odd_uvw_angle_002.jpg

a valve cover on an engine. pointing up at a 45 degree angle.

http://www.bringnthepain.com/odd_uvw_angle_003.jpg

thanks for any help...

also is there a way to only select faces that are actually facing you? you know a no back faces selection? this would be very helpful for UV mapping each side of a complex object.

(I've used the "select surfaces with the same material" to circumnavigate this issue. however "select only surfaces facing me" would be great or "select surfaces and not backfaces".)

Last edited by Krisidious; 3rd October 2010 at 11:36 PM.
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 3rd October 2010, 11:31 PM   #2
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

Quote:
also is there a way to only select faces that are actually facing you? you know a no back faces selection? this would be very helpful for UV mapping each side of a complex object.

(I've used the "select surfaces with the same material" to circumnavigate this issue. however "select only surfaces facing me" would be great or "select surfaces and not backfaces".)
Answer: at the very bottom left of AC3D UI there are two selection boxes "grid" and "select through" the select through is the equivalent of no back face selection.
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 7th October 2010, 07:02 AM   #3
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

still no answer? already bought the software. trying to map an object on a 45 degree angle... any help would be great. .
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 7th October 2010, 08:57 AM   #4
Andy
Administrator
Professional user
 
Andy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 4,563
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

Select the surface you want to map via the AC3D views and then adjust the vertices in the TCE so that you get the vertices at the right position over the image in the TCE. If you still have problems, post a picture of AC3D with the engine valve cover selected and a pic of the TCE at the time.

A selection tip - hold down control+shift and then you can 'paint' a selection with the left mouse button.
Andy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 7th October 2010, 05:28 PM   #5
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

Thanks for your help Andy, I know you're very busy.

I seem to be dense... here is a screenshot of what I'm working on, with the two screens the TCE and the Main view and you can see I have the vertexs selected.

http://www.bringnthepain.com/odd_uvw_angle_004.jpg

when I rotate it just spins around though. and if I pull individual vertexes it skews the surface.

I'm not building something that already has a picture, I'm texturing what I built in 3d and just painting the surfaces of what is there.

this and the gas cap and the camera are all I have left to map... your program has slammed out all the other maps I've been working on for months in Max... in just a few days. thanks!!!
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 7th October 2010, 05:43 PM   #6
Andy
Administrator
Professional user
 
Andy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 4,563
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

switch to surface select mode and select just two adjacent triangles of the engine at a time from the main views. Work on them in the tce to make them flat. Then you can position them over an existing image or in a clear area ready for painting later.
Andy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 7th October 2010, 11:07 PM   #7
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

ok I see what your saying, but how can I control the aspect ratio of the faces... it seems to warp them. and I'm trying to put text on it.
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11th October 2010, 02:32 AM   #8
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

ok the solution I have found is

1 rotate the object to a planar view. right, left, top etc... by click the rotate by 1 unit button. and keeping track of how many units you rotate it.

2 map the object while it's facing the correct aspect.

3 use the notes to rotate the object back into it's original offset angle.

in the future I would love to see the ability to rotate the angle of the uvw camera.
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11th October 2010, 01:18 PM   #9
Stiglr
Senior Member
Professional user
 
Stiglr's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 604
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

Actually, I've found the solution to this is to create a good texture guide from copies of the actual model's parts.

I create a nice, large square rectangle above my object (since my target game system works best with textures that are square, power of two sizes such as 1024 x 1024 pixels).

Then, I create copies of the parts of my models, drag them up into the rectangle, scale them for size, and "unwrap" them. By selecting and "cutting away" sides and rotating them into positions where they're facing the camera at a 90 degree angle. The idea is to create a "plastic model flue" picture. I also take care to line things up so that when I actually create a texture, I can easier create panel lines with straight lines. An example being an aircraft fuselage: once it's unwrapped, you have a left side, top side, right side and bottom. I align these vertically so that if I want to create a panel line that goes around the circumference, it's a straight line in the art program that goes through all four (stacked) parts in the texture.

When I've got everything positioned, I make sure the surface lines are showing, eliminate the grid from the viewport, zoom in close to the edges of the rectangle, and take a screen grab of the rectangle and all the pieces in it. After this is done, I can delete all of it, or keep a copy if I might need to revisit it.

Then, if it's going to be some time before I actually create finished textures, I can still texture the model with the "model flue" guide, lining up the actual surface lines of the texture guide with the surface lines of the 3D objects, so that I know the finished texture will mate to it. All I have to do is change the texture file assignment and voila.
__________________
Flight Sim Project Contributor

My Gaming Rig:
i5 2500K Quad-Core CPU at 3.3GHz
MSI P67A-C43 mobo
4GB of PC12800 DDR3 memory
Windows 7
1GB Galaxy GeForce GTX550 Ti video card GeForce 270.61 drivers (4/2011)
Cougar joystick/throttle combo
CH Pedals

Last edited by Stiglr; 11th October 2010 at 01:20 PM.
Stiglr is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11th October 2010, 02:22 PM   #10
Krisidious
Junior Member
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 10
Default Re: UV mapping odd directions

yes sounds good. but what if you don't have any images of the object from the right angle? and what about aspect ratio?
Krisidious is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -4. The time now is 01:32 PM.


AC3D Forum
(C) Inivis Limited 2020