Daz 3D is part of 
Connect
DAZ Productions, Inc.
7533 S Center View Ct #4664
West Jordan, UT 84084
Licensing Agreement | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | EULA
© 2024 Daz Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Comments
I've been prepping for my second webinar on dForce which is this Saturday and Sunday. Info can be found at digitalartlive.com/event/more-dforce-discoveries-for-daz-studio/
The image shows some of the topics that will covered. These are a combination of posts I've previously made to this thread and new ones yet to come. Hope you can join me.
67. More Momentum Transfer. In section 63 I talked about momentum transfer using a torus. I have subsequently found that of the various primitives available (spheres, cylinders, cones, cubes) only the torus seems to show this behavior (perhaps I am missing something on the other ones?). I concluded section 63 with the words “What is this good for? I don’t know but it suggests there may be a way to get dForce objects to bounce off surfaces.” With just the torus as a possibility, use of this behavior seemed limited.
Praxis built upon my Daz forum post by showing a bouncing ball. Besides the bouncing ball, he has shown the ball being hit and bouncing around inside a box or off a vertical plane. To accomplish this he used the new Daz Studio beta 4.11 and a polyline mesh he modeled. Polylines are a new type of geometry coming to DS and can be used as a dForce add-on. His clever use of a polyline add-on is shared here.
Since my original post, I have found a way to use the torus as a helper object for other items. Create a rigid follow node on the inside of the torus, then after simulation, load a prop and parent it to the rigid node, hide the torus, and now the prop will assume the animated path the torus took.
Here’s how to go about it:
a. First follow the steps in section 63.
b. Run a simulation to test that the torus works as intended.
c. Clear the simulation. Select the torus in the Scene pane. Go to the Tool Settings pane and choose the Geometry Editor.
d. Right click in the viewport and choose Polygon as the Selection Type and Drag as the Selection Mode. Drag across two polygons on an inside loop of the torus midway down the ring.
e. With the selection still active, right click in the viewport again and choose Geometry Selection/Select Loop.
f. Right click in the viewport and choose Geometry Assignment/Create Rigid Follow Node and give it a name (I used Anchor). You will now see an I-beam icon parented to the torus. You can now parent other objects to the I-beam and they will follow the movement of the torus.
You can place the rigid node anywhere you want on the torus by selecting different polygons, but the inside loop will have the added prop follow the general translation and rotation of the torus.
g. Rerun the animated dForce simulation.
h. Create a sphere and parent it to the I-beam. Hide the torus and run the animation. Now instead of a torus moving, you will see a ball moving.
i. What else can be used? How about a fried egg?
An automobile skidding on the road? (Two autos, one parented to the cylinder, the other to the torus, cylinder and torus hidden.)
A man flying through the air?
The possibilities are endless.
j. You can simulate more than 1 torus. Here are three set to collide with each other. Since the second two are at rest, it takes some time for them to receive the energy and begin to move.
k. These simulations/animations are not by any means perfected but rather illustrate what may be possible. DS also seems to insert some random 180 degree rotations along the way where the item flips around.
Note: Refresh the page if the animations stops.
That bloke looks like me when I don't add water to my drink.
Seriously cool stuff
I know the feeling!
Thanks to all who attended the second webinar! I know I covered a lot of ground, so please ask any questions here or on the Digital Live Facebook page.
Ugh...I thought it was this coming Sunday. Got my calendar event wrong. Well, will have to wait til it's published and for sale here at Daz. I hope!!
68. Loose and Rumpled Clothing. Barbult posted to the Daz Forum an interesting result she observed while running a dForce simulation with an adult figure morphing into a young growing up figure. The result was oversized clothing that made it look like the children were playing dress up. Her first example is here and the second is here. I’ve replicated the result so I can show a couple of examples:
I’m a little surprised the clothing didn’t autofit but it doesn’t during or after the dForce simulation. It’s a stable result unless you clear the simulation when the child is small, then the clothing conforms as normal and you end up with the typical look of a child in children’s clothing.
