What is the mechanism behind the workings of the requestAnimationFrame loop?

Question

What is the mechanism behind the workings of the requestAnimationFrame loop?

I'm currently studying the ins and outs of javascript and Three.js but I'm struggling to grasp the concept of how the requestAnimationFrame function operates. Could someone please break down the following code in simple terms for me?

( feel free to view the complete code on jsfiddle )

  // loop function
  function render(time) {
    time *= 0.001;  // conversion to seconds

    cube.rotation.x = time;
    cube.rotation.y = time;

    // rendering the scene
    renderer.render(scene, camera);

    requestAnimationFrame(render);
  }
  requestAnimationFrame(render);

javascript three.js

Answer 1

Answer №1

When using requestAnimationFrame(), the browser is asked to execute a function before repainting.

Check out requestAnimationFrame documentation

Here is the code snippet:

  function render(time) {    
    time *= 0.001;  // time converted to seconds

    cube.rotation.x = time;
    cube.rotation.y = time;

    // render the scene
    renderer.render(scene, camera);

    requestAnimationFrame(render);
  }

  requestAnimationFrame(render);

A time variable is set to change value with each call to render()
The rotation x and y values of the cube are set to the time variable
The scene is rendered with the updated properties
requestAnimationFrame is called within the render function, creating a loop that continuously repaints the cube on screen with updated coordinates
requestAnimationFrame is also called once outside of the render function for the initial rendering of the cube

Answer 2

When using requestAnimationFrame(), the browser is asked to execute a function before repainting.

Check out requestAnimationFrame documentation

Here is the code snippet:

  function render(time) {    
    time *= 0.001;  // time converted to seconds

    cube.rotation.x = time;
    cube.rotation.y = time;

    // render the scene
    renderer.render(scene, camera);

    requestAnimationFrame(render);
  }

  requestAnimationFrame(render);

A time variable is set to change value with each call to render()
The rotation x and y values of the cube are set to the time variable
The scene is rendered with the updated properties
requestAnimationFrame is called within the render function, creating a loop that continuously repaints the cube on screen with updated coordinates
requestAnimationFrame is also called once outside of the render function for the initial rendering of the cube

What is the mechanism behind the workings of the requestAnimationFrame loop?

Answer №1

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