Mesh Auto Smooth Essentials Asset #111352

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Hans Goudey · 2023-08-21T17:53:51+02:00

Hans Goudey commented

2023-08-21 17:53:51 +02:00

For #108014, we need to have an asset that can mark edges sharp based on the angle of neighboring faces, as a replacement for "auto smooth." The first step is to add that asset to the essentials asset bundle so it is always available.

Name: Smooth by Angle
Description: Set the sharpness of mesh edges based on the angle between the neighboring faces
License: CC0 - Public Domain
Copyright: Blender Foundation
Catalog Path: Mesh > Normals

The node group removes sharp face tags, replacing them with sharp edge tags. In main this will only work when "auto smooth" is turned on for the mesh. The pull request mentioned above makes it work in all cases by automatically choosing which normals to calculate based on the sharp tags.

In the future we can add an "Edge/Face" toggle to the "Set Shade Smooth" node. That won't change behavior though, so it's fine to update the node group to remove the "Store Named Attribute" node when that feature becomes available.

For #108014, we need to have an asset that can mark edges sharp based on the angle of neighboring faces, as a replacement for "auto smooth." The first step is to add that asset to the essentials asset bundle so it is always available. ![image](/attachments/024ea138-6e19-4a2c-a7c4-b2595e4da673) **Name**: Smooth by Angle **Description**: Set the sharpness of mesh edges based on the angle between the neighboring faces **License**: CC0 - Public Domain **Copyright**: Blender Foundation **Catalog Path**: Mesh > Normals The node group removes sharp face tags, replacing them with sharp edge tags. In main this will only work when "auto smooth" is turned on for the mesh. The pull request mentioned above makes it work in all cases by automatically choosing which normals to calculate based on the sharp tags. In the future we can add an "Edge/Face" toggle to the "Set Shade Smooth" node. That won't change behavior though, so it's fine to update the node group to remove the "Store Named Attribute" node when that feature becomes available.

image.png

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Set Sharpness by Angle.blend

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Hans Goudey added the

Type

Design

label 2023-08-21 17:53:51 +02:00

Hans Goudey added this to the Nodes & Physics project 2023-08-21 17:53:53 +02:00

Dalai Felinto commented

2023-08-22 16:12:43 +02:00

Feedback from the "Nodes & Physics" module meeting:

Catalog should be Mesh > Write.
Try having a "screenshot" of the node group as the preview.

One of the downside of the screenshot is that the user interface screenshot is not translatable.

Feedback from the "Nodes & Physics" module meeting: 1. Catalog should be `Mesh > Write`. 2. Try having a "screenshot" of the node group as the preview. One of the downside of the screenshot is that the user interface screenshot is not translatable.

Hans Goudey commented

2023-08-24 16:35:33 +02:00

Try having a "screenshot" of the node group as the preview.

I thought this was reasonable at first, but I don't think so now actually. The goal of these higher level node groups is to be used as modifiers, where you shouldn't have to think about the node editor at all. For assets that are meant to be node groups, the screenshot might be okay, but I think it's misleading for something like this.

My thought for the preview was something like this:

But I haven't figured out a great way to make that fit in the style of the existing previews yet.

>Try having a "screenshot" of the node group as the preview. I thought this was reasonable at first, but I don't think so now actually. The goal of these higher level node groups is to be used as modifiers, where you shouldn't have to think about the node editor at all. For assets that are meant to be node groups, the screenshot might be okay, but I think it's misleading for something like this. My thought for the preview was something like this: ![image](/attachments/8b5e7035-7a08-45fc-aad8-1ea001e8a1ad) But I haven't figured out a great way to make that fit in the style of the existing previews yet.

image.png

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Ludvik Koutny commented

2023-08-24 17:12:58 +02:00

The existing feature everyone is well familiar with in Blender is called "Auto Smooth". The node group also internally uses node called "Set Shade Smooth".

The node group name should contain the word "Smooth" to be discoverable, because logically, what most people will do the first time they are looking for Auto smooth analogous feature in GN is open add node search menu and type "Auto Smooth".

Maybe something like "Smooth by Angle"

But why would as essential feature be implemented as a node group? Why wouldn't it be just a float "Angle" parameter of Set Shade Smooth node? Many other basic nodes already have these sort of convenience features, so the taboo has already been broken.

The existing feature everyone is well familiar with in Blender is called "Auto Smooth". The node group also internally uses node called "Set Shade Smooth". The node group name should contain the word "Smooth" to be discoverable, because logically, what most people will do the first time they are looking for Auto smooth analogous feature in GN is open add node search menu and type "Auto Smooth". Maybe something like "Smooth by Angle" But why would as essential feature be implemented as a node group? Why wouldn't it be just a float "Angle" parameter of Set Shade Smooth node? Many other basic nodes already have these sort of convenience features, so the taboo has already been broken.

Iliya Katushenock commented

2023-08-24 17:22:55 +02:00

Unlike fact of the smooth for edge, its automatic detection can be not only a simple comparison of the angle, but also something else. The best solution is to remove the function and just make it a special case of the complex node tree. In this case, you can implement them yourself, of any complexity and with any parameters. Supporting this as 2 functions would be even more difficult.

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Hans Goudey commented

2023-08-25 14:34:08 +02:00

I like the name "Smooth by Angle", I do think it's valuable to reuse something from "Auto Smooth" so the asset is more recognizable.

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Gerstmann Bradley commented

2023-08-28 07:07:28 +02:00

The goal of these higher level node groups is to be used as modifiers.

I think some users will use join geometry to converge many setups into a single node tree, so that you can share values across many different things easily. Indeed, people may use drivers, but it may not be as convenient as linkages in a node tree. Erin, for example, frequently put everything into a single node tree just like what he did in some demo files many years ago.
Thus they may likely set materials differently, shade smooth differently, in a single node tree.

> The goal of these higher level node groups is to be used as modifiers. I think some users will use join geometry to converge many setups into a single node tree, so that you can share values across many different things easily. Indeed, people may use drivers, but it may not be as convenient as linkages in a node tree. Erin, for example, frequently put everything into a single node tree just like what he did in some demo files many years ago. Thus they may likely set materials differently, shade smooth differently, in a single node tree.

Grigoriy Titaev commented

2023-08-29 11:12:38 +02:00

The behavior "Set Sharpness by Angle.blend" node tree is different from "Auto Smooth".

If you mark sharp edges on the mesh then:

Option "Auto Smooth" - saves marked sharp edges and adds new sharp edges by angle
Node tree "Set Sharpness by Angle" - overwrites all sharp edges by angle

Node tree "Set Sharpness by Angle" must have the option to save marked sharp edges:

The behavior ["Set Sharpness by Angle.blend" ](https://projects.blender.org/attachments/582a0827-f258-48f1-a4fd-3dbfe333af7f) node tree is different from "Auto Smooth". If you mark sharp edges on the mesh then: - Option "Auto Smooth" - saves marked sharp edges and adds new sharp edges by angle - Node tree "Set Sharpness by Angle" - overwrites all sharp edges by angle Node tree "Set Sharpness by Angle" must have the option to save marked sharp edges: ![Save Marked Sharps.png](https://projects.blender.org/attachments/2ff8cd3c-e399-4a3a-b2d6-ae8bca6299c3)

Save Marked Sharps.png

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Ludvik Koutny referenced this issue

2023-09-16 13:44:44 +02:00

sharp_edge attribute doesn't work for GN-created geometry in 4.0 #112442

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