Subframe Sampling

The new Simulation Settings property allows you to set subframe samples for ICE simulations, which determine how many times an ICE simulation is evaluated per frame. Increasing the subframe samples can help make the simulation solving more accurate, such as is required for fast-moving particle emitters or collisions with quickly deforming objects.

You can also cache the simulation frames as with the subframe sampling value. Using the subframe data, you can retime the cache file in the animation mixer with more precision than with full-frame caches. Motion blur is also more accurate.

See ICE Simulation Subframe Sampling for more information.

To use subframe sampling on scenes and/or compounds that were created prior to Softimage 2012, you need to upgrade them. For information on how to do this, see Updating Scenes and Compounds to Use Subframe Sampling.

Cache on File

The Cache on File node has several new options that allow for more flexibility and allow you to use subframe sampling when reading and writing cache files in the ICE tree. See Cache on File for more information.

• All Simulation Samples:

  Ensures that subframes are written to or read from the cache file if you have specified a value greater than 1 for the Subframe Sampling parameter in the Simulation Settings property editor.

• File Full Name:

  This port allows you to define the cache path and file name in a separate node (such as String or File Path) instead of using the Path, File Name, and Tokens parameters on the Main tab.

• Caching Mode:

  This port allows you to define the caching mode used instead of using the File Mode option on the Main tab.

  You can plug a node into this port to drive the caching mode directly, such as to switch from reading to writing cache files at different points while playing the simulation. For example, you can plug an Integer node into this port and animate its value to change the caching mode: set the Integer node value to 2 on the first frame to read a cache file that defines the initial state, then set the value to 1 on frame 30 to switch to writing a cache file.