[Bf-committers] Terrain modeling

[Pierrick Koch]

Hello,

I am working on a robotic simulator based on Blender.

I am using a small script [1] to generate terrain from aerial image
and heightmap [2].
Those two images are quite big (9000x9000) with a 5cm per pixel resolution.

My knowlwedge in modeling and mapping is quite limited,
so I'm only using a grid and the "Displace" modifier,
which limits me to a resolution of 50cm per pixel,
and results in a model of 850K+ vertices and 1.7M+ tris [3].

[1] https://github.com/pierriko/morse/blob/master/tools/terrain/blend_dtm.py
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_elevation_model
[3] http://www.pasteall.org/pic/show.php?id=61222


My question is, is there a way to optimize the terrain using other
methods (bump mapping / shaders) ?

I tried using the "Decimate" modifier, but it breaks the model (end up
with a lot of holes in it).

For info, my lab is using an eBee [4] for mapping.

[4] http://spectrum.ieee.org/automaton/robotics/aerial-robots/sensefly-and-drone-adventures-toss-uavs-off-the-summit-of-the-matterhorn

Cross posted on
http://blenderartists.org/forum/showthread.php?315312-Terrain-modeling

Thanks for your help!
-- 
Pierrick Koch - http://morse.openrobots.org
PhD student, LAAS-CNRS