PhoenixFD 3.00.02 for 3ds Max

Artikel 3ds Max, Artikel Chaos Group, Artikel Fire, Artikel Phoenix FD, Artikel Phoenix FD for 3ds Max, Artikel Simulation, Artikel Smoke, Artikel VFX,

[ #PhoenixFD ]Chaosgroup has announced that new update of its all-in-one tool for fluid dynamics. Simulate fire, smoke, liquids, ocean waves, splashes, spray, mist ... PhoenixFD for 3ds Max Build 3.00.02 is now available

>> See Also: Mobile Strike has won CGRecord | RebusFarm Reel of the Month #6

Build 3.00.02 New features:
  - PhoenixFD: Added menu for submission of simulations via Thinkbox Deadline and Backburner
  - PhoenixFD: Add script functions that execute the Quick Setup creation routines
  - Simulation: Liquid resimulation with adaptive grid
  - Simulation: Birth confine geometry for Foam, Splash and Mist
  - I/O: Export simulations to OpenVDB

Modified features:
  - Simulation: Option to select which channels and particle systems will be deleted using Clear Inside
  - Simulation: Cascade simulation of Liquids now mutually excludes both simulators from interacting
  - Simulation: Added warnings when the velocity channels for grid and particles are missing in a Cascade simulation
  - Simulation: Show warning when more than one sources share same object as emitter
  - Rendering: Support V-Ray's per-object motion blur duration override
  - Rendering: Support for motion blur Interval Center for Volumetrics
  - Rendering: Improved curve and gradient control interaction
  - Rendering: Ability to use Displacement Fade Near Geom in Mesh render mode
  - Rendering: Abort rendering with Defscanline when a fire/smoke or particle pre-process is cancelled
  - Turbulence: Added a list with grid and particle channels to be affected

Availability

PhoenixFD 3.00.02 for 3ds Max is available for download in the downloads section of your Chaos Group account.

Related video: Mobile Strike VFX breakdown

  More Phoenix FD Plugin [post_ad]

[ #PhoenixFD ]Chaosgroup has announced that new update of its all-in-one tool for fluid dynamics. Simulate fire, smoke, liquids, ocean waves, splashes, spray, mist ... PhoenixFD for 3ds Max Build 3.00.02 is now available

>> See Also: Mobile Strike has won CGRecord | RebusFarm Reel of the Month #6

Build 3.00.02 New features:
  - PhoenixFD: Added menu for submission of simulations via Thinkbox Deadline and Backburner
  - PhoenixFD: Add script functions that execute the Quick Setup creation routines
  - Simulation: Liquid resimulation with adaptive grid
  - Simulation: Birth confine geometry for Foam, Splash and Mist
  - I/O: Export simulations to OpenVDB

Modified features:
  - Simulation: Option to select which channels and particle systems will be deleted using Clear Inside
  - Simulation: Cascade simulation of Liquids now mutually excludes both simulators from interacting
  - Simulation: Added warnings when the velocity channels for grid and particles are missing in a Cascade simulation
  - Simulation: Show warning when more than one sources share same object as emitter
  - Rendering: Support V-Ray's per-object motion blur duration override
  - Rendering: Support for motion blur Interval Center for Volumetrics
  - Rendering: Improved curve and gradient control interaction
  - Rendering: Ability to use Displacement Fade Near Geom in Mesh render mode
  - Rendering: Abort rendering with Defscanline when a fire/smoke or particle pre-process is cancelled
  - Turbulence: Added a list with grid and particle channels to be affected

Availability

PhoenixFD 3.00.02 for 3ds Max is available for download in the downloads section of your Chaos Group account.

