Spring RTS Engine

Technically belongs in the off-topic forum, but I felt I would get the right people here. Mods can lock it/move it once I get a response.

I need to make a rather complicated form for a Uni model. I've got it modelled up in max, but it needs to be produced in reality.

If it were UV mapped, would it be possible to take that UV map, print it out, transfer it onto a piece of cardboard, and then assemble the model by cutting/folding along those lines?

I think so, but none of them can be overlapping..

One weird project

Depends on how coherent the UV map is I guess.

And if any of the faces in the UV map are distorted, then it wont work. Every face in the UV map has to be the same size/shape, and to scale, as the peice on the actull RL model. Its possible, but tricky.

What maelstrom said, basicly, yes, it's possible, but it's more complicated then just printing out your average UV map, because your average UV map uses tricks for improving image quality on the model with using as little UV space as possible. You can't have any usage of the UV map by more then 1 face and the UV map needs to be a totally uniform size. The fold up model will also likely have to be slightly smaller to account for the width of the paper.

load the model in max, bring up the "Unwrap UV" modifier, go to edit.

Go to "Unfold mapping" at the top.. then "walk to closest face"

Unfold it... (every face SHOULD be 100% flat, not streched, but with lots of overlaps..

now is the REALLY hard part...

play with the tools and sperate ALL of the overlapping pieces into non overlapping pieces.. you'll have to use the "break" command alot to break verticies,lines, and polygons apart...

whatever you do, don't attempt to re-weld anything.. it'll just add a slight distortion to the lines..

be VERY careful, and VERY precise, and you can get it to work...

there are means to "re-stitch" the thing together to make even fewer random parts.. but thats really tricky, and I don't advize it..

ALSO!! on your model.. having "concave" sets of polys are VERY VERY VERY hard to UV map without overlaps if the entire map has to be connected..

I did this same project for my architecture studio up at my Uni.. took about 9 passes to get a UV map and model that I liked that worked..

good luck!

and no, you can't have my model, thats cheating

oh and if it dosen't have to be "connected" which makes this project kinda pointless.. just use a "flatten map" modifier with an angle weld of 0... it'll flatten the map 100% with no overlaps and no streching.. but will have LOTS and LOTS of random polys scattered everywhere...

if you want to re-stitch it yourself, you can flatten it, then stitch it... but set the stitch NOT to stretch anything..

/me looks other works.

Holy shit, batman... http://paperinside.com/1966-batmobile/

Yeah, mine is also for an architectural studio, lathan.

Thanks for the instructions. I'll give it a crack; it sounds a lot more difficult then I originally hoped it would be. I thought it would save me time rather then add time to how long it would take to make the model. :S


(I'm making a vaulted structure, btw)

Look at FireCrack's link. I have used PepaKura myself... it is very easy to make a printed version of a uv-mapped model with, complete with tabs and fold-lines. Really. Doing it Lathan's way is possible, but PepaKura is waaaaay better.

I have given it a go, but it seems for the most part to "simplify" the model into something apparently far too inefficient. (At one point I asked it to simplify one model, and it turned it into 200 individual faces. Brilliant!)

But, I'll just have to see which one works the best/easiest with my design.

Would be positively kick-ass if someone did this and made a mold (mould? moulde?) from it, then we could all get little krogoth miniatures for our desk ^^

Well I'd get one, anyway. Shut up...

There was a bloke over at TAU who did it. Lemme see if I can find the thread...

http://www.tauniverse.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33030
There you are.

Awesome. The evolva krog in 3" tall pewter would be priceless. I mean, I'd literally pay anything for it.

Hmm...
http://www.tauniverse.com/forum/showthr ... ght=peewee

That was far cooler, but it seems the pics have fallen off the internet now :\ His school had a 3D printer thingy instead of just folding up paper, and he fed a peewee through it... it was around half the size of a 12oz soda can, I think. Cool as hell.

Good lord, assembling these things is an absolute nightmare...

http://www.tamasoft.co.jp/pepakura-en/

Is this what you want?

That was linked above, but thanks.

I tell you, after several hours of trying and failing miserably, I'm no closer to a solution.

... Would've been better to just start working things up in clay...

*facepalm*

Caydr wrote:Awesome. The evolva krog in 3" tall pewter would be priceless. I mean, I'd literally pay anything for it.

You give me $20 grand, I'll have it ready. :-D

just a tip for assembling... take a metal ruler and an X-acto knife.. and well.. score the fold seams where they are to be folded on the approporiate sides...

it will make your fold seams about 90 million times cleaner.. literally...

just don't push too hard or you will cut all the way through the paper.. and thats well.. bad...