I wondered if you could use smaller scale changes to give a looser fit to clothing. I find 3D clothing to be a little too perfect many times. Below I explain how you can indeed loosen the fit or even make for a rumpled look by scale changes during the simulation.
a. Set up a scene with a standard figure and clothing item. I used G2F and the dress from Early Spring Outfit. Add a dynamic modifier to the dress.
b. On the surfaces pane, select all five surfaces of the dress and set Dynamics Strength to 0. Then set the MainDress surface value back to 1. On the same surface, set Bend Strength to 0.2, Buckling Ratio to 55% and Density to 20.
c. Start with the T-pose at frame 0. At frame 30 pick a new pose (I used a walking pose).
d. Change the figure’s scale (not the dress) to 105% at frame 0. Set it back to 100% at frame 30. Run the simulation and render. Repeat using different combinations of scale. To change X, Y, and Z-scale of figure, use the Parameters pane submenu (the stack of papers icon at a top corner) and check Show Hidden Properties.
e. The following series of images show the results you get. (Best way to compare is to open each image in a seprate tab, then flip through them to see changes.)
(1) Normal conforming result with no scaling changes and no dForce simulation:
(2) Scale at 100% throughout. This shows the result from normal dForce simulation using the parameters mentioned in step b.
(3) Scale starts at 102%. Not much difference.
(4) Scale starts at 105%. Note the looser fit under the bodice, the bulges across the waist, and indentation of the panel at the front between the legs.
(5) Scale starts at 105% for X and Z, not Y. This was done as Y-scaling results in a longer dress than the starting version. The results is a look similar to dForce at 100% throughout (image 2) so most of the looseness came from changes in Y-scale.
(6) Scale starts at 110%. Much looser, more rumpled.
(7) Scale starts at 110% for X and Z, not Y. Now we see more variation than we did using the same approach at 105% scale (image5).
(8) Scale starts at 110% for X and Z, 102% for Y.
(9) Scale starts at 95%. You get a very taut looking result.
(10) Scale starting at 85%. Dress becomes mini-sized.
(11) And even smaller at 72% scale to start. At 50% it was more a shirt than dress.
f. In conclusion, you can using a reduction in scaling during a simulation to give a loose to rumpled look to clothing. The key driver is change in Y-scale but that also results in a slightly longer clothing item. You can get a shorter result by starting below 100% in scale and going large.
I think that suit on the boy looks excellent! Thanks for taking the experiment to the next level with your various % examples.
And thank you for inspiring it all. The images you posted caught my eye back then and it was only recently I wondered if your observation could do more.
69. dForce Magnet: This is a new product that was recently released in the Daz store. I’ve given it a try and find it a useful addition to the dForce toolkit.
a. The magnet is a small geometric shape with a dForce add-on modifier. First select a clothing item or create a primitive like a plane. Use the geometry editor to select a single vertex on mesh then run the magnet script. The magnet is added to your scene as a child of the selected item. You animate the magnet as you would any other item. Run the dForce simulation and you will find the magnet pulls the clothing or object as if you were holding it between your thumb and index finger.
b. The animated action is very similar to what you get using the helper objects I’ve described in several sections above. What’s helpful about the magnet is you can select a single vertex. When trying to grab a single vertex with a primitive like a sphere, it can slip out during simulation. You typically need to use a larger object that covers several vertices which may then have a negative effect on the mesh it encloses.
c. The main advantages of magnets versus helper objects are:
i. They can make tight pulls (like a strand of hair) or a pinch of cloth
ii. You can select a single vertex. Helper objects need to grab several vertices otherwise they may slip away during simulation
iii. It’s easy to get accurate positioning as it will be focused on a single vertex. With a helper object, you have to visually adjust its location
d. The main disadvantages of magnets versus helper objects are:
i. The pinpoint grip when you want a broader grab. An easy solution is to parent a helper object to a magnet and extend the effect of the magnet
ii. You cannot parent magnet(s) to anything else or group multiple magnets. If you do, they lose their connection(s) and you need to delete them and add new ones.
e. Example 1
Compares magnets with helper objects.
Set up two, 2-foot planes with 40 divisions. Add a dynamic modifier to each. Create a small sphere and center it on one plane. Do not parent the sphere to the plane. Pick the center vertex of the other plane with the Geometry Editor and add a dForce magnet. At frame 10, raise the sphere and magnet.
Frame 0 setup:
Sphere positioning:
Frame 10 setup:
Run a 30 frame dForce simulation. Here are the results:
Frame 4:
Frame 8:
Frame 10:
Frame 16:
Frame 30:
You get similar results using a helper sphere or a magnet, but note the stretched polygons at the top when using the sphere.
f. Example 2
Replace the small sphere with a larger sphere. Duplicate the sphere and parent the duplicate to the magnet.
Frame 0 setup:
Sphere positioning:
Frame 10 setup:
Run a 30 frame dForce simulation.
Frame 4:
Frame 10:
Frame 30:
Spheres hidden (frame 10):
You get very similar results using a large sphere whether by itself or attached to a magnet.