Related video: Mobile Strike VFX breakdown

  More Phoenix FD Plugin [post_ad]

Read more »

FumeFX v4.0 for 3ds max

Artikel 3ds Max, Artikel FumeFX, Artikel Smoke, Artikel VFX,

[ #VFX #FumeFX #3dsMax ]Sitni Sati has unveiled FumeFX v4.0 for 3ds max with many new features that help simulations to run faster and with more detail.
The new FumeFX 4.0 QCG solver is up to twice as fast than the CG solver found in FumeFX 3.0. Along with other simulation optimizations, FumeFX 4.0 can complete simulation faster than any previous version of FumeFX.
New vorticity type has additional control over vortices which helps user to fine tune the final result. The highly optimized Spline Follow force field allows various special effects that were impossible before.
Built-in Black-body radiation shader is a new powerful tool for achieving realistic fire and explosion animations.
Features such as faster solver, advanced vorticity, smoke and fire sharpening and improved caches handling will allow users to create more detailed simulations in less time.

>> See Also: FumeFX tutorial

Effectors are the most valuable and the most powerful feature. With just a few mouse clicks, artists can tweak the laws of physics or alter any simulated field based on built-in rules. For example, Effectors can drive setups where vorticity is controlled by velocity, gravity is controlled by smoke color and fire is created in voxels where velocity is above a user-defined threshold. All of this can be further refined by powerful test conditions or even confined to the Effector's gizmo.



RenderWarps are another great tool that will find application on many VFX shots. This feature allows users to apply space warps such as FFD, Bend, Taper and Noise to precomputed FumeFX caches. As RenderWarps are a post-process, re-simulation is not needed.


N-Sim enables artists to connect many grids together and execute their simulations simultaneously as one big simulation. This approach can be invaluable for increasing the level of detail in scene setups such as a rocket launch.

The GPU accelerated Preview Window is another time-saver, providing instant feedback for adjusting rendering parameters. Self-shadows are computed extremely fast and the user can orbit the camera around FumeFX with self-shadows in real-time(1). FumeFX also supports preview with geometry included in simulation.

Key Features:

- Production proven results demonstrate this technology's ability to achieve realistic smoke and fire effects for cutting-edge industry applications.
- FumeFX supplements the user's artistic vision with the power of real-world physics for the ultimate in both style and realism.
- GPU accelerated Preview Windows with self-shadows and geometry.
- A multitude of parameters and FumeFX helpers give users maximum control of the fluid's behavior and appearance.
- Easy to use, basic effects can be created with just a few clicks.
- Options include the use of powerful AFC and Gradient controls, which are unified through all Sitni Sati products.
- Plug-in design incorporates extensive support for Particle Flow and Thinking Particles.
- Dynamic simulations allow for bi-directional influence between FumeFX and particle systems.
- Advanced scripting via MAXScript is possible with almost every aspect of FumeFX, including access to all simulation data.
- FumeFX is capable of dynamic interaction with other scene objects.

Simulation

- New and faster solver since FumeFX 4.0.
- Advanced vorticity type.
- Simulation of nested grids in one go (N-Sim).
- Powerfull Effectors that can control almost every parameter on a per-voxel basis.
- Application of various Space Warp deformers on caches.
- Particle Source controllers provide support for ParticleFlow float and vector channel access. It is also possible to pick any Particle Flow event directly.
- Field3D and OpenVDB 3.0 I/O support.
- FumeFX can use Variable Density solver that uses smoke density and temperature as variables.
- Start simulations from scratch or by using other simulation results as a starting point.
- Stop, pause and continue simulations at any point.
- E-mail notifications.
- Simulation is multithreaded - users can select how many CPU's to dedicate to their simulation.
- Users can watch the simulation progress in the interactive GPU accelerated Preview Window.
- Interactive simulation allows user to change almost every parameter during the simulation and see it's influence on the simulation result.
- Draft simulations can be created in mere minutes for fast previewing.
- Multiple advection schemes that can minimize numerical dissipation.
- User has control of which data is written to output files for rendering and further processing.
- Wavelet Turbulence algorithm quickly adds extra detail to low resolution simulation caches while preserving the existing overall motion.
- Retimer is a very efficient and fast method to slow down or speed up caches without the need to re-run simulation.
- Post Processing module can significantly reduce cache size by optimizing grid size around smoke/fire. It also allows users to decide which channels will be excluded from the final caches.

