Particle Flow
Burning Paper
Been a while, here is something…
All particles rendered in Krakatoa and colored via the new KCM (Krakatoa Channel Modifier), just a couple million with the exception of the ground plane. Mostly about flame structure and scale study but thought i’d post it.
The paper is over a million particles image mapped in pflow. The burn is controlled by a animated gradient ramp and a box#3 test. The box#3 data test samples the color of the gradient ramp object, when true (the burn line) it assigns an integer value to the particle and passes it to a new event. This integer value is then acquired by a KCM and colored when the particle data is brought back into a PRT Loader.
The fire is generated in two different passes. It consist of approx 2.25 million particles (a little overkill I might add for the amount of burn happening). The first pass, the base flames, are generated via a spawn the works with the burn line as described above. These particles are simulated then fed back through pflow to generate the second fire pass, the long tendrils. Both of these simulations are then individually saved back to separate Krakatoa PRTs. The particles data is then reloaded using a PRT loader and colored via KCM using both age+lifespan and temperature+gradient ramp.
The six passes were comped in fusion. The background, Paper & debris particle passes, the shadows, and the two fire passes. Some post blur to soften the fire particles, that’s it though.
I hope to get some more time to revisit it, I have a few other ideas I would like to implement. 
PF Spliner v3.0
I have been working on this project and I was having a hell of a time finding a way to get Particle Flow to generate splines. I just happened to stumble upon a thread over at Orbaz and this is what was there, PF Spliner v3.0, it does just what I was looking for and more. Written originally by Charley Carlat, both Jefferson Lim and James Haywood both contributed of whom added some great updates. I figured I would post it up.
Random Particle Color
A small box#3 data preset to randomly change your particle color at random times
More Info HERE
Updated R&D Page
With a bunch of Particle Flow Tools Box#2 beta tests. Box#2 has gone Release Candidate, it won’t be to much longer be everyone can join in on the Pflow PhysX revolution!
Couple More Fume Tests
First one planetary impacts. This use pflow to set the fume containers at the particle impact points on the planet. Messy, messy, messy maxscript way to get it to work will have to find a better approach. EDIT: And I found one …
This version runs the final update script and another script operator for impact timing.
Final Update script: Clone your grids with a more unique name easy trackability…
global theGrids pf_node_current = particleFlow.scriptRunner() if (pf_node_current != undefined) then ( count = pf_node_current.NumParticles() theGrids = $CL_FumeFX* as array--the name of your copied fume containers theGrids.pos = [0,0,-10000] --set the positions so they are off screen when not in use minCount = amin #(count, theGrids.count) for i in 1 to minCount do ( pf_node_current.particleID = i theGrids[i].transform = pf_node_current.particleTM ) )
Then the script operator for impact timing: this should go in the event that the collision occurs. ie the next event wired to say a collision op. or find target.
on ChannelsUsed pCont do() on Init pCont do ( global rlTime global curTime ) on Proceed pCont do ( p = pCont.particleID count = pCont.NumParticles() for i = 1 to count do ( --print p theGrids[p].playFrom = 0 rlTime = slidertime as integer curTime = rlTime/ticksperframe theGrids[p].playFrom = curTime - (curtime*2) -- Impact time start playback --print theGrids[p].playFrom ) ) on Release pCont do()
Be sure to use a cache op. set to View/Render Intgration step, this will ensure that the grid impact times are correct. I noticed if I didn’t use a cache the impact times were off, which makes sense since the playFrom time isn’t initialized correctly until playback has run through the timeline at least once.
Not sure if you can write to the Final step update script through maxscript, you can turn it on/off but that’s about it AFAIK. You can create the script op through maxscript. Another note you cannot use a scale operator in the flow this will jack the grid transforms and the grids will not render properly.
An attemtp to get fumeFX to look like white water. Waiting to see what the krakatoa renders look like 
Box#2 R&D
This thing is really getting there. Oleg is doing a fine job getting things rolling.
Simple test, kinda liked it so I thought I’d post it.
Coins QT 12mb
Particle Flow Find Target & Script Vector
This is the result of a really cool trick using the sript vector channel and a find target operator in pflow.
The quick of it… grab the original postion and write it to the particle vector channel. Either with a script operator or better yet a box#3 operator. Obviously it has to happen prior to the find target op. In the find target operator set the “point” to “By Script Vector”, well that’s about it.
Particle Flow – particle flow R&D some new some old
8.0 MB QT
Ground Vortex. A test using a vortex space warp along with a spherical wind, gravity and a few deflectors.
July 6, 2008
Built a new (my first really) Box#3 operator called “Simple Vortex”. It can be used to simulate a particle vortex in particle flow. You can download the operator and watch a 20 second clip that shows what it does. More…
June 23, 2008
Particle Flow arrows 2.3 MB Quicktime
