Blender 2.43: demos and Bullet Physics Contest 2007!

[Erwin Coumans]

Check out the new Bullet Physics Contest:
Bullet Physics Contest: Most Incredible Device wins PS3/Wii

Thanks a lot for the entries! There are not so many entries, but I'm happy with the quality of the video's I've seen so far.

Extension: you are allowed to make modifications/submit entries during the voting/review, until 9th of March.

Review and Voting

• * During Game Developers Conference, March 5-9 2007 San Francisco
  * Review of submissions by professional game developers during this GDC
  * Potential display at a booth on the conference
  * Voting based on those reviews
  * Results and winners will be announced Sunday 11 March 2007

GDC will be very busy, so please wait until 11 March for the results.


Registration and submitting a machine:

Either send an email to contest2007@bulletphysics.com , or private message on this forum to 'Erwin Coumans' with:

1) Your firstname, lastname, country
2) Link to your Machine (.blend) or the .blend, or source code if you use Bullet with your own graphics engine
3) Youtube movie link or screenshot of your machine

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Demo Downloads:
Before reporting problems, please read those Physics Tips:
http://www.continuousphysics.com/mediaw ... ysics_Tips

Download Blender 2.43 RC3 here:
http://download.blender.org/release/Blender2.43rc/

Physics testfiles 2.43 version 5:
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... iles-5.zip
Lightmaps demos 2.43:
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... psdemo.zip
Online Lightmap Tutorial or download zipped lightmap tutorial:
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... al1707.zip

Graphics demos 2.43 (includes lightmap demos and 2.42 GLSL graphics shaders demos)
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... eview1.zip

Linux/FreeBSD & other platforms: Blender 2.43 RC1 testbuild has most functionality. Otherwise build Blender using CVS.


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ChangeLog:

Blender 2.43 RC3:
- no major changes

Preview 17:
- upgraded to ColladaBlender 0.3.146
- minor changes to IpoActuator Play

Preview 14:
- start of Bullet Physics Contest: Incredible Devices
- nothing new except for update to latest CVS and updated ColladaBlender to latest SVN 0.3.142 from sourceforge: http://www.sourceforge.net/projects/colladablender

Preview 13:

- minor logic system update by Malachy, related to IPO actuator

Preview 12:

- lightmaps (multi-uv)
- fixes in ipo actuator, network message sensor
- fixes in rigidbody constraints (copy of 2 bodies with rb constraints will let new constraint point to new bodies, instead of old)

Preview 11c:
- show physics visualization
- normalize hitnormal (fixes bullet-holes stretching in FPS template)
- quit/exit Blender key changed from Q to CRTL-Q

New in preview11b:
- fixed issues with the standalone player (caused crashes and issue with hierarchies)

New in preview 11
* attempt to fix Mac OS X mouselook
* updated physics constraint demos, including working gears
New in preview 10:
* Game Menu has a new option: Show Physics Visualization. This helps debugging physics / collision / deactivation issues.
* COLLADA Physics export fix
New in preview 9b:
- changed constraint axis GUI to accept degrees instead of radians. Also the step to increase/decrease is more intuitive (15 degrees per step).

New in preview8:
- rigidbody constraint axis is now defined using euler angles. this breaks the demos that have been made with the previous preview. Use the
'show pivot' button to visualize the constraint location/axis.
RCRuiz contribution:
- constraint visualization.
- fixed some crashes due to new constraint UI
- better IPO support during dynamics baking
New in preview7e:
- different way of handling 'dynamic' only objects (without rigidbody rotation)
- fixed some issues with near sensor
near sensors are still very slow, due to redundant penetration depth calculation. need to add some flag to avoid this

With Blender 2.43 this can be done without scripting, just using buttons: You can setup compound objects (parents with children) and use the GUI for rigidbody constraints. Early stages, not all is hooked up yet, due to Bullet 2.x Physics SDK upgrade.
Win32 binary+demo Blender 2.43 preview 7 (7Mb)
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... -win32.zip
Mac OS X Intel, Blender 2.43 preview 7 (5MB)
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... X-i386.zip



or a small FRAPS .avi movie (5Mb):
http://www.continuousphysics.com/ftp/pu ... -48-82.avi
You need free FRAPS installed for the codec, see end of this page:
http://www.fraps.com/faq.php

This same physics construction could be done in Blender 2.42a too, but that required python scripting.