Rendering

- mental ray for 3ds Max renderer support - available for both Windows and Linux.
- The GPU accelerated Preview Window gives users almost instant feedback on render settings.
- Fast self-shadowing is produced through an Illumination Map which is integrated inside of the FumeFX object.
- A highly efficient Multiple Scattering model enhances light dispersion throughout fluid and between multiple FumeFX grids..
- Smoke and Fire sharpening.
- Built in motion blur.
- Fluid Mapping integrates procedural map details with fluid motion.
- The dynamic FusionWorks atmospheric renderer provides:
- Render Elements: Fire, Smoke, Velocity
- Proper blending with AfterBurn and ScatterVL Pro.
- Balanced mixing of FumeFX and compatible atmospherics with 3ds Max Fog
- Ability to apply Image Motion Blur
- Option to affect Effect Channel
- Z depth
(1) - On GeForce GTX 460 and similar cards

Availability

More information about FumeFX v4.0 for 3ds max here
  More 3ds Max Plugin [post_ad]

[ #VFX #FumeFX #3dsMax ]Sitni Sati has unveiled FumeFX v4.0 for 3ds max with many new features that help simulations to run faster and with more detail.
The new FumeFX 4.0 QCG solver is up to twice as fast than the CG solver found in FumeFX 3.0. Along with other simulation optimizations, FumeFX 4.0 can complete simulation faster than any previous version of FumeFX.
New vorticity type has additional control over vortices which helps user to fine tune the final result. The highly optimized Spline Follow force field allows various special effects that were impossible before.
Built-in Black-body radiation shader is a new powerful tool for achieving realistic fire and explosion animations.
Features such as faster solver, advanced vorticity, smoke and fire sharpening and improved caches handling will allow users to create more detailed simulations in less time.

>> See Also: FumeFX tutorial

Effectors are the most valuable and the most powerful feature. With just a few mouse clicks, artists can tweak the laws of physics or alter any simulated field based on built-in rules. For example, Effectors can drive setups where vorticity is controlled by velocity, gravity is controlled by smoke color and fire is created in voxels where velocity is above a user-defined threshold. All of this can be further refined by powerful test conditions or even confined to the Effector's gizmo.



RenderWarps are another great tool that will find application on many VFX shots. This feature allows users to apply space warps such as FFD, Bend, Taper and Noise to precomputed FumeFX caches. As RenderWarps are a post-process, re-simulation is not needed.


N-Sim enables artists to connect many grids together and execute their simulations simultaneously as one big simulation. This approach can be invaluable for increasing the level of detail in scene setups such as a rocket launch.

The GPU accelerated Preview Window is another time-saver, providing instant feedback for adjusting rendering parameters. Self-shadows are computed extremely fast and the user can orbit the camera around FumeFX with self-shadows in real-time(1). FumeFX also supports preview with geometry included in simulation.

Key Features:

- Production proven results demonstrate this technology's ability to achieve realistic smoke and fire effects for cutting-edge industry applications.
- FumeFX supplements the user's artistic vision with the power of real-world physics for the ultimate in both style and realism.
- GPU accelerated Preview Windows with self-shadows and geometry.
- A multitude of parameters and FumeFX helpers give users maximum control of the fluid's behavior and appearance.
- Easy to use, basic effects can be created with just a few clicks.
- Options include the use of powerful AFC and Gradient controls, which are unified through all Sitni Sati products.
- Plug-in design incorporates extensive support for Particle Flow and Thinking Particles.
- Dynamic simulations allow for bi-directional influence between FumeFX and particle systems.
- Advanced scripting via MAXScript is possible with almost every aspect of FumeFX, including access to all simulation data.
- FumeFX is capable of dynamic interaction with other scene objects.

