Redmaterials: the pre-configured materials library for Redsdk

Redmaterials is an add-on for Redsdk. It enables users to configure their 2D/3D models without neither artistic nor Computer Graphics knowledge. The configuration is as simple as copy/paste or drag/drop operations. Sizing and/or tilling is possible on each of the Redmaterials object, thanks to the use of high resolution seamless textures when bitmaps are used.

Due to the unified graphics feature provided by Redsdk (same code for real-time 2D, 3D and photo-realistic rendering), Redmaterials offers unified graphics configurations as well. Users automatically get the best of the real-time display when using Redsdk in real-time mode and switch to advanced rendering visualization when using Redsdk in photo-realistic mode.

A wide range of ready-to-use materials

Bricks
Concrete
Glass
Metal
Plastic
Stone
Wood

All materials are delivered in an HTML catalog, where each material can be visualized on a display stand which will reveal how the material behaves in terms of lighting, shadowing, reflectance, refractance, etc. with a neutral environment.

Users can then easily change some simple characteristics of the material, like its size, tilling or taint, without the need to get access to more material definitions. This simple parameters offers thousands of combinations, from the same original material definition.

Each materials offers a real-time preview when necessary, without the need to synchronize real-time and photo-realistic versions of the materials, thanks to the unified graphics architecture of Redsdk.

One material for real-time and photo-realistic visualization

The left side of this picture shows a real-time view of a chrome material (with environment only reflections), while the right side displays a photo-realistic one (with self-reflections).

While the real-time representation enables users to accelerate the setup of their 2D/3D scene/model, it offers only a "believable" environment. The photo-realistic view of the material provides a much more accurate rendering quality, without a need to redefine the setup of the 2D/3D scene/model, at a reasonable extra rendering time, with the Redsdk rendering acceleration.

Real-time & photo-realistic visualization screenshot

Easily customizable materials

From the same material definition, users can change simple parameters to create multiple display combinations of the same source material.

The picture on the right shows a same material where the size, tilling and taint were set to different values. The Redmaterials library ensures each material will keep a nice en realistic looking in all circumstances, without requiring any Computer Graphics knowledge.

A generic material with conservation of the light energy

Introduced in Redsdk 2.1, the realistic material ensures a correct management of the light energy depending on three fundamental parameters, diffusion, reflection and transmission of the light.

In practice this "realistic" material prevents Redsdk based applications to produce unrealistic pictures by reflecting more light than received, while increasing the overall realism of renderings.

This realistic material remains "generic" in the sense that programmers and Redsdk based software end-users can define their own values, colors, textures in the numerous channels available inside this "realistic" material, the energy of light being kept constant. While it offers a full freedom for designing new materials, it requires more skills than the other materials of the library, which are "ready-to-use".