Linux, FreeBSD and other versions can be compiled from the current CVS version of Blender.
Erwin

[JAS]

Why hasn't anybody posted yet? This seems like the biggest blender game engine physics technology jump in history.

[fobsta]

Ha - that's much easier for mere artists to understand

I can easily get the see-saw working in my Mousetrap level now without reverting to Python

Warning - Wish List

can we have some kind of visual icon/represenation of the constraint in the 3d view? It would be nice just to see where it is, instead of guessing (you know how bad we are at maths!)

I know it's early days but can we have some documentation. For example I'm not sure what the two rows of floats are for in the hinge constraint. Are they offsets for the objects axis? Do they specify which axis the hinge rotates around?

good stuff anyway - thank you

[fobsta]

What codec/video player do I need for the example movie?

I've tried the usual suspects

ta

[Appolonius]

i just found a nastly little error... you can't(or atleast i cant) use multiple scenes.. just wanted to let you know

[Leisure Suit Lurie]

I don't suppose there's a PPC demo lurking somewhere?

[Shaba1]

Erwin does this version include the full CVS features such as the sculpt mode. Also does in include the web plugin functionality? The ability to make activex demoes/simulations/games from the web is the most important factor for me.

[Erwin Coumans]

Hi Fobsta,

In preview 8, there is visualization of the constraint frame, using a button.

Docs will follow, until then, please use the test files.
Erwin

Warning - Wish List

can we have some kind of visual icon/represenation of the constraint in the 3d view? It would be nice just to see where it is, instead of guessing (you know how bad we are at maths!)

I know it's early days but can we have some documentation. For example I'm not sure what the two rows of floats are for in the hinge constraint. Are they offsets for the objects axis? Do they specify which axis the hinge rotates around?

good stuff anyway - thank you

[Appolonius]

AWESOME! the new visual constraints are great, easy to use thanks!

Doing tests now

I understand how the constraint gui works now

It seems that when using hinge it always "swings" along the PX axis

(px is the name of the x axis when in visual constraints mode)

Edit - erwin it seems the visual constraints for the rotational axis will not line up and give a perfect angle.. there is no 90` angle. 1.571 is the closest i can get.
This blend is zoomed all the way in so you can see what im talking about
http://www.box.net/public/0tjvftpa0g

[Appolonius]

forgot to ask.. How is the vehicle script coming along? i cant wait to post more demos for it.

[Appolonius]

Don't know if this is a bug or just not applied yet.. but when using a compound on an object that does not have a constraint the children are.. (i don't know how to say it).. they are like ghosts, have no physics any longer. Compound does work when the parent have a constraint.
Or maybe its suppost to work like this?

here is an example file.
Run it how it is then take the constraint off the "center" square, and run again.
http://www.box.net/public/0nt4s6d7fp

[Erwin Coumans]

You forgot to set the 'bounds' type for the children. Set it to 'box' and it works all fine. (but don't set 'compound' on the children)

How is the vehicle script coming along? i

Which vehicle script are you referring to?

Thanks,
Erwin

[Appolonius]

Found another crash bug.
when constraining to a child when the parent has "compound" on it crashes, i turn compound off and it no longer crashes

The crash file http://www.box.net/public/szcih1l7lk

(on the parent(vehicle body) object select and deselect the compound button)

When it don't crash it don't work right but that has to do with the other bug I found in the post above this one,so dont worry about that part messing up.

[Appolonius]

it was the only vehicle script that i know that you included with your older demo files.

[Erwin Coumans]

Please don't add the constraint to the children, just use the parent. Both crashes should be solved in next preview. And as I told before, set the bounds correctly for both parent (+compound flag) and children.

Thanks for the feedback!
Erwin

Found another crash bug.
when constraining to a child when the parent has "compound" on it crashes, i turn compound off and it no longer crashes

The crash file http://www.box.net/public/szcih1l7lk

(on the parent(vehicle body) object select and deselect the compound button)

When it don't crash it don't work right but that has to do with the other bug I found in the post above this one,so dont worry about that part messing up.