Simulation

- New and faster solver since FumeFX 4.0.
- Advanced vorticity type.
- Simulation of nested grids in one go (N-Sim).
- Powerfull Effectors that can control almost every parameter on a per-voxel basis.
- Application of various Space Warp deformers on caches.
- Particle Source controllers provide support for ParticleFlow float and vector channel access. It is also possible to pick any Particle Flow event directly.
- Field3D and OpenVDB 3.0 I/O support.
- FumeFX can use Variable Density solver that uses smoke density and temperature as variables.
- Start simulations from scratch or by using other simulation results as a starting point.
- Stop, pause and continue simulations at any point.
- E-mail notifications.
- Simulation is multithreaded - users can select how many CPU's to dedicate to their simulation.
- Users can watch the simulation progress in the interactive GPU accelerated Preview Window.
- Interactive simulation allows user to change almost every parameter during the simulation and see it's influence on the simulation result.
- Draft simulations can be created in mere minutes for fast previewing.
- Multiple advection schemes that can minimize numerical dissipation.
- User has control of which data is written to output files for rendering and further processing.
- Wavelet Turbulence algorithm quickly adds extra detail to low resolution simulation caches while preserving the existing overall motion.
- Retimer is a very efficient and fast method to slow down or speed up caches without the need to re-run simulation.
- Post Processing module can significantly reduce cache size by optimizing grid size around smoke/fire. It also allows users to decide which channels will be excluded from the final caches.

Rendering

- mental ray for 3ds Max renderer support - available for both Windows and Linux.
- The GPU accelerated Preview Window gives users almost instant feedback on render settings.
- Fast self-shadowing is produced through an Illumination Map which is integrated inside of the FumeFX object.
- A highly efficient Multiple Scattering model enhances light dispersion throughout fluid and between multiple FumeFX grids..
- Smoke and Fire sharpening.
- Built in motion blur.
- Fluid Mapping integrates procedural map details with fluid motion.
- The dynamic FusionWorks atmospheric renderer provides:
- Render Elements: Fire, Smoke, Velocity
- Proper blending with AfterBurn and ScatterVL Pro.
- Balanced mixing of FumeFX and compatible atmospherics with 3ds Max Fog
- Ability to apply Image Motion Blur
- Option to affect Effect Channel
- Z depth
(1) - On GeForce GTX 460 and similar cards

Availability

More information about FumeFX v4.0 for 3ds max here
  More 3ds Max Plugin [post_ad]

Read more »

Effex 2.50.01 for Cinema 4D R13 - R16

Artikel Cinema 4D, Artikel Effex, Artikel Fire, Artikel Fluid, Artikel Motion Graphic, Artikel particle, Artikel Simulation, Artikel Smoke, Artikel VFX,

[ #Cinema4D #simulation ]Effex 2.5 - the latest version of Cinema 4D plugin for creating physics-based simulations is now available.

>> See Also: Cinema 4D tutorial

Features are:

Bullet Dynamics & Two-Way Coupling
Rigid Bodies and Fluids are one of the most used features for VFX nowadays. Effex brings these two now together by providing the artist with a quick and easy way to create rigid body dynamics for volumes using the most popular Bullet Physics library.
Furthermore these dynamic volumes can be fully coupled to fluid dynamics allowing two-way interaction. Ships floating on water or cars being carried away by a massive flood based on physical properties like mass and density is a breeze now.



State-of-the-Art Surface Tension
The new surface tension models make the big difference when simulating small scale effects and equip the artist with brand new algorithms based on latest research.
It provides the artist with new ways to create bubble dynamics, wiggling water droplets and similar small scale phenomena increasing realism in these scenarios.


Pipeline Viewer
Full control of the whole simulation pipeline is now given via the Pipeline Viewer giving the artist the chance to define and understand when the used nodes are evaluated during a given timestep. Making it easier to create and manage complex simulation setups.
Also it opens the door for custom setups to be handled by simply reordering nodes.