(tutorial continues in next post)
(tutorial continues from previous post)
g. Example 3
Create two, 2-foot long, narrow cylinders. Parent one to the magnet and the other center on the plane. At frame 10, add keyframes to keep the cylinder’s scale at 100%. At frame 20, shrink the cylinders to 35%.
Frame 0 setup:
Frame 10 setup:
Frame 20 setup:
Run a 30 frame dForce simulation.
Frame 4:
Frame 10:
Frame 20:
Frame 30:
You get very similar results whether using the helper cylinder only or using the magnet with cylinder. You don’t really need to magnet in this case, but using it does make for easier positioning of the cylinder.
h. Example 4
Add four magnets to each corner. You cannot duplicate or parent these. They need to be attached directly to the plane by selecting a vertex. Select the center sphere and type Ctrl+C. Select each of the other magnets and type Ctrl+V. This will copy the timeline actions to the 4 new magnets.
Duplicate the sphere 4 times and positon the new spheres at the corners of the plane.
Run the simulation.
Frame 4:
Frame 10:
Frame 16:
Frame 30:
Note how the small spheres were no longer able to hang on and eventually the plane fell away from all 4 corner spheres. Much better to use the magnets.
You can make the spheres larger and in that case they hold:
Frame 10:
Frame 30:
Note the difference in draping, the magnets forming some additional ridges.
The larger spheres lead to some drooping of the tip (sphere was on the left, magnet was on the right).
(tutorial continues in next post)
(tutorial continues from previous post)
i. In my opinion, the dForce magnet product is a good addition to your dForce toolkit. Much of what they do you can accomplish with helper objects, but the ability to precisely attach them to a vertex of your choosing is quite handy. Plus magnets and helper objects work well together, especially if you want to extend the grip of the magnets.
j. Example 5
To illustrate the extended grip, here is an example on hair. The first row shows the use of the magnet only, the second row shows using a sphere that was parented to the magnet, and the third shows a torus in use. The viewport screenshot at the left of each row shows the magnet and helper object, the image at the right shows a render with the helpers hidden. As you can see, a lot more hair is lifted with the helper objects.
Magnet Only:
Sphere:
Torus:
Great stuff. I've been looking for a way to modify the "fall" style of dForce-specific hair. I've used cylinders under the fall line of hair to change draping, but I haven't tried helper objects, yet. Thanks!
Scott
Hair is tricky since it has so many layers of geometry. The magnets and helper objects (alone or with each other) can allow you to grab various locks of hair and move them about. If you have any that have succeeded, feel free to post some images.
Rich,
Most of what I have done is not so dynamic, yet. I've been using cylinders and planes to influence how dForce hair drapes during simulations. I do plan on using your examples to see just how further "styling" of dForce hair goes. Relying on initial position of hair before simulating is largely hit or miss so the ability to place hair where you know the fall angle will be invaluable. I've also found dForce hair is not too wind node friendly, either. You can get it to work, but the velocities are generally way high before anything happens and once the wind node is passed or removed, hair does not fall back--at least for me it doesn't. That limits realistic use to windless animations, as far as I can tell.
Scott
When did this thread become [Commercial]? I'd say it is 99.9% information generously (and freely) shared by Rich. Did some brief mention of the Digital Art Live session force it into commercial territory?
I presume someone edited the title after the first webinar I did (or after the video product release), as that's when I noticed the change.
Thanks Scott. We just need a "hair magnet" comb and blower!
Oops...
This is what happened when I didn't realize that G8M was selected when I applied dForce: Add dForce Modifier: Dynamic Surface. When I realized what I had done, I clicked the Undo button, but apparently, that didn't remove the setting.
Does this qualify as a transporter accident or a deflation spell?
That....That is terrifying.
Transporter accident for sure! Yikes.
Dana
Like a deflated rubber balloon! I like the idea of a spell myself. It's struck me a time or two.
BTW, the video from my second webinar was released yesterday: New dForce Discoveries. Text and screenshots work for some but others prefer to learn from videos. Thanks to Digital Art Live for the collaboration!
I picked it up as soon as I saw it! Thanks to you for the creative genious behind all these dforce miracles, and thanks to Digital Art Live for hosting. Happy Camper here!!!
Wow, is that a Macy's Thanksgiving parade balloon before or after?
(heebie jeebies)
He did the no no from Time Cop went back in time and made contact with himself
Thanks sapat. Let me know if any questions
There must be a Rubberman super hero - dForce could do that
Or a villain: The Deflater
I like that!