Mantis LOD Editor Support

Sure. My question was related to the progressive LOD generation on runtime and if that can work with GPUI ?

 

I am not sure how GPUI works, the progressive LOD generation will generate static LODs on the fly since v6.0, in my test, they can benefit from GPU instances.

 

Being unhappy with the LOD models I have, I decided to utilize this plugin in the hopes of a smoother transition from distance to close rendering. I'm working on a VR project. Now I haven't messed with this plugin too much yet, I bought it a bit ago, but looking through the reviews someone posted that it doesn't work with VR projects. Is that true? I can't imagine how, unless it just has to do with the render pipeline and if that's the case, can you list which pipelines are supported? Universal would be great, or standard... But... Anyway just wanted to ask this before I invest too much time.

 

Sorry, I have not tested the plugin with VR before, this reminds me to buy a VR device to see what the issue is, but if you only use the standard feature of this add-on, make LOD manually and save as assets, and use the LODs in the built-in LOD system, I guess that it should work.
https://forum.unity.com/threads/lodgroup-in-vr.455394/

 

It seems no problem with a simple VR test, I open the demo scene of 'Mantis LOD Editor - Professional Edition', then from GameObject->XR->Convert Main Camera to XR Rig, because XRRig becomes the parent of the main camera, I delete the 'moveme.cs' from the main camera, and add the 'moveme.cs' to the XRRig, the script will move the XRRig back and forth repleatly, then I hit the play button, the progressive mesh works as expected.

 

i've added a mantis pro script to a mesh game object, when sliding the quality nothing happens, I would expect the number of vertices to reduce according to the doc. what should I check?
I'm using 2020.3 LTS
Thanks

 

Please add a built-in sphere to the scene, then add a mantis for script to the sphere, drag the quality slider to see if the plugin works properly. If it works, try your mesh game object, see if there are any error messages.

 

Thanks, actually I've just re-installed the module and works fine now

 

I'm using the command line utility which is working great. Do you have a suggestion for finding the starting number of triangles in my input model? I'm building a pipeline for custom UGC so I don't know this number upfront. I need it in order to know whether generating an LOD at a particular triangle count is necessary at all - and I'd rather use the absolute triangle counts rather than a percentage.

Thanks!

 

If you run the command-line utility without any parameters, it will show the usage.
For example:
./mle -t 1500 -i abc.fbx -o abc2.fbx
Which 1500 is the desired triangles count.

 

Thanks, I understand how to set the desired count. I'm wondering if there is a recommended way to find the original count before reduction.

Since setting the triangle count via a percentage parameter is possible, I know the capability is there, but there is no command for it.

 

Hi I am having this error with the progressive mesh, it works the first time, but when i back away from the monster and then move back it stops working correctly

 

Hi, I'm applying the LOD editor to a human character I imported from a vrm model. It works fine, but I have a problem attaching an object to one of its legs. So my doubt is if when I create the different LODs with the editor it affects also the bones quantity or the properties of the bones.
Thanks.

 

If you apply the LOD editor at the top level, it will apply to all hierarchies, including the object attached to the leg.
To use different LODs, you need to apply the LOD editor to the proper levels for meshes, for example, the character, and the attachment, which you can adjust the runtime parameters independently.

 

Does anyone else have an issue uploading mesh data? Whenever I try to do so, either with the free version or with the paid version, I get the error - Error with network: HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found. Is the server that handles the data down as of right now? 11/11/2021.

 

Yes, the free online version had retired, the server is down.

 

Does that also apply to the paid version as well? I get the HTTP error when trying to upload data using the professional version and cannot use the editor at all due to the HTTP 404 error.

 

The paid version does not upload any data to Internet, it always works natively. Maybe you forget to remove the old online version? Please delete the MantisLODEditor directory in Assets, then install the professional version again.

 

Hi, I want to use the progressive mesh runtime, but the polygon reduction is not starting at the right distance to the camera. The reductions take place too late for my purposes. How can I specify at which distance reduction is starting? There is only the option to set the cull distance and the other distances depend on this.

