Thinking Particles

[Glacierise]

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if it is doable in TP what can be seen with Plexus: having lines between every particle that is in a particle system. I’m not thinking actually drawing lines (so no line reveal animation needed), but a way to have them be there simply and follow the motion of the particles (like when you add a lattice to an object, put a noise mod on it, and animate the noise: the lines follow the vertices)

If I remember right I have seen a similar effect in TP in c4d, but that was long ago so I’m not sure.

Please share any thoughts with me,

Thanks!

I’ve been doing that with a proxy mesh and the vertex to particle node with ‘track vertex to particle’ on, then skinwrap the renderable mesh to that proxy. So you can move the particles around and the proxy mesh will deform the renderable one - works pretty cool.

[xtremist999]

Hi there,

I’m learning TP at the moment just doing some basic tests with Frost and I’m just wondering is it possible to apply Frost to particles in some groups and not others?

Looking at Frost, there doesn’t seem to be an option to specify Particle Groups, so I’m wondering if I can hide some groups in TP so that they don’t get meshed?

Thanks!

[3ak]

Hi there,

I’m learning TP at the moment just doing some basic tests with Frost and I’m just wondering is it possible to apply Frost to particles in some groups and not others?

Looking at Frost, there doesn’t seem to be an option to specify Particle Groups, so I’m wondering if I can hide some groups in TP so that they don’t get meshed?

Thanks!

There is rollout “Thinking Particles Groups” in Frost.

[Glacierise]

You can make the groups not renderable, too I think

[3ak]

You can make the groups not renderable, too I think

Unfortunately frost doesn’t catch Renderable property of the group.

[xtremist999]

There is rollout “Thinking Particles Groups” in Frost.

Oh you can too after getting the version 1.12 update!
I’m still using an old one.

Thanks for that

[ARCHICG]

have an easy question
there is a small pieces of the whole object
these pieces is composed of even smaller objects
I need to attach the smallest to the medium pieces automatically

I find (orange O2P) the nearest particles inside the medium parts
now I need to attach the found PIDs to particles who find them
each found PIDs must belong to only one particle who found it (and move with this particle as a whole) - but how to determine the link between them inversely ?

simplified sheme

[pyroskat]

Thanks to this post and some help from Hristo Velev (in fact a lot of help, so thanks!) I finally released “Radius Effector” its a blackbox for Thinking Particles to quickly make modifications on your 3d objects, by object or by polys (change position, rotation, scale, blend material). Inspired on cinema 4d and mograph I try it to replicate some elements in 3ds max.
Feel free to download and try it!

http://www.andvfx.com/radius_effector/

[Glacierise]

Unfortunately frost doesn’t catch Renderable property of the group.

Hm really? Krakatoa recognizes it, I thought Frost also should.

[Glacierise]

have an easy question
there is a small pieces of the whole object
these pieces is composed of even smaller objects
I need to attach the smallest to the medium pieces automatically

I find (orange O2P) the nearest particles inside the medium parts
now I need to attach the found PIDs to particles who find them
each found PIDs must belong to only one particle who found it (and move with this particle as a whole) - but how to determine the link between them inversely ?

simplified sheme

you can use the inmesh condition on particle birth, and set a reference from the small to the big particles. Then in a second dynamic set use PAttach with get reference to attach the orange to the gray.

[xtremist999]

Hi there

I’m following the Cebas tutorial on Position Helpers at the moment.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQCY4G1yVPg&feature=BFa&list=PLDAB4CE916D10A710

To birth particles on a mesh object using the H Surface Position operator, is there a way that I can wire up a Black and White Texture map to mask in areas where particles will be born?

Thanks

[JIN-G]

i am a Tp newbie, but maybe u can eplore on matterwaves node
http://www.cebas.com/wikka/wikka.php?wakka=MatterWavesOperator

[xtremist999]

Thanks for that. However correct me if I’m wrong, Matterwaves will only allow a certain maximum number of distinct points?

I can’t seem to get more than 10,000 distinct points using this operator.

Thanks

[3ak]

Thanks for that. However correct me if I’m wrong, Matterwaves will only allow a certain maximum number of distinct points?

I can’t seem to get more than 10,000 distinct points using this operator.

Thanks

Probably you should increase the number of U and V emitters in matterwaves. And check Random right under the emitters spinners.
The problem with emition on texture is that MW spwns particles and then kills ones on the black part. so you can’t control exact number of live particles (if you need ofcourse).

So if you want to born exactly 1000 particles depending on texture you have to do it by hand, MW wont help.

[pyroskat]

I’m making a procedural joining system. A lot of little bricks are joined to a bigger frags with motion. What I did to create the joints is create a lot of particles over th frags following his motion and make the joins between the bricks and this particles. The problem is that scJoint seams to not work if that particles has not shape. What I did is to create a little shape for every particle and now works (very slow), but I’m sure there is a better way to do it. isn’t it?

[cache]

I’ve been doing that with a proxy mesh and the vertex to particle node with ‘track vertex to particle’ on, then skinwrap the renderable mesh to that proxy. So you can move the particles around and the proxy mesh will deform the renderable one - works pretty cool.

Great tip, thanks!
What do you think, is there a way to move the object around (instead of moving the particles around), so the particles could follow the object’s movement (to what they are linked with the ‘verttoparticle’ op) ? Thanks!

[cache]

going even further with the concept

This animation looks pretty cool - and is actually what I would be looking for with TP:

http://www.cgmotionbox.com/2011/12/cinema-4d-the-making-of-“connections”-by-david-drayton/

It also features newly born particles.

Would be awesome to have something like this in TP.
Is TP for max capable of doing such a thing without going into heavy ‘scripting’/programming?

[pyroskat]

Actually he is using TP2 for cinema 4d. The problem is the lines from particle to particle. For this you have this script that also work with thinking particles:

http://www.scriptspot.com/3ds-max/scripts/pf-spliner

[3ak]

I’m making a procedural joining system. A lot of little bricks are joined to a bigger frags with motion. What I did to create the joints is create a lot of particles over th frags following his motion and make the joins between the bricks and this particles. The problem is that scJoint seams to not work if that particles has not shape. What I did is to create a little shape for every particle and now works (very slow), but I’m sure there is a better way to do it. isn’t it?

SC Joints are solved by SC engine, and this rbd engine works with shapes of the particles, so no shapes - no joints. But you can use pAttach instead.

[3ak]

Great tip, thanks!
What do you think, is there a way to move the object around (instead of moving the particles around), so the particles could follow the object’s movement (to what they are linked with the ‘verttoparticle’ op) ? Thanks!

You could use obj2p op to import object as particle and choose Particle to object mode. this way you will translate movement to object. And then use this object in vert2part op.

But if you’re going to make mograph stuff i’d suggest you to switch to software with more advanced geometry engine than 3ds max.