Asset mapping allows replacing Rhino block instances or planes with realistic, hi-res assets in Unreal Engine like trees or Megascans when a Rhino project is Live-Linked to unreal through Mindesk (once done, assets can be permanently baked into Unreal). This allows to keep the CAD file very lightweight while expressing the full creative potential on Unreal with a multitude of high-resolution objects in the model.


This can be done in two ways:

  1. using Rhino block instances
  2. using planes in Grasshopper



Method 1: Rhino block instances mapping


Unreal will automatically recognize Rhino block instance and replace them with a related assets in the project library based on the block name. To make this happen just:

  1. from the Content Browser right click on an Unreal asset and click Copy Reference (you should get a string similar toStaticMesh'/Game/assetfolder/Meshes/assetname' )
  2. in Rhino name an existing Block instance exactly as the Reference just copied from Unreal. To do this you can double-click on the block instance and then double click on the block name to edit it, paste the Reference here
  3. from now on, every time you connect this Rhino project to the Unreal scene you copied the Reference from (make sue that the asset is loaded into that scene) every block instance generated from the block just renamed will be replaced with the referenced Unreal asset





Method 2: Grasshopper planes mapping


You can batch reference thousands of assets in Unreal using the MDSK Asset component. Each Instance Plane is matched with an Asset Name and a Pinned Geometry (optional) with a longest list logic. It is recommended, however, to have the same number of Assets Names and Instance Planes to avoid unexpected results.


When the Mindesk Live Link is established with Unreal, each Asset is placed and oriented on the matched plane in Unreal. Assets Names, Instance Planes and Pinned Geometries can be edited in real-time.


Need to permanently save your mapping work? MDSK Assets block can be baked in Rhino. When baked, it creates a block instance per each plane, each including the related Pin Geometry. These blocks are now automatically referenced in Unreal next time the project is linked.


Another way to save your work is saving the referenced Rhino model in Unreal as explained here.


 


  • Asset Name: accepts String or Lists of Strings. This indicates which Unreal Asset will be placed on each Plane. Each Asset name shall match exactly the related Reference copied from Unreal Engine's Content Browser

  • Instance Plane: accepts Planes or Lists of Planes. The Plane defines the position and the orientation of each Unreal Asset

  • Pin Geometry (optional): accept Geometries or Lists of Geometries. This defines which geometry will be baked onto planes in Rhino. Default is a 3D point when left blank.

  • Start: accepts Boolean, this is TRUE by default. When TRUE it enables the block.