Would there be a more detailed progressive mesh runtime version where to set these options?

 

Please adjust the 'Disappear Distance' value, try setting it to a smaller value, it should work.

 

Hi,

Does Mantis LOD work with all pipelines? I noticed there are LOD tools that only work with the built-in pipeline, hence the question

Thanks for the help!

 

Mantis LOD works in two modes: Built-in Unity LOD mode and the own runtime mode, if you use the first mode, it can work with many pipelines, for example, work together with Amp Impostor. Both modes can work in URP and HDRP mode.

 

If I understand you correctly, with the Built-in Unity LOD mode, I can use Mantis LOD with the Built-in Render pipeline, URP and HDRP.
And Mantis LOD works with many tools.
The own runtime mode, is that the mode in-game where it automatically adjusts? And that is also available in all three render pipelines?

Thanks again!

 

Yes, you are right.

 

Perfect! Thanks

 

Are we allowed to gift/sell assets with the runtime option included?

 

Thanks, that seems to have fixed the issue. I must have forgotten to remove the old before importing the new one lol

 

Hello,
I try to solve the same problem with Mantis LOD as discribed below. I want to use my editor script to add Mantis component on prefab(s) and generate meshes from code. Because I need to create LODS for like 1000 prefabs and doing it manually would take ages.

First I add MantisLODEditorProfessional component on prefab:

Code (CSharp):

1. MantisLODEditorProfessional mantisLODcomponent = instantiatedGameObject.AddComponent(typeof(MantisLODEditorProfessional)) as MantisLODEditorProfessional;

In InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional I moved code from "Save Current Mesh" button to the new public method SaveCurrentMesh().
But I really struggle to find out how to access InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional to call this SaveCurrentMesh() as I only have reference to MantisLODEditorProfessional after adding the component.

 

I just happen to have the exact same problem as Michal_Stangel. I'll be writing a custom piece of code based on Inner...cs. I would hope that you release a more modular public-facing c# code with CreateMantisMesh() and SaveMantisMesh() functions, to make it easier to script Mantis in the editor. I sent you an email about it.

 

When batching how do you set the quality?

 

Did anyone find a solution to set quality from script?

 

You can set the quality with MantisLODEditorUtility.SetQuality.
I am using this piece of code to reduce a mesh at runtime. Maybe it is of help for your.

Code (CSharp):

1.  
2. private Mesh ReduceMesh(Mesh original)
3. {
4.    Mantis_Mesh[] Mantis_Meshes = new Mantis_Mesh[1];
5.  
6.    Mantis_Meshes[0] = new Mantis_Mesh();
7.    Mantis_Meshes[0].mesh = original;
8.  
9.    MantisLODEditorUtility.PrepareSimplify(Mantis_Meshes, false);
10.  
11.    MantisLODEditorUtility.Simplify(Mantis_Meshes, _protectBoundary, _protectDetail, _protectSymmetry, _protectNormal, _protectShape, _useDetailMap, _detailBoost);
12.  
13.    MantisLODEditorUtility.SetQuality(Mantis_Meshes, SettingsManager.PropsQuality * 100f);
14.  
15.    Mesh mesh = Mantis_Meshes[0].mesh;
16.  
17.    MantisLODEditorUtility.FinishSimplify(Mantis_Meshes, false, false);
18.  
19.    return mesh;
20. }
21.  

 

I am using the "Progressive Mesh Runtime" on a prefab. I have several of that prefab in my scene. If I deactivate one of the prefabs it causes the remaining prefabs to go to LOD 0. Is there a way to fix this? I really need to have multiple of them in one scene.

 

You can try adding an independent runtime script to each prefab to see if it works.

