VRayEdgesTex - TOOL - Export to Vectors

[Candelero]

Hi to all of You guys )) how're you doing ?

I would like to propose a new feature / tool for the Great V-Ray.
The idea came from my close friend Ki ( 3DKad.de )

So , the idea is:
To have a feature/tool ( i will call it the EdgesTool further on ), which can save/export a vector file based on the Wireframe of a scene.

More or Less it has to work like this:
Imagine you're rendering ( VRayEdgesTex - as a separate RE - most probably Black/White ) So far so good.
BUT.... rather than saving this RE as a raster image, to have it saved as a vector-lines file, suitable to be edited in any vector-graphics soft,
such as Adobe Illustrator, CorelDraw, any else, etc. and then edit these lines as Bezier curves , lines, etc.

What is this usefull for on prima Vista :
- non-scale dependant ( one can enlarge that times in plus, without loosing info for the shapes ) ( impossible with raster )
- you can have that used for cutting the shapes out of folio.
- you can have it : color-filled in AI
- you can edit the lines with different thickness, different colors, different type of lines ( dashed, dotted, whatever ).
- and so on ....

THE EDGESTOOL can be a separate tool outside the V-Ray renderer !!! ( probably better, than to be integrated )
HOW is it going to work ???? Like this :
- the tool reads the MAX File(Scene) - VRayScene (whatever) from the needed Camera position
- Cashes the geometry and simply creates lines out of this (Vertexes info).

!!! The TOOL doesn't need to DO any VRAY Raytracing, like Shadows, Refl/Refr, etc... Actually it doesn't need any materials whatsoever...
Just the WIREFrame of the geometry ! THAT's ALL !
WELL, maybe Shadows would be GOOD , but definitely like SHARP Raytraced SHADOW only. ( no way to draw a soft shadow with vector lines, right )


POSSIBLE CHECK-BOXes inside the UI of the tool
1st | "Draw" hidden lines ? Y/N
2nd | "Draw" all lines as separate lines-objects ? Y/N
3rd | "Follow" Loops as a single CURVE ? Y/N
4th | "Create Closed shapes" out of each face ? Y/N

5th | .... don't know it yet ....

HERE's your part friends, what else can you think out, which might be useful.


EXAMPLE :
Let's say the scene is made from 1 BOX + 1 Cylinder
Tool working ( Rendering ) ... FILE Created:

In AI you see:
1 box ( with it's faces in the specific perspective (depending on the camera)
- it has either only the visible 3 faces ( 2 sides + top or bottom )
- or you see all the 6 faces ( the 3 hidden as well )
- they all are made of "Closed skewed Rectangles"
- then you can easily COLOR-FILL them
- arrange them one in front/behind others...
- set opacities...
- Change colors of the lines, thickness, type, etc.
- ))) Whatever you wish and how to edit that Curves.

2 Cylinder ( most probably you see the 2 CAPS - top and Bottom + the vertical rectangular shapes - the Number of the Segments )
- IT WILL BE AWESOME if the CAPS , can be edited as Circles/Ellipses, with BEZIER type of curves.
- all the BOX'es advantages explained in before .


So that's it What do you think guys ? ?
Let's have a simple discussion in this thread whether more of you ( not just 3DKad and me ) think, this will be a POWERFULL Tool to have ?

C&C to follow


Best regards,
nikki Candelero

[Bruce Hart]

....or you could simply render out a white toon render with black edges and then run Corel Trace on it to convert to vector linework

[Candelero]

that's not what i meant !!! CorelTrace is a good tool, but nothing of what i am talking about

[windowlicker]

Doesn't the Illustrate plugin do most (if not all) of this already? Stopped using it when rayToon was implemented, and I never really had the use for a vector output.. which you can get with that plug.

[vlado]

It is quite a challenge to write a vector renderer; it is not impossible, just a lot of work, especially to find out the hidden lines. Raytracing naturally performs hidden line removal, but for vector output, this is a lot more complicated.

Best regards,
Vlado

[jujubee]

Isn't Swift3D capable of something similar?