What components and substances are needed for a particle system in Three.js?

Question

What components and substances are needed for a particle system in Three.js?

After spending a few weeks working with particle systems in Three.js, I initially used an Object3D, incorporating my own Vector3s and various materials like MeshBasicMaterials, Phong, and Lambert. However, after discovering the built-in ParticleSystem object and BasicParticleMaterial, which offered sorting tagging and other advantages, I learned that these may now be deprecated in favor of PointCloud and PointCloudMaterial. This led me to realize that BasicParticleMaterial only supported one texture for all particles, prompting me to have several questions:

What are the current Object and Material options for a particle system in Three.js?
Can it handle multiple textures (different images for each particle)?
If the current particle system does not support multiple textures, should I consider reverting back to using an Object3D with custom materials and geometry? Is there a better alternative available?

UPDATE

The specific project at hand involves creating numerous abstract figures, each consisting of multiple particle clouds (10+) with each cloud holding 400+ particles. These particles are unique hand-drawn sketch marks, aiming to create a hand-drawn appearance when combined. All marks gently pulsate from the center as if being moved by a light breeze.

I am seeking the most efficient material and object for this task that can also handle multiple textures so that different hatch marks can be utilized as particles. For instance, the image below shows a single particle cloud (each figure would feature various differently shaped clouds), but currently, this cloud displays only a single type of hatch mark. I hope to incorporate a variety of marks as particles.

javascript opengl-es three.js particle-system

Answer 1

Answer №1

To achieve the desired result, your code should follow a similar structure. Instead of using canvases, utilize the textureloader and callbacks to add sprites when they are loaded. Make sure to set texture.needsUpdate = true; if you encounter a black sprite.

var texture1 = new THREE.Texture( canvas1 );
var texture2 = new THREE.Texture( canvas2 );
var texture3 = new THREE.Texture( canvas3 );

var material1 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture1 });
var material2 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture2 });
var material3 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture3 });

var sprite1, sprite2, sprite3;

var particleCloud1 = new THREE.Object3D();
for ( var i = 0; i < 100; i += 1 ) {

   sprite1 = new THREE.Sprite( material1 );
   // specify position
   particleCloud.add( sprite1 );

   sprite2 = new THREE.Sprite( material2 );
   // specify position
   particleCloud.add( sprite2 );

   // repeat for additional sprites
}
scene.add( particleCloud1 );

This approach allows sharing textures and materials across all sprites, accommodating hundreds or even thousands of them. However, animating numerous sprites might impact performance significantly. Unfortunately, there is no workaround for this limitation at present.

If needed, you can consolidate various textures into a single texture atlas and manipulate parameters like texture.offset.x, texture.offset.y, texture.repeat.x, and texture.repeat.y to access specific textures within the atlas. Nevertheless, considering your use case, the benefits of doing so may be minimal.

Answer 2

To achieve the desired result, your code should follow a similar structure. Instead of using canvases, utilize the textureloader and callbacks to add sprites when they are loaded. Make sure to set texture.needsUpdate = true; if you encounter a black sprite.

var texture1 = new THREE.Texture( canvas1 );
var texture2 = new THREE.Texture( canvas2 );
var texture3 = new THREE.Texture( canvas3 );

var material1 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture1 });
var material2 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture2 });
var material3 = new THREE.SpriteMaterial({ map: texture3 });

var sprite1, sprite2, sprite3;

var particleCloud1 = new THREE.Object3D();
for ( var i = 0; i < 100; i += 1 ) {

   sprite1 = new THREE.Sprite( material1 );
   // specify position
   particleCloud.add( sprite1 );

   sprite2 = new THREE.Sprite( material2 );
   // specify position
   particleCloud.add( sprite2 );

   // repeat for additional sprites
}
scene.add( particleCloud1 );

This approach allows sharing textures and materials across all sprites, accommodating hundreds or even thousands of them. However, animating numerous sprites might impact performance significantly. Unfortunately, there is no workaround for this limitation at present.

If needed, you can consolidate various textures into a single texture atlas and manipulate parameters like texture.offset.x, texture.offset.y, texture.repeat.x, and texture.repeat.y to access specific textures within the atlas. Nevertheless, considering your use case, the benefits of doing so may be minimal.

What components and substances are needed for a particle system in Three.js?

Answer №1

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