Attemtping to build an airport using SketchUp 2017

  • Hi all,

    I am teaching myself how to build an airport using SketchUp 2017(free)

    Does anyone have experience with adding mesh for runways using SketchUp 2017 that might give me a few pointers?

    I am using the tutorial on the wiki just in case anyone suggest I look there.

    Thanks in advance :)

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  • Hi Kloot,

    I normally start with an airport of Phil (fsCloudPort.com) and start building on that with additional components.

    If you want to build on a port not yet existing, ask Spit40 for a write access per PM.

    Hi TomSimMuc

    I have access to the wonderful fscloudport, I covered 69 airports in Australia. I just want to build accurate airports from scratch. Just unsure how to do the ground mesh with SketchUp.

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  • I normally start with an airport of Phil (fsCloudPort.com) and start building on that with additional components

    Not that easy. It seems to me that the flattening used by FSCloudPort could conflict with your scenery when you add/replace objects like runways flattened out with your 3D application, being AC3D, Sketchup or any other.

    Cheers, Ed

  • Hi TomSimMuc

    I have access to the wonderful fscloudport, I covered 69 airports in Australia. I just want to build accurate airports from scratch. Just unsure how to do the ground mesh with SketchUp.

    I think you'll need some trial and error, but I assume you should draw a simple runway and the surrounding mesh, then paint the runway with a texture named airport__runway, and the mesh beyond with a texture named airport__outside, then create a component with the whole thing, you name airport_rwy and convert it as a TGI with MCX.

    Let's see if this is working.

    Cheers

    Antoine

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  • I think you'll need some trial and error, but I assume you should draw a simple runway and the surrounding mesh, then paint the runway with a texture named airport__runway, and the mesh beyond with a texture named airport__outside, then create a component with the whole thing, you name airport_rwy and convert it as a TGI with MCX.

    Let's see if this is working.

    Cheers

    Antoine

    Thanks Antoine, I will follow your advice :)

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  • Thanks Antoine, I will follow your advice :)

    Well, I don't know if it actually works, that's simply how I would try it out first, before to get too far into details.

    Make sure you use the double underscore in the texture name (see 3DSMax tuto)

    Good luck

    Antoine

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  • Quite incredible ... I have been looking for weeks for discussion links on the subject "creation of an airport with detailed buildings close to reality".

    As a basis, I wanted to rough the work starting from FSCloudPort, so I asked in private message to spit40 access ... no response!

    I want to use SketchUp Make 2017 which I learn little by little. A first building already created.

    But the main thing is to create the essential complement to the existing track, so tarmac, taxiways, parking lots ...

    I am sure that many people have already tried the adventure but here ... almost no contact when the subject interests practically all.

    The different tutorials on SketchUp remain too general and do not allow refining so that it works under AFS2 (PC) and not the latest version on tablets ...


    What a pity, after so much effort.


    Merci drhotwings ... super ambiance !

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  • I gave up in the end and haven't bothered since. Good luck with it.

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  • The number of users that possess the skills and the required programs to build an airport with taxiways and ramps can be counted on one hand. The single most limiting factor for user development. What in the world would AFS2 look like if we didn’t have fsCloudPort and AeroScenery?

  • The number of users that possess the skills and the required programs to build an airport with taxiways and ramps can be counted on one hand. The single most limiting factor for user development. What in the world would AFS2 look like if we didn’t have fsCloudPort and AeroScenery?

    I'd rather say the required programs, raw data and the time to do it. Getting all 3 together is a tough combination to manage.

    You don't need much skills once you've figured out a method based on the way too laconic wiki tuto, but doing it the right way is way too time-consuming for regional scenery making.

    For instance, there are some 20 aerodromes for the sole region of Paris, no way I can design them all in 3DSMax within 1 single product.

    Especially, if you look at an airport like CDG, the textured mesh creation part itself is a heavy project with all these small surfaces to individually triangulate and texture :

    Cheers

    Antoine

    Config : i7 6900K - 20MB currently set at 3.20GHz, Cooling Noctua NH-U14S, Motherboard ASUS Rampage V Extreme U3.1, RAM HyperX Savage Black Edition 16GB DDR4 3000 MHz, Graphic Card Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8GB, Power supply Corsair RM Series 850W, Windows 10 64 bit.

