World Building EasyRoads3D v3 - the upcoming new road system

thank you so very much. I appreciate the answer i have pm u

 

can you plz send me the demo of v3 info in the pm .. like to test all the new

 

Will version 3 be Unity Script (JS) or C# based?

 

Hi Raoul/Jeff/EasyRoads

I bought Easy roads way back, when there wasn't an asset store and you had to register an account on your website. I can barely remember -it was only 2-3 years, but yes my memory is actually that bad.

How can I go about getting my unity account data updated to include easyroads? Or is it a paid upgrade to version 2... and then 3? May I give you my emails and/or account details to search your accounts or... how do I proceed from here to update my version?

Also, I have an actual question about easy roads: Can I make telephone/power poles with hanging cables with easy roads? I'd like to make a wintery siberian steampunk type scene with pipes and power poles across the landscape... roads are actually the last thing on my list, haha

 

Hi Ra

Hi Raoul. Me too, I bought version 1 years ago. I bought Unity3 pro and never upgraded Unity and EasyRoads. Should I pay for the latest ER3d and can I still use it with Unity 3.5 pro?

Alvast bedankt!

 

if i am not wrong that easy road is free to those how have unity Pro

 

But after paying for it, I would really like to use the paid version. It has more functions, right?


Anyone know how well this does power lines?

 

When I create a tunnel (v2.5.5.1) the road goes through the terrain but no tunnel is created. What am I doing wrong? (I couldn't find any reference to it in the manual).

 

v3 is entirely c# based

Raoul

 

Hi David,

I don't think it is possible for Asset Store developers to grant a free license which is required in this case in order to have EasyRoads3D Pro appear on your list of purchased Asset Store packages.

Also, do you have a Pro or v2 license? If it is a v2 license you will want to upgrade to Pro anyway for v3. In that case, you may want to check the current offer which is about the same as the upgrade for v2 to Pro!

The telephone/power poles that can be created with EasyRoads are lightweight, low poly. It doesn't actually create hi res geometry for the wires, instead a texture is used which looks just fine if you do not require physics on the wires or very nearby cam views, below video starting at 8.15

This is not the v2 side objects system but the same can be achieved with v2. I have more ideas for all of this which also includes real geometry for wires (I do have a tool for that) but I am not sure yet if that will be part of EasyRoads3D. I don't think it should become too heavy unless you guys like this sort of stuff...

And, yes, EasyRoads3D is indeed a lot more then only a road tool...

Raoul

 

Hi Zappapa,

If you have EasyRoads3D Pro you are ready to go for v3, send me a PM or email and I will add you to the beta list. Regarding Unity 3.5, The EasyRoads3D v2 packages were still build on Unity 3 to keep it compatible with Unity 3. With the upcoming Unity 5 I think I will stop support for Unity 3.5.x. But also regarding this, unlike many of you are still on Unity 3!? In that case I will continue support for Unity 3. Regarding EasyRoads3D v3, it is developed on Unity 4, I do have to check whether it works on Unity 3.5.x.

Groeten!
Raoul

 

Do you mean EasyRoads3D Pro is free when you own a Unity Pro license? That is not correct, but just like Unity, EasyRoads3D has a free and a Pro version.

Raoul

 

Hi sstrong, in the latest build the Tunnel check box is visible in the Inspector. Tunnels is not active though and also undocumented in the manual because there are complications depending on the terrains heightmapscale and angle of the road direction with the terrain.

Raoul

 

Great, thanks. Will the code be obfuscated, or will I be able to customize it for my own projects?

 

Hi Arcanor, during the beta period the code will be obfuscated. Perhaps not once it is released but I cannot guarantee that at this stage. In any case, just like in the past 4 years with v1 and v2 you can let me know if you feel something is missing or you want something to work differently and I will look into that.


Raoul

 

Ive been watch this asset for a little while now and i had a couple of questions, for intersections is there anything setup for turn lanes on the road or could we put our own texture on the segment next to the intersection? Can you make a road get wider or narrower ,like going from a 2 lane to a 3 lane road? And im guessing if i brought in a complex bridge model into the project i could connect to it? Do you have an approximate finished release date? Thanks

 

Hi, the intersections are customizable (see the first video below) and you can use your own materials per connection. The current beta supports basic crossing layouts for X and T crossings. To include turn lanes, a different geometry layout is required which will be added. In the first video below at 1:25 you see the control "Crossing Layout". This currently has only one active layout. More layouts will follow so you can use textures with for example turn lanes.

The dynamic system will also include options to make a road wider or narrower. But you can also do this by inserting your own meshes. This way you have full control over how you want this to look like. This system is active but not documented yet because there are things to do such as terrain deformation support. I am currently working on this. Hopefully it will be fully functional in the next beta. You will also be able to use this system with for example your own crossing layouts including turn lanes

This same system can be used for, for example, bridges. Roads will indeed connect to them. As you mention complex bridge models, if you want you can contact me by email or pm and discuss your specific situation, the nature of your bridge model etc. so I can make sure this will work for you.