 

That didn't help. But I found out it happens because both prefabs are using the same progressive mesh you create using the "Mantis LOD Editor Professional" script. If I duplicate the progressive mesh and assign it to one of the prefabs this issue doesn't happen anymore. However that isn't a solution for me. There are going to be so many duplicates it would be really hard to ensure they are all using different progressive meshes. And each time I duplicate a progressive mesh it adds 1.6MB. Any more thoughts on how else to fix this?

 

I'll look into it and see if I can fix the issue quickly.

 

I tested multiple instances of the same prefab, if I only disabled the renderers of the game object, not the game object itself, it works.
Like this:

Code (CSharp):

1. allBasicRenderers = (Component[])(gameObject.GetComponentsInChildren(typeof(Renderer)));
2. foreach (Component child in allBasicRenderers)
3. {
4.     ((Renderer)child).enabled = false;
5. }
6.  

 

If anybody struggles how to automate workflow in editor, here is how:

Code (CSharp):

1.  
2.  
3.         /// <summary>
4.         /// CREATE ALL LOD MESHES
5.         /// </summary>
6.         /// <param name="instantiatedGameObject"></param>
7.         private static void CreateAllLODMeshes(GameObject instantiatedGameObject, ACore_PrefabRecipe prefabRecipe)
8.         {
9.             // Remove Mantis LOD component if there is still one
10.             Component[] mantisLODcomponents = instantiatedGameObject.GetComponentsInChildren<MantisLODEditorProfessional>();
11.             foreach (Component mantisLODcomponent_Current in mantisLODcomponents)
12.             {
13.                 DestroyImmediate(mantisLODcomponent_Current, true);
14.             }
15.             // Add Mantis LOD component
16.             MantisLODEditorProfessional mantisLODcomponent = instantiatedGameObject.AddComponent(typeof(MantisLODEditorProfessional)) as MantisLODEditorProfessional;
17.             InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional innerEditor = (InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional)Editor.CreateEditor(mantisLODcomponent);
18.             int quality_LOD1 = 70;
19.             int quality_LOD2 = 40;
20.             int quality_LOD3 = 10;
21.             bool protectBoundaries_LOD1 = true;
22.             bool protectBoundaries_LOD2 = true;
23.             bool protectBoundaries_LOD3 = true;
24.             // Mesh 100 quality
25.             innerEditor.SaveCurrentMesh();
26.             innerEditor.SaveCurrentMesh(qualityToSet: quality_LOD1, protectBoundaries: protectBoundaries_LOD1);
27.             innerEditor.SaveCurrentMesh(qualityToSet: quality_LOD2, protectBoundaries: protectBoundaries_LOD2);
28.             innerEditor.SaveCurrentMesh(qualityToSet: quality_LOD3, protectBoundaries: protectBoundaries_LOD3);
29.             innerEditor.ResetFBXMesh();
30.         }
31.      
32.  

To get a reference to instance of InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional script is the part I was unable to do. But lengthy discussion with ChatGPT helped a "little"

It's also important to modify InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional script and create there some public method(s) you can call. Just remove code from this condition to standalone method:

Code (CSharp):

1.  
2.  
3.                         // save current mesh as a lod asset file
4.                         if (GUILayout.Button("Save Current Mesh", GUILayout.ExpandWidth(true), GUILayout.ExpandWidth(true)))
5.                         {
6.                             SaveCurrentMesh(calledManually: true);
7.                         }
8.  
9.  

If somebody is interested, this is what I added into InnerMantisLODEditorProfessional. So CreateAllLODMeshes method creates all LODs and store them in LODS folder in active folde (visible in Project window). Folder is created if not there yet:

Code (CSharp):

