User Manual

Common Controls
Settings Tab
The Settings tab is common to many 3D nodes. The description of these controls can be found
in “The Common Controls” section at the end of this chapter.
Ribbon 3D [3RI]
The Ribbon3D node
Ribbon 3D Node Introduction
Ribbon 3D generates an array of subdivided line segments or a single line between two points.
It is quite useful for motion graphics, especially in connection with Replicate 3D to attach other
geometry to the lines, and with Displace3D for creating lightning bolt-like structures. The array
of lines is, by default, assigned with texture coordinates, so they can be used with a 2D texture.
As usual, UVMap 3D can be used to alter the texture coordinates. This node relies heavily on
certain OpenGL features and does not produce any visible result when the Renderer 3D node
is set to use the software renderer.
Furthermore, the way lines are drawn is completely up to the graphics card capabilities, so the
ribbon appearance may vary based on your computer’s graphics card.
Inputs
There are two inputs on the Ribbon 3D node: one for the destination geometry that contains
the vertices, and one for the 3D geometry you want to replicate.
–
3D Scene: The orange input accepts a 3D scene or geometry.
–
Material: The input accepts the 2D texture for the ribbon.
Neither connected input is required.
Basic Node Setup
In the example below, a Ribbon 3D node is used to generate lines. A gradient background is
connected to “colorize” the lines. Additional nodes are then used after the Ribbon 3D to bend
and distort the lines.
Ribbon 3D generates lines distorted by additional nodes
Chapter – 80 3D Nodes 1710