Vast Effex API
Now shipping with a vast API for third party developers it gives read & write access to the most important structures in Effex like Particles, Channels, Volumes etc.. So external renderers or other plugins can now easily support Effex simulation data!
Furthermore it allows third parties to create their own plugin constraints, forces and operators to extent the Effex Framework opening the door to new/custom algorithms being introduced even during a running project.

High-Quality Viscosity for Gases
Effex' high-quality viscosity is not an own liquid dynamics node any longer (viscous liquids) but has been rewritten to now be available as a setting in all fluid dynamics!
This means you can now also use it for any smoke and fire simulation which adds to the realism and quality tremendously (and is not available in any other package we know of).
Also variable viscosity is of course possible to mimic real-world behaviors even more (such as lowered viscosity at higher temperatures).


New Menu, Quicktabs and Candidate buttons
The new Effex menu is much more intuitive to read with nodes being grouped in a more meaningful way. This makes it more intuitive for the artist to know what nodes logically fit together.
Another workflow enhancement is the new Quicktab that is available in several nodes and contains useful mini-setups involving the specific node. Beside this Effex 2.5 also extents the candidate buttons availability in several nodes increasing workflow speed even more.


MultiVolume and MoGraph Support
The multivolume is an enhancement that a lot of users were wishing for. It allows to take several input meshes and convert them to volumes avoiding cluttering your object manager and makes linking multiple volumes in other nodes way easier and faster.
Another huge advantage that comes along with it is that rigid dynamics can be easily applied to all contained volumes.
But not enough, the MultiVolume also natively supports MoGraph's Cloner and Matrix objects, so now the fun begins for all those motion graphics artists.


Mesh Curvature
The new mesh curvature operator calculates curvatures on any volume or mesher's mesh which in turn can be used by other nodes to create curvature based effects.
It can be use it in conjunction with the Particle Mesh emitter for example to restrict the emission based on the curvature at the sample locations.


Mesh Smoother
Additionally to the volume smoother there is now a mesh smoother which is marvelleous at enhancing your final liquid meshes not only visually, as in smoother, but also topologically, as in better distributed mesh polygons.
This is especially important in rendering quality and later mesh editing procedures.


Improved Particle Emitters
Both the Volume Emitter and the Mesh Emitter do now contain much more options to more efficiently generate particles. Volume driven emission densities, sample distances to avoid overlapping particles and create uniform distributions, curvature based emissions and straightforward color and UV emissions make the emitters more powerful.



Faster Mesher!
The mesher sees a huge increase in performance for all meshing algorithms involved.
Speed ups of 400 - 500% are possible especially in more splashy scenes. It is now feasible to use the high-quality meshing modes and therefore gain higher-quality results even in complex scenarios.


Effex supported renderers include the Cinema 4D renderer, Cinema 4D NET, V-Ray and Thinkbox Krakatoa. The software can read and write data in various particle file formats, including Krakatoa .prt, Houdini .bgeo/.geo, Realflow .bin, ASCII/Binary .pda/.pdb, Pointclouds .pts, etc.

The Plugin works with Cinema 4D R13 - R16

Download:

Download Effex 2.50.01 for Cinema 4D demo version here

  More Cinema 4D Plugin

[ #Cinema4D #simulation ]Effex 2.5 - the latest version of Cinema 4D plugin for creating physics-based simulations is now available.

>> See Also: Cinema 4D tutorial

Features are:

Bullet Dynamics & Two-Way Coupling
Rigid Bodies and Fluids are one of the most used features for VFX nowadays. Effex brings these two now together by providing the artist with a quick and easy way to create rigid body dynamics for volumes using the most popular Bullet Physics library.
Furthermore these dynamic volumes can be fully coupled to fluid dynamics allowing two-way interaction. Ships floating on water or cars being carried away by a massive flood based on physical properties like mass and density is a breeze now.



