All content in this course uses:

Import CAD Models with the PiXYZ Unity Plugin

By the end of this tutorial, you’ll be able to:

Import a CAD model with the PiXYZ Plugin (v2018.1.2).

Make data adjustments to the model using PiXYZ Studio.

In this tutorial we’ll introduce the PiXYZ Plugin for Unity, a tool used for importing Computer Aided Design (CAD) models into your Unity projects.  

Using CAD data in 3D engines is  traditionally a very difficult process, but PiXYZ simplifies things by  streamlining that process. The PiXYZ Plugin cannot offer all of the  options that PiXYZ Studio can; however, we’ll go into more detail on  that in the Intermediate tutorial.
 


 By the end of this tutorial, you’ll be able to:

See an example of the before and after that you will create using PiXYZ Studio:

In this tutorial, you’ll import a CAD brake model into Unity, the above showcases the brake before and after tessellation.  

Why PiXYZ?

Time to learn the essentials needed to  unlock your CAD data with Unity and PiXYZ. Use the PiXYZ tools to  simplify and import CAD models into your Unity project.  

In short, PiXYZ Studio and PiXYZ Unity  Plugin, allow the use of complicated engineering model formats in Unity,  previously almost impossible to use. In the case of Automotives, that  means full car CAD files of types such as .STEP, .JT, and .CATIA model  files. 


 In this tutorial you’ll be using a Brake model; however, in the Challenge you’ll work with a full car in .wire format.

Overview

In this tutorial, you’ll use a brake file which you’ll import into Unity in two ways: first with the PiXYZ Plugin. 

This exercise will teach you how to navigate both PiXYZ Plugin and PiXYZ Studio.

Bring CAD into Unity with the PiXYZ Plugin

Download PiXYZ-DEMO-BRAKES-v2017 from the PiXYZ website.

 Import PiXYZ plugin for Unity into your Unity Project 

 Activate a 7 day trial and configure the License manager 

First navigate to the PiXYZ website and download the file titled [SAMPLE]-PiXYZ-DEMO-BRAKES-v2017

Visit the PiXYZ website and download the plugin and activate a  7-day trial (for compatibility with Unity 2017.4.10 download a version  prior)

Import PiXYZ Plugin for Unity from the Assets > Import Package > Custom Package

Select the recently downloaded PiXYZ Unity Package in the Explorer and click on the Open button on PiXYZ4Unity-2018.1.2.6

You’ll need to properly setup your License Manager. The best way to  do this will be to login using the Online tab and after you’ve done  that you’ll get a list of your licenses to choose from. Login and choose  your license trial version (which you’ll need to request from the PiXYZ  website).

Set up your Unity Project with PiXYZ Plugin

 and then select the wheel model that you’ve downloaded. 

Tri Count means the number of triangles, which act as a polygon surface  representation unit. Remember that we can approximate many types of  surfaces by linking large sums of triangles together. 

Verts means vertices. Think of a triangle for a concrete idea of what this refers to.

 This sets the scale of the imported model, model scale is usually 0.001. 

Use this setting to mirror model from a right-handed coordinate system to a left-handed one 

Use this setting to rotate a model from a coordinate system that has the  z-axis pointing up to one that has the y-axis pointing up (Unity is a  Y-up coordinate system). 

All objects contained in the original model that share the same material will be merged together. 

As your scenes in Unity get larger, performance becomes a bigger  consideration. One of the ways to manage this is to have meshes with  different levels of detail depending on how far the camera is from the  object. To learn more visit Unity’s documentation about 

How do we access and use MetaData in our workflow?

The PiXYZ PLUGIN for Unity has the ability to import Metadata from CAD  software, such as types, manufacturers, physical properties, ownership,  timestamps, and more.
 To import a CAD model with its metadata, you must enable Metadata in the import menu. 

When a model is imported with the plugin with the Metadata option, nodes  holding metadata information will be transposed in Unity with  GameObjects with a Metadata component attached. This means that we can  identify individual objects, and in turn perform actions on these  objects based on their respective metadata. 

Importing metadata unlocks another level of control over your CAD  models, enabling you to perform actions over specific objects at once.Common uses of metadata include disabling and enabling objects at  particular times, changing a large group of objects’ materials or  textures, adding Rigidbodies, and other component modifications at  scale.


  Not all GameObjects imported with PiXYZ PLUGIN for Unity contain  Metadata. Only nodes that have metadata in the original CAD file. 

Use PiXYZ>Import CAD and then select the wheel model that you’ve downloaded.

When prompted select the PiXYZ-DEMO-BRAKES.CATProduct. Then click Import.

For the best results with the PiXYZ plugin use the following settings. Each is visited in a dropdown below. 

 PiXYZ is faster than normal import for models since, it’s multithreaded 

Import CAD Using PiXYZ Plugin

Unfortunately this content is now out of date. Please see more relevant content.

https://www.pixyz-software.com/documentations/html/2022.1/plugin4unity/PixyzPluginforUnity20221.html

Automotive

The CAD Workflow and Animation

What will you learn?
 By the end of this tutorial, you’ll be able to:

In this tutorial, you’ll import a CAD brake model into Unity, the above showcases the brake before and after tessellation.   

An example of a .CAT CAD car model that you will be importing into Unity in a later tutorial.

Before

After

What Will You Do?
 In this tutorial you’ll be using a Brake model; however, in the Challenge you’ll work with a full car in .wire format.

In the tutorial, you’ll manipulate the brake in PiXYZ Studio while also learning various new view types.

The Engine Piston Assembly you will import in the Challenge tutorial

It appears like this when you’ve successfully activated your trial. 

Use PiXYZ>Import CAD and then select the wheel model that you’ve downloaded. 

Check the Game Window, and check the Stats window and review the Tri Count and Verts metrics.  

As your scenes in Unity get larger, performance becomes a bigger  consideration. One of the ways to manage this is to have meshes with  different levels of detail depending on how far the camera is from the  object. To learn more visit Unity’s documentation about Level of Detail Groups. 

Importing metadata unlocks another level of control over your CAD  models, enabling you to perform actions over specific objects at once.Common uses of metadata include disabling and enabling objects at  particular times, changing a large group of objects’ materials or  textures, adding Rigidbodies, and other component modifications at  scale.
Note:  Not all GameObjects imported with PiXYZ PLUGIN for Unity contain  Metadata. Only nodes that have metadata in the original CAD file. 

Unity Version 2018.3