topic Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion in Visualization

Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

genarch — Thu, 11 May 2023 09:46:56 GMT

When using casework objects that have glass doors, the glass panes are not exported to TwinMotion. I suppose it's because there is no thickness to the glass in Archicad. I have UNchecked the option to Optimize Geometry and the option to exclude small objects. I'm using the latest TwinMotion plugin v2.0.2 and TwinMotion 2020.1.

Anyone else have this issue, or have found a workaround?

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

genarch — Fri, 06 Aug 2021 20:31:03 GMT

I’ve now tried this from the latest TwinMotion 2021.1.3 and the latest direct link plug-in v2.0.2, exporting from Archicad v24 4006, and still no glass in casework door panels.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Emre Senoglu — Sat, 07 Aug 2021 08:09:02 GMT

i've noticed i have the same problem. so it's definitely not just you.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Barry Kelly — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 01:34:15 GMT

I hardly use TwinMotion, so I don't know exactly what I am trying to explain here.
But I recall something about surfaces having a single or double side - I can't remember what the correct terminology is.

I remember with a plant, the leaves looked fine from one side, but when you rotated around they became transparent.
Maybe the same is happening with the glass and you just happen to be viewing it from the wrong side?

I think it is an option you have to make for the individual surface material, not an overall setting.
I may be completely wrong though.

Barry.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Emre Senoglu — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 06:34:22 GMT

Hey Barry, just tested this and yep, you're right about the surface normal pointing inwards to the cabinet. Meaning that when you look from the outside, you don't see anything. But when you are 'inside' the cabinet and looking out then you can see the glass pane.

Twinmotion has a setting to make a material 'two sided' and this usually fixes the problem with some other objects (sinks, toilets, showers). However strange enough, it doesn't fix the cabinet issue. The video below will show what I mean - I've made the glass red so it's more noticable. It is quite peculiar.

https://www.loom.com/share/e8662b61856b4d878ff17d37dcee27b7

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

genarch — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 21:14:32 GMT

I often use the glass door panels and make the panel solid instead of glass so I can get cabinet doors with square sticking. Of course, the cabinet door panels disappear regardless of whether they are "glass" or something else. However, if the door panels are defined as glass in Archicad they remain invisible from outside the cabinet even if that material is defined as 2-sided in TwinMotion. However, if the door panel is defined as a solid material in Archicad, it becomes visible when defined as a 2-sided material in TwinMotion.
*Hint, you have to go inside the cabinet to see the panel face from the inside in order to select it and define as 2-sided.

Also, if you export from Archicad as a Sketchup model and import into TwinMotion the cabinet door panels come through just fine... you just don't have that direct link anymore. And if you save that model and try to define it as an existing model for a direct link it won't work, unfortunately.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Barry Kelly — Tue, 10 Aug 2021 01:54:05 GMT

I assume it must be because the glass has no thickness.
It is probably scripted as a PLANE rather than a PRISM.
There seems to be no option to add thickness to the glass in the objects.

As a test, make the door frame or cabinet material the same glass and see what that looks like in TwinMotion.

Barry.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

genarch — Wed, 11 Aug 2021 22:31:23 GMT

It is as expected, or at least as I would expect: the cabinet is glass but the glass door pane is invisible unless you are inside the cabinet. So there appears to be a difference in how that door pane is exported when using Direct Link vs when using a .skp export. This is unfortunate because it makes using TwinMotion a real hassle for residential interiors.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Emre Senoglu — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 00:53:24 GMT

This should be an easy fix for GS I hope? Are you able to specify the normal direction (the visible side of the glass pane) when using the PLANE command Barry?

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Barry Kelly — Thu, 12 Aug 2021 04:02:26 GMT

Emre wrote:
This should be an easy fix for GS I hope? Are you able to specify the normal direction (the visible side of the glass pane) when using the PLANE command Barry?

In Archicad a PLANE is just a PLANE and there is no nomination of what is front or back.
Maybe by the direction in which the co-odinates are specified - clockwise / anti-clockwise?
I am just guessing as I don't know for sure if that would have any affect.

In my objects (not the current Graphisoft default library but they were based on the GS library some 20 years ago), I have the option of 'glass as a plane'.
So I can swap from a single plane surface to a solid prism with thickness.
I don't see that option in the GS cabinets now, but it shouldn't be too hard for them to add that in.
Whether that would ever happen or not though I couldn't say.

I am only assuming that the glass as a plane is actually the problem.

Barry.

Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

Tomasz W — Thu, 09 Sep 2021 23:11:31 GMT

Hi, Solution is to convert casework to morph(s) then select glass panels and mirror all to see visible glass surfaces in Twinmotion. Tested in AC25 and Twinmotion 2021.1.4.

Tomasz W.

Re: Missing Glass from Casework Objects in TwinMotion

genarch — Thu, 07 Oct 2021 16:48:49 GMT

While that works, I wouldn't call it a good solution. You can no longer edit the casework object short of deleting it and creating a new one. But in the interest of getting some rendering work done in the meantime, it'll do. Thanks!

In a recent model I went and created slim glass walls for all my cabinet doors. It was time-consuming but it worked.