ContactPoint Utility thinkingParticles 6 - auto-create relevant tP Joints and Modelling
8ContactPoint Utility thinkingParticles 6 Explained.
Please also see the video Geomcontact : https://youtu.be/LVleZWh1PAA
Note from the cebas Living Manual:
tP ContactPoints is a standard 3ds Max Utility invoked right from inside the Utility section of 3ds Max's main user interface. This utility was created for the specific thinkingParticles task of automatically creating and filling in relevant tP Joint helper data. However, it can also be used for non thinkingParticles related modeling tasks.
This utility automatically finds the closest point between all selected objects. Every contact point found, is either replaced with a standard 3ds Max helper point or with the object that was selected to act as a Contact Point Object. In the case of thinkingParticles, it is preferable to use a tP Joint Helper Object.
The workflow is as follows:
1.) Select multiple objects in a scene
2.) Pick a Contact Point object to distribute (use a tP Joint Helper)
3.) Press Calculate to find the Closest points between two objects and place the Contact Point Object.
Samples - sets the amount of random points put in a volume to find the closest point on a surface. The more samples are created; the more accurate the result gets.
Distance - all samples found within the search radius that are below or equal to this value are averaged to form the closest contact point position between two objects.
Radius - sets the search radius for placed samples in a volume. The larger this radius the longer processing will take.
Unset - click this button to clear the selected object and switch back to a standard 3ds max point helper. No Self contact in Selection Sets
In this video, Edwin Braun, shows how he create a multiple joints connecting multiple spheres with gravity force - using the thinkingParticles ContactPoint Utility tool, automatically thousands of joint are auto-created. You decide the number and position of contact points. Joints are setup with proper convention for down the line manipulation in scene procedurally. You can hid the joints and try out the scene. ContactPoint Utility can only be used for modelling tasks.