1.  
2.  
3.         /// <summary>
4.         /// CREATES NEW FOLDER
5.         /// </summary>
6.         /// <returns></returns>
7.         public string CreateFolder(string parentFolder, string newFolder)
8.         {
9.             string existingFolder = parentFolder + "/" + newFolder;
10.             if (AssetDatabase.IsValidFolder(existingFolder))
11.                 return existingFolder; // Already exists
12.             string guid = AssetDatabase.CreateFolder(parentFolder, newFolder);
13.             string newFolderPath = AssetDatabase.GUIDToAssetPath(guid);
14.             return newFolderPath;
15.         }
16.         /// <summary>
17.         /// RETURNS FOLDER WHICH IS ACTIVE IN PROJECT WINDOW
18.         /// </summary>
19.         /// <returns></returns>
20.         public string GetActiveFolderInProjectWindow()
21.         {
22.             Type projectWindowUtilType = typeof(ProjectWindowUtil);
23.             MethodInfo getActiveFolderPath = projectWindowUtilType.GetMethod("GetActiveFolderPath", BindingFlags.Static | BindingFlags.NonPublic);
24.             object obj = getActiveFolderPath.Invoke(null, new object[0]);
25.             string pathToCurrentFolder = obj.ToString();
26.             return pathToCurrentFolder;
27.         }
28.         /// <summary>
29.         /// SAVE CURRENT MESH
30.         /// </summary>
31.         public void SaveCurrentMesh(bool calledManually = false, int qualityToSet = 100, bool protectBoundaries = true)
32.         {
33.             if (calledManually == true)
34.             {
35.                 if (!optimized)
36.                 {
37.                     optimize();
38.                     optimized = true;
39.                 }
40.             }
41.             else
42.             {
43.                 quality = 100.0f;
44.                 // delete old progressive mesh
45.                 clean_all();
46.                 init_all();
47.                 // create new progressive mesh
48.                 optimize();
49.                 optimized = true;
50.                 save_protect_boundary = protectBoundaries;
51.                 protect_boundary = protectBoundaries;
52.                 face_number = MantisLODEditorUtility.SetQuality(Mantis_Meshes, qualityToSet);
53.                 EditorUtility.SetDirty(target);
54.                 save_quality = qualityToSet;
55.                 quality = qualityToSet;
56.             }
57.             foreach (Mantis_Mesh child in Mantis_Meshes)
58.             {
59.                 // clone the mesh
60.                 Mesh new_mesh = (Mesh)Instantiate(child.mesh);
61.                 MeshUtility.Optimize(new_mesh);
62.                 string filePath = GetActiveFolderInProjectWindow(); // Get path active in Project window
63.                 filePath = CreateFolder(filePath, "LODS"); // Create subfolder for LODS
64.                 string fileName = new_mesh.name + "_Quality_" + quality.ToString() + ".asset"; // File name      
65.                 Regex illegalInFileName = new Regex(@"[\\/:*?""<>|]"); // Characters not allowed in Windows in file name
66.                 fileName = illegalInFileName.Replace(fileName, "");
67.                 filePath += "/" + fileName;
68.                 Log.L("filePath: " + filePath + ", quality: " + quality + ", protect_boundary: " + protect_boundary, Log.Type.Color_Yellow);
69.                 if (filePath != "")
70.                 {
71.                     AssetDatabase.CreateAsset(new_mesh, filePath);
72.                     AssetDatabase.SaveAssets();
73.                     AssetDatabase.Refresh();
74.                 }
75.             }
76.         }
77.         /// <summary>
78.         /// RESET QUALITY
79.         /// </summary>
80.         public void ResetFBXMesh()
81.         {
82.             quality = 100.0f;
83.             save_quality = 100.0f;
84.             // delete old progressive mesh
85.             clean_all();
86.             init_all();
87.             // create new progressive mesh
88.             optimize();
89.             optimized = true;
90.             save_protect_boundary = true;
91.             protect_boundary = true;
92.             face_number = MantisLODEditorUtility.SetQuality(Mantis_Meshes, quality);
93.             EditorUtility.SetDirty(target);
94.         }
95.  
96.  

 

when I try to upload mesh, I get this message,"HTTP/1.1 404 Not Found" can anybody help?

 

having the same issue but can't find that "Disappear Distance" to adjust, any suggest about that?