Curvature Map Issues

Keith01

Hi guys,

So I'm working with an extremely easy model, a metal pipe. I'm trying to create a curvature map to then use in Substance Painter. The map I generated was done so in xNormal. It works well but they're a few problems.

I've marked every image with the two problems.

Mark 1 - The bigger issue, why are some parts in black? I can somewhat fix this in Photoshop with a levels adjustment. But then I would still have to paint in the edges manually kind of defeating the purpose of creating the map in the first place.

Mark 2 - The map created leaves a faint black fade at the UV borders. Is there anyway to not have this? Do I need to add a supporting edge loop? do My edges have to be attached?

Thanks a million to anyone who can help me.

Keith

final_fight

Where's normal map or high poly to generate curvature map?

Keith01

I'm not using a high poly mesh. I'm baking it from the low mesh as I have no need for a high res.

EDIT: If you're wondering how I baked in xNormal with no High Res, I simply put the low res in the high res slot. 

Obscura

Then you should not be surprised about this result.

Keith01

Hi OBSCURA,
wow!! Why respond with that message?
Could you explain why please? The post wasn't only here to fix the problem but to understand it too. As a Forum, it's acts like a community and we're all here to learn as well as help each other. Thanks for at least looking at the post.

Joopson

Try playing with the Curvature map's "Search Distance", until you get the results you want. I have to adjust that with almost every bake, to get it right for my needs. It should be able to prevent both issues, potentially.

Scruples

The geometry simply isn't dense enough to create an acceptable curvature map.

Obscura

Keith01 said:

Hi OBSCURA,
wow!! Why respond with that message?
Could you explain why please? The post wasn't only here to fix the problem but to understand it too. As a Forum, it's acts like a community and we're all here to learn as well as help each other. Thanks for at least looking at the post.

Because its very obvious why you got bad results. The name of the map is curvature and your mesh doesn't have curvature, nor even smoothing groups. It doesn't work like the bake will look like how you want it. For example, just because you want it to have flowers it won't bake you flowers unless you have one in your highpoly. In short, if you want proper CURVATURE then you need highpoly (or at least higher poly then what you have) to bake from.

Keith01

Obscura said:

Because its very obvious why you got bad results. The name of the map is curvature and your mesh doesn't have curvature, nor even smoothing groups. It doesn't work like the bake will look like how you want it. For example, just because you want it to have flowers it won't bake you flowers unless you have one in your highpoly. In short, if you want proper CURVATURE then you need highpoly (or at least higher poly then what you have) to bake from.

Brilliant thank you. I guess I was working of the information from this post, https://forum.allegorithmic.com/index.php?topic=3235.0 , they must be mistaken so. Also I find it hard to believe you can't get a curvature map from low to low. I was able to get 90% of the edges this way. If you could site some sources from your information that would be great.

Thanks Scruples I'll try and create a better densed model and see where that gets me

I'll try experimenting with the search distance and other settings so thanks.

Quack!

In that thread you linked Jeremie states that you need to bake a world space normal map out and blur that, then derive your curvature from that blurred world space normal map.  The blurring simulates a soft high poly edge.  If you don't do that you don't get that soft edge and you get a standard bake, which is what you got.

This is NOT very obvious to those that haven't done much of this before and even for some that have experience.

musashidan

You can bake per vertex based on the geo, but as scruples said you simply don'the have enough edgeloops.