Flatiron (can be important in the creation process of a 3D configurator) is the new scene and baking plugin for Autodesk 3D Studio Max. It was developed to meet the high demands of graphic designers in real production environments and offers a fast, easy and optimal complete solution for unpacking and beacons.
Flatiron allows textures for multiple objects to be burned into a single map in a few simple steps. Lightmaps or other render elements can be combined to large and complex scenes with just a few mouse clicks. Flatiron automatically takes care of unpacking and packing and creates UV maps with optimized distribution, which leads to a significantly better quality of the lightmaps. This process minimizes texture seams and image corruption caused by stretched pixels while keeping the UV area ratio of all objects constant, increasing average image quality.
Key features.
Simplifies workflow, advanced options available.
At least 4 simple operations are required for the complete unpacking and baking process from start to finish. Users who need additional options and fine-tuning of rendering parameters will have access to all common render-to-texture parameters from the standard built-in “Render-to-Texture” dialog.
Advanced, stretch-free and automatic unpacking.
The unfolding algorithm is based on the Unwrella plug-in technology of 3d-io and offers significantly better results than the “flattens” integrated in Max when the rendered images are compared side by side. Unpacking is fully automatic and minimizes the number of diagrams, seams and texture stretches.
High quality packaging algorithm.
The Unwrella-based UV packaging technology from 3d-io is used to pack large quantities of hundreds of unpacked objects. The diagrams are packed quickly and optimally, which leads to a high utilisation of the texture space and at the same time takes into account the user-selectable channel padding and the final texture size.
Versatility.
Flatiron consistently delivers high-quality results with all types of 3D models, from 3D game objects to industrial designs to complex, irregular organic shapes. As such, it is an optimal tool for everyday work in game development, architecture and other 3D design studios.
Availability.
The Flatiron plugin for the complete scene unpacking and baking solution for Autodesk 3ds Max is now available both in test mode and as a fully functional commercial license on the homepage.
Tutorials.
For more information on the benefits, feature description and detailed use in production, please visit the illustrated tutorial and video website.