Import Custom Vehicle Meshes

This example shows you how to create and import a vehicle mesh that is compatible with RoadRunner Scenario. To create a compatible custom vehicle mesh, follow these workflow steps.

Step		Description
Set Up Bone Hierarchy		In a 3D creation environment, set up the vehicle mesh bone hierarchy and specify part names.
Assign Materials (Optional)		Optionally, assign materials to the vehicle parts.
Export Mesh and Armature		Export the vehicle mesh and armature in the .fbx file format.
Import Mesh to RoadRunner Scenario		Import the vehicle mesh into the RoadRunner Scenario.

Note

To create the mesh, this example uses the 3D creation software Blender^® Version 2.80.

Set Up Bone Hierarchy

1. Import a vehicle mesh into a 3D modeling tool, such as Blender.

2. To ensure that this mesh is compatible with RoadRunner Scenario, the minimal bone hierarchy in the mesh must include these vehicle parts using this naming convention.

   Vehicle Part	Name
   Vehicle	vehicle_name
   Vehicle body	body
   Front left wheel	wheel01
   Front right wheel	wheel02
   Back left wheel	wheel03
   Back right wheel	wheel04

3. Set the name of the top-level vehicle object to the expected vehicle type, such as Sedan. The top-level vehicle object must be the parent of the other vehicle objects.

   

4. For two wheels on the same axle, such as wheel01 and wheel02, their transforms require that any difference in Y-axis offsets be less than 0.01 m. Otherwise, the wheels are categorized into different axles.

Assign Materials

You can optionally assign a material slot to the vehicle body. Applying a material containing the word paint to a mesh under the body node enables you to modify the color of the mesh in the RoadRunner Scenario Attributes pane. Because RoadRunner Scenario multiplies the color, you can leave the material the default color of white.

Create and assign material slots to the vehicle body. Confirm that the first material slot corresponds to the body object. For example, this image shows the hierarchy in Blender.

Export Mesh and Armature

Export the mesh and armature to the .fbx file format. For example, in Blender:

1. In the Include section, for Object Types, select Armature and Mesh.

   

2. On the Transform section, set:

   • Scale to 1.00

   • Apply Scalings to All Local

   • Forward to Y Forward

   • Up to Z Up

   Select Apply Unit and Use Space Transform.

   

3. On the Geometry section:

   • Set Smoothing to Face

   • Select Apply Modifiers

   

4. On the Armature section, set:

   • Primary Bone Axis to Y Axis

   • Secondary Bone Axis to X Axis

   

5. Select Export FBX.

Import Mesh to RoadRunner Scenario

To import the new FBX model into RoadRunner Scenario, follow the instructions provided in Create, Import, and Modify Assets. After the new vehicle has been imported, you must change the mesh to a Vehicle type. In the asset browser, select the vehicle asset and right-click, select Default Type > Vehicle.

Now you can use the new vehicle asset it in any RoadRunner Scenario simulations.