Table of Contents

This page introduces the VRayVolumeGrid node.

 

Overview


VRayVolumeGrid is a special kind of volumetric effect that works with grid-based cache formats. Compare with Environment Fog which is a general purpose volumetric effect. The Volumetric Grid reads its data from an input file which supports grid-based representation of the volume.

Currently VRayVolumeGrid supports three volume formats: 

  • OpenVDB (.vdb) - Supported by Houdini ®, FumeFX ® and RealFlow ®
  • Field3D (.f3d) - Supported FumeFX ® and Maya ® (using 3rd party plugins)
  • PhoenixFD (.aur) - Phoenix FD ® native volume format

 

Immediately after the VRayVolumeGrid node is created, a properties dialog appears with a field for selecting the input file. A number of options are then available to fine-tune and customize the volume.

 

 


 

UI Path: ||Toolbar|| > V-Ray Menu icon > Volumetrics > VRayVolumeGrid

 

 

Inputs


mtl - Connection to apply a material to the V-Ray Volume Grid. It is necessary for the Volume Grid to be in Mesh mode, the Surface channel needs to be set and an appropriate Isosurface Level must be chosen from this section.

dsp -  When Displacement is enabled it will be based on the values of the connected texture map. 

tr - The smoke opacity will be based on the values of the connected texture map if Based on is set to Texture.

dif - The smoke color will be based on the values of the connected texture map if Based on is set to Texture.


Volume Grid Options


The following options are provided for modifying the appearance and rendering of the volume grid. For more information, see the Volumetric Grid Properties page.

  • Input tab - Provides controls for multiple frame input, timing of frames, and blending/smoothing of frames.
  • Preview tab - Provides controls for how the volume grid effect is displayed in the viewport.
  • Rendering tab - Provides controls for how the volume grid effect is rendered.
  • Fire tab - Provides volumetric shader controls for the emissive color (fire) and the light emitted by the volume grid.
  • Smoke tab - Provides volumetric shader controls for the diffuse (smoke) color and opacity.