How to scale 3D model assets before/during importing them into model.

[stephen_moore]

Hello All,
QUESTION
VRAY 6 for SKETCHUP CHAOS COSMOS
I prefer the multiply, click and clone method for placing in assets from Creative Cosmos a whole lot more than the native move/copy component method sketchup uses. The problem is, sometimes I need the cosmos assets to be at a much different scale. Is there a way to change what scale the come in at when dragging and dropping them into my model? Thanks in advance.

[Peter.Chaushev]

Hello, Stephen,
There are a several ways you can create multiple versions of the same Cosmos asset, each with different scaling:

a) Creating a new component with scaled proportions
Essentially, you need to nest the SketchUp component of the Cosmos asset within another component in order to achieve persistent scaling change among multiple instances.
Here is a short step-by-step description:

1. Import the desired Cosmos asset
2. Create a second instance of the asset by copy-pasting it in the SketchUp viewport.
3. Use the Lines tool to draw a small line next to the second copy.
4. Select both the 2nd instance of the Cosmos asset and the drawn line, right-click on either of them and choose 'Make Component'. Label the component as convenient, e.g. "asset_name_scaled"
5. Select the newly-created Component, right-click it and choose 'Edit Component'
6. Delete the line and scale the Cosmos asset's instance component using the 'Scale' tool.
   Now you can place multiple instances of this new scaled version of the component by selecting it from the SketchUp Components tray or copy/pasting it.

b) Scaling specific component instances
This is the straight-forward solution if you need to have only a handful of Cosmos asset component instances resized.

1. Select a Cosmos asset's component instance.
2. Activate the SketchUp 'Scale' tool and resize the component instance.
3. Repeat for every instance you would like to have resized.

c) Conversion to V-Ray Proxy Mesh and adjusting its scale factor value
Firstly, some details to help you understand the mechanics of Cosmos proxy meshes:
Cosmos assets can be 'merged' into your scene by decomposing them into their building blocks - a V-Ray Proxy Mesh for geometry and associated V-Ray materials.
Each Cosmos asset comes with a predefined size built into its geometry data ensuring consistency of size between scenes regardless of V-Ray product and scene units.
V-Ray for SketchUp sets the size of each Cosmos asset by applying a predefined multiplier to the asset's size. Since SketchUp internally works only in inches (regardless of display units) and the Cosmos asset display scale is in meters, the built-in size of Cosmos assets is multiplied by 0.393701 (there are ~39 inches in a meter).

1. Select the imported Cosmos asset within the V-Ray Asset Editor.
2. Open the right-side panel containing the Asset's options and click the 'Merge' button.
   The Cosmos asset will be merged to the scene in its building blocks.
3. After merging, the newly-created Proxy Mesh asset will be automatically selected. Notice its 'Scale Factor' parameter with the value of 0.393701 mentioned above.
4. Adjust the value to change the asset's size across all of its instances.
5. Reimport the Cosmos asset from the Chaos Cosmos Browser to also reintroduce the asset with its original scaling into your scene.

d) Procedural scaling of all instances to achieve size variation
V-Ray 5.2 for SketchUp introduces a new Scatter tool based on Chaos Scatter.
It allows users a fast way to distribute multiple instances of an object with varying size and orientation onto another object's surfaces.
This is a powerful tool which can replicate a large amount of geometries at render time while keeping the SketchUp viewport clean and performant.
Detailed info and guides are available at https://docs.chaos.com/display/VSKETCHUP/Scatter

In case, the aim of having instances with different size to add natural variation of, let's say, a vegetation asset, then using Scatter with a Cosmos asset (or multiple ones simultaneously) may be the most convenient solution for you.

1. Import a Cosmos asset of your choice in the SketchUp viewport.
2. Draw and select a surface (object) which will host the instances. It must be either a group or a component.
3. Click the V-Ray Scatter button to create a V-Ray Scatter asset.
4. Immediately after this, select the Cosmos asset, drag it by holding the left mouse button and release it over the other object's
5. Open the V-Ray Asset Editor and select the Scatter asset.
6. Adjust the option in its 'Scale' section to your liking.

Hope this explanation will suffice!
If you have any further questions, please describe the end result you wish to achieve in your particular situation so I can provide more fitting advice.

Kind regards,
Peter

[stephen_moore]

Thank you Peter I will try these out!