Blend4Web

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Blend4Web

Blend4Web logo
Screenshots of Blend4Web demos
Screenshots from Blend4Web demos
Basic data

developer Triumph LLC
Publishing year March 28, 2014
Current  version 17.06
(June 30, 2017)
programming language JavaScript , Python , C , C ++
category Game engine
License GPLv3 or commercial
www.blend4web.com

Blend4web is an open-source - Framework , with the help of which interactive 3D graphics for display in web browsers create can.

Overview

Blend4Web is a framework that extends the 3D graphics software Blender in order to output the 3D content created there on websites. The output takes place in WebGL , WebAudio and other web standards, which makes it possible to play the content without the use of browser plugins.

Blend4Web is published under a dual license model . There is a commercial licensing and an open source licensing according to GPLv3 . The source code is hosted on GitHub .

The created 3D scenes can be provided in two ways. As a pair of JSON and binary files for integration into a web application or as an HTML file in which the executable code and the user interface of the web player are packed. The HTML option is probably the simpler way to work with Blend4Web, as the resulting file can be placed anywhere on a website using the standard Iframe element. For example, in social networks like Facebook and VKontakte .

The toolbox that is available with Blend4Web contains, in addition to the Blender plug-in, JavaScript libraries and tools for setting the scene parameters, for debugging and for optimization.

Blend4Web has been developed by the Moscow company Triumph LLC since 2010 . The first published version appeared on March 28, 2014.

Functions

The framework contains components that can also be found in pure game engines . For example positionable audio sources, a physics engine (Javascript porting a bullet fork), an animation system and an abstraction layer for programming a game logic.

Up to 8 different animations can be assigned to each object, including armature and vertex animations. The speed and direction of the animation, as well as the parameters of particle systems, can be influenced directly via the API .

In addition to other techniques, dynamic charging and discharging are supported, as well as the simulation of sub-surface scattering and image-based lighting (IBL).

Blend4Web provides some ready-made effects for the representation of outdoor scenarios. These include wind-foliage interaction, the simulation of water, atmosphere and sunlight. Examples of these effects are presented in the technology demonstration "The Farm". "The Farm" also demonstrates the possibilities of movement and interaction with objects and non-player characters, as well as driving vehicles in first-person mode.

Since Blend4Web is based on the cross-browser WebGL API, it can run on most (including mobile) web browsers. Some limitations exist in browsers with only experimental WebGL support such as Internet Explorer .

More sophisticated techniques include draw-call batching, hidden surface determination, threaded physics simulation, and ocean simulations.

With version 14.09 a visual tool was introduced for interaction programming that is based on the logic editor of the BGE (Blender Game Engine). It enables the author to assign logical blocks to an object, which are then played back during user interaction.

As of version 15.03, Blend4Web supports the linking of HTML elements (such as information windows) with 3D objects and instantiation at runtime .

Among the effects based on post-processing, glowing surface (English glow), lighting with bright light (bloom), the depth of field of the camera, twilight rays , the motion blur and the mutual shading ( SSAO ) are supported.

The following post-processing effects supported blend4web: Glow, Bloom , depth of field , sheaves of rays (God Rays), motion blur , and screen space ambient occlusion .

Output devices for displaying virtual reality have been supported since 2015 . In particular, there is support for the head-mounted display Oculus Rift via the experimental WebVR API.

Blender integration

The add-on for Blender is written in Python or C and can be compiled on the platforms Linux -x32 / 64, macOS x64 and MS Windows x32 / 64.

A special profile can be activated in the add-on settings, which adapts the Blender user interface to the special requirements of Blend4Web.

Menu for changing to Blend4Web mode

Blend4Web supports some Blender-specific techniques, such as the node-based material editor and the particle system . There is basic support for the Blender NLA editor with which simple scenarios can be created.

Blend4Web is essentially based on Blender's real-time GLSL rendering engine. In order to get a WYSIWYG workflow, it is recommended to activate it in Blender as well.

Comparable software

Blender game engine

Like the Blender Game Engine (BGE), Blend4Web does not need any additional software to display the content. While the BGE creates an executable file for offline playback, Blend4Web aims at playback in the web browser. Blend4Web has a Javascript API, while BGR offers a Python API.

Unity

From version 5 Unity offers the possibility to output content in WebGL. In a comparison test carried out by a Unity game developer using a turbofan engine presentation, the latter came to the conclusion that the engines deliver comparable visual quality. However, there was a difference in the size of the files generated by the engines. While Unity produced WebGL data with 142 MB (uncompressed), the HTML file produced by Blend4Web with 1.8 MB (uncompressed) was much more compact.

According to the Unity WebGL roadmap, Unity has no plans to support mobile devices, positionable audio sources, or teletextures in the near future.