  • CDG would be really horrible:

    Complex mesh with all these rounded holes, many different tarmac textures. And finally another nightmare with all the markings...=O<X;(

    Nethertheless it would be great to have a free design program besides 3DSMax and AC3D.
    But sketchup uses a proprietary file format, not so easy.

    Blender could be the choice, but as long as we don't have a converter to aerofly, it is not an alternative.

  • Nethertheless it would be great to have a free design program besides 3DSMax and AC3D.
    But sketchup uses a proprietary file format, not so easy.

    Blender could be the choice, but as long as we don't have a converter to aerofly, it is not an alternative.

    Sktechup lacks the vertex weighing option (red = visible, black = not visible, and blend in-between) that is unfortunately requested for AFS2 airport design.

    Otherwise, it exports collada that you can easily convert to AFS2 by the mean of MCX, this works very nicely for 3D objects.

    I assume Blender has the vertex weighing capability , has anybody tried exporting in a format that could be read and converted into TGI by MCX ?

    Cheers

    Antoine

    Config : i7 6900K - 20MB currently set at 3.20GHz, Cooling Noctua NH-U14S, Motherboard ASUS Rampage V Extreme U3.1, RAM HyperX Savage Black Edition 16GB DDR4 3000 MHz, Graphic Card Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8GB, Power supply Corsair RM Series 850W, Windows 10 64 bit.

  • AC3D lacks the vertex weighting option as well, therefore we always have a sharp border between __runway and __outside in AC3D projects. But according to Torsten there is yet a chance to rework the converter and use another feature for blending.

  • OK Antoine, it seems you have a good grasp of where we need to be. Sketchup can easily create mesh, flat or not, and I can select any color for the vertices. See test below created in like 10s (Ignore green fluo color). I can import pictures and thus create any patch that matches them easily, with lines, polys, beziers, etc..

    Once I have a mesh I can give it volume with sculpting tools if I need to and work on the mesh various ways.

    Wouldn't that work? Now on the weighing of the vertices, that is what I heard before, but I can create any color for any vertices. Would that satisfy the "weighing" process or is it a different parameter than pure color?

    A toi de voir, on peut faire des essais si tu veux. Et en plus j'utilise Sketchup 8, un vieux soft.

    First interesting issue. When exporting to jpg, the edges that were red, are now a combination of red and black at the same time, so they're hard to see, it's a few on the right bottom and one isolated int eh center. I should try exporting collada, or other 3D or vector formats. Anyway more testing is probably necessary.

    .

  • And don't forget that Sketchup is fully customizable in Ruby, so we could if push comes to shove create and export pretty much anything providing we program it.

    One more info, there are 3 standard "weights" for vertices in SU, solid, soft and smooth. If that were to be used instead of red/black, then it makes it super easy to work with, there are tools that help and we can definitely do more with programming.

    Solid is solid, soft is hidden but still solid, smooth is hidden but applied a gradient for rendering purpose.

    Vertices can also be "hidden". Solid can be hidden or not, smooth and soft are hidden by default.

    It's a bit confusing I know, but it gives us options.

  • I'll check your DAE asap.

    Regarding vertex weighing, it is linked to vertex color in 3DSMax exporter tool, no idea if it works from Sketchup via MCX. Same question of course for Blender.

    I'd assume somebody already tried it and we'd know it if it was working... I reckon the TGI export format of MCX is of "Object" type only, not "Scenery"...

    To be tested anyway.

    Cheers

    Antoine

    Config : i7 6900K - 20MB currently set at 3.20GHz, Cooling Noctua NH-U14S, Motherboard ASUS Rampage V Extreme U3.1, RAM HyperX Savage Black Edition 16GB DDR4 3000 MHz, Graphic Card Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8GB, Power supply Corsair RM Series 850W, Windows 10 64 bit.