State-of-the-Art Surface Tension
The new surface tension models make the big difference when simulating small scale effects and equip the artist with brand new algorithms based on latest research.
It provides the artist with new ways to create bubble dynamics, wiggling water droplets and similar small scale phenomena increasing realism in these scenarios.


Pipeline Viewer
Full control of the whole simulation pipeline is now given via the Pipeline Viewer giving the artist the chance to define and understand when the used nodes are evaluated during a given timestep. Making it easier to create and manage complex simulation setups.
Also it opens the door for custom setups to be handled by simply reordering nodes.


Vast Effex API
Now shipping with a vast API for third party developers it gives read & write access to the most important structures in Effex like Particles, Channels, Volumes etc.. So external renderers or other plugins can now easily support Effex simulation data!
Furthermore it allows third parties to create their own plugin constraints, forces and operators to extent the Effex Framework opening the door to new/custom algorithms being introduced even during a running project.

High-Quality Viscosity for Gases
Effex' high-quality viscosity is not an own liquid dynamics node any longer (viscous liquids) but has been rewritten to now be available as a setting in all fluid dynamics!
This means you can now also use it for any smoke and fire simulation which adds to the realism and quality tremendously (and is not available in any other package we know of).
Also variable viscosity is of course possible to mimic real-world behaviors even more (such as lowered viscosity at higher temperatures).


New Menu, Quicktabs and Candidate buttons
The new Effex menu is much more intuitive to read with nodes being grouped in a more meaningful way. This makes it more intuitive for the artist to know what nodes logically fit together.
Another workflow enhancement is the new Quicktab that is available in several nodes and contains useful mini-setups involving the specific node. Beside this Effex 2.5 also extents the candidate buttons availability in several nodes increasing workflow speed even more.


MultiVolume and MoGraph Support
The multivolume is an enhancement that a lot of users were wishing for. It allows to take several input meshes and convert them to volumes avoiding cluttering your object manager and makes linking multiple volumes in other nodes way easier and faster.
Another huge advantage that comes along with it is that rigid dynamics can be easily applied to all contained volumes.
But not enough, the MultiVolume also natively supports MoGraph's Cloner and Matrix objects, so now the fun begins for all those motion graphics artists.


Mesh Curvature
The new mesh curvature operator calculates curvatures on any volume or mesher's mesh which in turn can be used by other nodes to create curvature based effects.
It can be use it in conjunction with the Particle Mesh emitter for example to restrict the emission based on the curvature at the sample locations.


Mesh Smoother
Additionally to the volume smoother there is now a mesh smoother which is marvelleous at enhancing your final liquid meshes not only visually, as in smoother, but also topologically, as in better distributed mesh polygons.
This is especially important in rendering quality and later mesh editing procedures.


Improved Particle Emitters
Both the Volume Emitter and the Mesh Emitter do now contain much more options to more efficiently generate particles. Volume driven emission densities, sample distances to avoid overlapping particles and create uniform distributions, curvature based emissions and straightforward color and UV emissions make the emitters more powerful.



Faster Mesher!
The mesher sees a huge increase in performance for all meshing algorithms involved.
Speed ups of 400 - 500% are possible especially in more splashy scenes. It is now feasible to use the high-quality meshing modes and therefore gain higher-quality results even in complex scenarios.


Effex supported renderers include the Cinema 4D renderer, Cinema 4D NET, V-Ray and Thinkbox Krakatoa. The software can read and write data in various particle file formats, including Krakatoa .prt, Houdini .bgeo/.geo, Realflow .bin, ASCII/Binary .pda/.pdb, Pointclouds .pts, etc.

The Plugin works with Cinema 4D R13 - R16

Download:

Download Effex 2.50.01 for Cinema 4D demo version here

  More Cinema 4D Plugin

Read more »