Three.js

The popular WebGL library Three.js already requires programming knowledge for relatively simple tasks and thus has a relatively flat learning curve (for non-programmers) . In Blend4Web, a large part of the creation process takes place without the need for programming knowledge.

Applications

For the third anniversary of the landing of the Curiosity Rover on Mars , NASA developed the Blend4Web-based application Experience Curiosity. The application enables the rover to be controlled with its cameras and its robotic arm on the surface of Mars. You can also understand some of the tasks of the Mars Science Laboratory Mission. The application was presented at the start of the WebGL block at SIGGRAPH 2015.

Experience Curiosity: Rover takes a selfie
Experience Curiosity: learning mode
Experience Curiosity: free travel mode

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Blend4Web: the Open Source Solution for Online 3D . Mozilla hacks. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  2. ↑ Blend4Web on GitHub . GitHub.com/TriumphLLC. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
  3. ↑ Прахов, Андрей (Июль, 2015). "Blend4Web". Linux format , стр. 20th
  4. ↑ a b Blend4Web, an Interactive 3D Viewer . BlenderNation.com. Retrieved August 11, 2014.
  5. ↑ Blend4Web: способ вставить 3D-содержание на веб-страницу с использованием WebGL . Belursus.info. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  6. ↑ Blender Models on Facebook . Dalai Felinto. Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  7. ↑ Blend4Web Official Site - About . Blend4Web.com. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  8. ↑ Представлен Blend4Web, движок для создания браузерных 3D-приложений . OpenNet.ru. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
  9. ↑ Релиз движка для создания браузерных 3D-приложений Blend4Web 14.08 . OpenNet.ru. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  10. ↑ Blend4Web update adds improved lighting and more . BlenderNation.com. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  11. ↑ Blend4Web: "The Farm" - Demo of a small virtual world . Really virtual. Retrieved September 18, 2014.
  12. ↑ Can I use WebGL? . caniuse.com. Retrieved August 15, 2014.
  13. ↑ Blend4Web: енджин за създаване на браузърни 3D сцени и приложения . Kaldata: Software, Hardware and Game Reviews. Retrieved September 4, 2014.
  14. ↑ Cozzi, Patrick. WebGL Insights . CRC Press, 2015 ISBN 978-1-49-871607-9 .
  15. ↑ Blend4Web Update: Non Linear Animation and more . BlenderNation.com. Retrieved September 29, 2014.
  16. ↑ Выпущен фреймворк Blend4Web 14.09 . digilinux.ru. Archived from the original on September 28, 2014. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved September 29, 2014. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / digilinux.ru
  17. ↑ Blend4Web: обзор новинки отечественного софтопрома . Habrahabr.ru. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  18. ↑ Blend4web: annotations interactives et autres nouveautés . Greg GdBénicourt. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  19. ↑ Релиз движка для создания браузерных 3D-приложений Blend4Web 15.05 . OpenNet.ru. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
  20. ↑ Triumph releases Blend4Web December 15 . cgchannel.com. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  21. ↑ Blend4Web - Must-Have for Blender fans! . 3ddey.com. Archived from the original on June 1, 2015. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved May 29, 2015. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / 3ddey.com
  22. ↑ Create 3D web applications with Blend4Web . entwickler.de. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  23. ↑ Blend4Web: Exporter Facilement en HTML . BlenderLounge. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  24. ↑ Blender en tu Web: Blend4Web . PatrimonioVirtual.com. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  25. ↑ Blend4Web: Ferramenta publica projetos do Blender para Web . Allan Brito. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  26. ↑ Unity 5 Ships and Brings One Click WebGL Export to Legions of Game Developers . The Mozilla Blog. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  27. ↑ Blend4Web vs Unity. Битва за Интернет . Habrahabr.ru. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  28. ↑ Почему в NASA отказались от Unity в пользу Blend4Web . Habrahabr.ru. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  29. ↑ WebGL Roadmap . Unity3D.com. Retrieved August 13, 2015.
  30. ↑ The Good, The Bad and the WebGL-y . benchung.com. Archived from the original on June 22, 2015. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved June 19, 2015. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / benchung.com
  31. ↑ Что выбрать для 3D сайта - Three.js или Blend4Web? . Habrahabr.ru. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  32. ↑ New Online Exploring Tools Bring NASA's Journey to Mars to New Generation . NASA. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  33. ↑ Experience Curiosity . NASA's Eyes. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  34. ↑ Prenez le controle de Curiosity avec Blend4Web . Greg GdBénicourt. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  35. ^ Internet 3D: Take the Curiosity Rover for a Spin Right on the NASA website . Technology.Org. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  36. ↑ Khronos Events - 2015 SIGGRAPH . Khronos. Retrieved August 13, 2015.

Web links