How to use Relax by Face angles while unwrapping a tyre?

[Anonymous]

Hello, I'm new to 3ds Max.

I'm learning how to texture a tyre.

I've applied the Unwrap UVW modifier to a torus. Then I've applied Flatten Mapping. After that I've manually rearranged the surfaces as can be seen in the below picture. Now the thing is, my teacher has asked me to apply Relax tool, especially Relax by Face angles. I can't figure it out how to use it. 

I've read the Autodesk Document Help for this but its too technical. Can somebody explain it in simple terms, as I've just started learning Max.

Also, how should my uvw mapping look in the end? 

Thanks in advance.

[blakestone]

Someone asked a similar question a while back and I recorded this. It includes the use of the Relax Tool so you may find that this has your answer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ryym0jz2co

[Anonymous]

It will re-arange the UVs so the face shapes more closely match the shapes of the faces of the geometry.

The UV faces can become distorted when the mapping is projected at an angle, which often happens in a group selection on a non planar surface.

Having said that, this is not how I would map a tyre.

I would make one selection for the tyre tread and apply Cylindrical mapping to that, createing a long rectangular strip for UVs.

Then another selection for the tyre wall, and apply Planar mapping to that, creating a donut shaped UV mesh.

[Anonymous]

Thanks a lot! 😄 Now I understand what it does.

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@Anonymous wrote:

 createing a long rectangular strip for UVs.

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That's exactly what I want to achieve but without using the cylindrical mapping. For that, I've divided the round tread into 4 groups. This is where I am stuck - making each group flat and rectangular using the relax by face angles. I tried stitching together all the surfaces in a group to and then applying relax on the entire group. But it isn't working out.

Once I accomplish this, it'll be easy to stitch the 4 groups together into 1 final rectangular strip.

[Anonymous]

Why do things the hard way, rather than the right way?

Because your teacher told you too I guess.

You know what they say about those who teach. 😉

[Anonymous]

Ya, you're right ... The teacher wants it her way ... So, I'm just going along with it

Anyways, could you let me know how to do it?

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

To be frank, I just would not do it that way with this type of model, it's the wrong way. You will just end up pulling it into shape by hand. The cylinder will do it perfectly in seconds.

Relax does have it's uses, but for more oganic models. But a tyre is quite a geometric shape and does not require it. The basic projections will do the job faster and easier and more effective.

[Anonymous]

The method I described gives two UV parts, the tread as a rectangle and the wall as a donut (image 1).

I have looked at it another way to utilise the relax. If you wanted just a single UV part for the whole thing in one rectangle strip, you can do it.

Start by selecting the whole tyre, then apply Cylindrical mapping. That will map the tread well, but the walls will be squashed or overlapping. Now apply the relax, it will flatten out the walls to make something close to a rectangle (image 2). You will still need to manually adjust the ends and line up rows and columns of vertices to get a perfect rectangle.

The best method would depend on your intended maps. A map derived from photo of a tyre wall would want the donut mapping. To make it all in Photoshop, it may be better to use the second way, so the map will be straight, not round.