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I'm trying to import .3ds models into Max 2010 Design with some odd results. The 3ds model has a lot of odd unnessary faces. I have a very simple Arch&Design material applied to it. Other materials exhibit the same odd behaviour in the viewports & when rendered.
I've tried adjusting the normals with no effect.
Unfortunately, I don't have any choice about how the original .3ds models are created. I'm stuck working with this format.
I'd appreciate any suggestions.
Cheers.
Attachment is not working. What it should show is a number of boxes broken up into triangles of black & white. Sorry, not very meaningful without the attachment.
I've tried adjusting the normals with no effect.
Unfortunately, I don't have any choice about how the original .3ds models are created. I'm stuck working with this format.
I'd appreciate any suggestions.
Cheers.
Attachment is not working. What it should show is a number of boxes broken up into triangles of black & white. Sorry, not very meaningful without the attachment.
It looks like flipped faces, and/or coplanar faces. In Poly mode in the Editable Mesh, theres a checkbox for Show Normals. A blue line will show which direction the normals are facing for any selected polys. Useful to see where there are problems like this. Try it and see how things look.
You might also want to try adding an Edit Mesh, then deleting or moving some faces to check for coplanar surfaces. You can delete the modifier without accidentally screwing up the original mesh.
You might also want to try adding an Edit Mesh, then deleting or moving some faces to check for coplanar surfaces. You can delete the modifier without accidentally screwing up the original mesh.
Chris Medeck
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Chris and Steve gave good tips in this thread also. Maybe it has something to do with object being too big, too small. or too far away.
http://area.autodesk.com/forum/autodesk-3ds-max/3ds-max-through-2008/very-odd-display-problem-in-vie...
Edit: Chris/Steve, I forget if the scale/unit issue affect rendered images. Perhaps it is because of flipped normals.
http://area.autodesk.com/forum/autodesk-3ds-max/3ds-max-through-2008/very-odd-display-problem-in-vie...
Edit: Chris/Steve, I forget if the scale/unit issue affect rendered images. Perhaps it is because of flipped normals.
I don't think this is a Material problem, more an issue with the underlying mesh.
I have a feeling I've seen that model, or one very similar, before - with similar problems.
Basically it's not a model - it's a collection of 54 objects which looks like a model.
Import the .3ds into a new, clean scene.
There are 4 Omni lights at the same point in space which is pretty pointless - delete them out of the way.
Viewport Properties, 2 default lights.
Select "scx_shar 1B" which is the the upper left cupboard door and "hide unselected".
Get rid of the material by typing "$.material=undefined" (without the quotes) into the Maxscript Listener.
Object Properties | Backface Cull (on/checked), orbit around the object and you'll see that the object does not become invisible when looking at the backs of the polys. Very strange because you don't even see the black backface rather than nothing (which I think is what you're seeing when originally imported). If you create a normal Plane object, convert to Mesh, Backface Cull, you will see what should happen.
Problem is that pretty much every other face seems to react as if it were flipped, but it isn't, which is why you're seeing black triangles.
Put bluntly, that model is a mess and you'll spend a lot of time trying to fix it. Would be good to see some other opinions before you start shouting at the author of the model though ;-)
I have a feeling I've seen that model, or one very similar, before - with similar problems.
Basically it's not a model - it's a collection of 54 objects which looks like a model.
Import the .3ds into a new, clean scene.
There are 4 Omni lights at the same point in space which is pretty pointless - delete them out of the way.
Viewport Properties, 2 default lights.
Select "scx_shar 1B" which is the the upper left cupboard door and "hide unselected".
Get rid of the material by typing "$.material=undefined" (without the quotes) into the Maxscript Listener.
Object Properties | Backface Cull (on/checked), orbit around the object and you'll see that the object does not become invisible when looking at the backs of the polys. Very strange because you don't even see the black backface rather than nothing (which I think is what you're seeing when originally imported). If you create a normal Plane object, convert to Mesh, Backface Cull, you will see what should happen.
Problem is that pretty much every other face seems to react as if it were flipped, but it isn't, which is why you're seeing black triangles.
Put bluntly, that model is a mess and you'll spend a lot of time trying to fix it. Would be good to see some other opinions before you start shouting at the author of the model though ;-)
Your objects have double faces. I ran Bobo's script, DeleteDoubleFaces, to delete them. http://www.scriptspot.com/3ds-max/deletedoublefaces-0 The script works really well on Editable Mesh objects.
1.Run script via Utilities. You should find "DDF" from dropdown menu.
2.Select all of your mesh objects (not lights)
3.Go to Utilities panel and choose "Delete Double Faces" and "Check Selected Meshes". (See attached pic for options used)
4.While objects are still selected, apply Normals modifier and choose Flip Normals. You can then collapse all.
The middle set of meshes in the screenshot has double faces deleted via Bobo's script, but as you can see, the normals are still flipped. Left most set has no flipped normals and no double faces.
1.Run script via Utilities. You should find "DDF" from dropdown menu.
2.Select all of your mesh objects (not lights)
3.Go to Utilities panel and choose "Delete Double Faces" and "Check Selected Meshes". (See attached pic for options used)
4.While objects are still selected, apply Normals modifier and choose Flip Normals. You can then collapse all.
The middle set of meshes in the screenshot has double faces deleted via Bobo's script, but as you can see, the normals are still flipped. Left most set has no flipped normals and no double faces.
Nice find there Anna - didn't know about that script (sorry Bobo).
It's an old script, but a timeless one. :)
Are you saying that there are 2 faces using the same set of vertices ? So 3 vertices but 2 faces? that is weird...
Any idea how that happens or what causes it?
Must be common, or was at some point in time, for Bobo to have created a script to fix it.
They were double, flipped faces. I don't know how it happens, but I've read in the past that turning on/checking STL import options screw up the normals.
http://area.autodesk.com/forum/Autodesk-3ds-Max/modeling/unifying-normals/
http://area.autodesk.com/forum/autodesk-3ds-max/modeling/method-for-flipping-30-of-normals/
I do know that Editable Mesh is problematic precisely for this reason. You couldn't make such an object using Editable Poly because it won't let you even if you tried.
Edit: Other topics similar to this one made references to importing from Sketchup.
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