Regarding when this will be finished, there are so many different type of situations when it comes to roads, intersections. Development will be an ongoing process for a while. That is why it is released in betas available to those with a Pro license. Once we are happy with the feature set it will be publicly released and we will continue adding more for v3.x.

Customizable intersections:

Scene workflow:

 

Hi raoul,

wow I am really impressed about all the different tweakable options. Very well thought-out.
Once you implement turn lanes (incl decelaration and accelaration lanes from highways) I will probably be able to completely replace my modeling with this tool.

Good job!

 

Awesome ... no words!

 

Thanks very much for your reply and look forward to using version 3

 

Thank you guys, much appreciated! @Rattlehead, as mentioned in the post with the videos, at the moment I am completing the system that can be used to import custom mesh objects. Once that is done, the main system is ready and more crossing specific features will be added such as more geometry layouts and highway acceleration lanes / ramps.

Raoul

 

Hello Raoul,

I'm watching this thread for a long time and I'm aware you're in open beta status and closing on releasing V3.I hope everything is going as you plan.

I was wondering if it is realistic to say V3 will be on UAS in a month?

There were talks about the tunnel feature. Is it still going to happen?

Another question is about "Map-ity" integration.
I read that Map-ity will integrate Easy Roads V3. Is it possible that the integration will use crossroads,tunnels,sidewalks...features? I'm asking you because I thought those features might be automatic when they integrate the base features of Easy Roads V3.


Thanks.

 

Hi gurayg,

Sorry, English is not my native language, UAS, do you mean if it will be publicly available within a month? In that case, this sort of questions is asked a lot. It is so hard to answer with this type of thing where so many different situations can exist which all require their own specific implementation. The package is already available in beta builds, other then that it depends on what you need. In general all this is being build according our own needs but over the past months we have also constantly been in touch with a couple of indie developers and companies and we have meanwhile implemented things they like to see in the tool which we do not really need for ourselves. So, if you want to use this as soon as possible, I would recommend to try the beta and / or let us know where your priorities are and what more you need and we will do our best to implement that as soon as possible.

The tunnel feature is still on the list, there are some issues to resolve with that, it is also mentioned on the previous page.

Yes, we are in touch with the guys from Map-ity. full integration will be possible through the EasyRoads3D API. That said, as we also use this for ourselves and we already experimented and build a solution for this a long time ago, auto generating roads from external data will now also be a build in feature of EasyRoads3D. Both OSM and KML data will be supported. Reading in the raw road data is already active in the current beta and should work just fine although KML file import is still experimental and needs more testing. We ourselves use OSM data, at this stage EasyRoads3D road types can be linked to OSM road types. This will be further improved regarding auto creating crossings and activating sidewalks if that data is available in the osm file. Starting at 0:45 in the below video you will see how easy it is to create road types. Setting up road types is not required but makes a couple of things a lot easier. For example, you can assign road types to the connections of a crossing (see crossings video above), you simply select the road type from the drop down and the crossing connection width and materials auto update. Setting up road types is also very useful when you have many roads (and dfifferent types) in the scene. It will save you a lot of time setting up materials and road widths etc.for each road individually. The packages comes with a set of road types but you can add as many as you want. So yes, all this does make it possible to accurately import extrnal road data.

Setting up road types (and more new v3 road specific features)

 

Thanks for the detailed answer Raoul.

Would you consider posting a list of upcoming features for Easy Roads V3. That would be very helpful for many people to consider. I didn't know you were planning .osm/.kml import for example.

Our production will start in a month. But until that time I may get warm by using Easy Roads beta then.
I'll email my details to you for the beta files in the following days.

UAS was an abbreviation I used for "Unity Asset Store" nothing fancy

looking forward using the beta
Hope you have a pleasant day.

 

Ah, UAS of course , regarding beta access, if you are on the beta list you will auto receive the updates. So no need to contact us to ask for new updates.

I belief OSM/KML support is mentioned on the first page of this thread, other new features planned for v3 are mentioned as well on the first page.

Also, the videos on this page are actually provisional beta videos intended to quickly show new features for the beta users. One reasonably small but very useful new option is “Follow Terrain Contours”, starting at 5:35 in the movie in my previous post, a big time saver if you want to have the road match the terrain in hilly areas. Below is another movie regarding terrain handling, not so spectacular but it shows some of the new terrain features in v3. One other new feature, not entirely finished but already active in the current beta is the option to add lod groups for the roads. Other than that, new features will probably be announced publicly once available in the beta.

Have a great day too and send me a PM or email for beta access!

Raoul

 

I don't know if this is the appropriate place to ask questions like this but I do have a problem with the roads that I create:

When I create the roads the terrain beneath the road flickers on-top of the road. The only way to get it to stop flickering is to adjust the road height but even that doesn't seem to work sometimes, plus then my road has a floating look that is not what I want. I am putting the roads on hilly terrain so the road has to conform to the hills of the environment but there is intense "z fighting" happening between the roads and the terrain. Any solutions?

I read somewhere too that if your main camera has too low of a near clipping plane it can cause more inaccurate rendering artifacts, like the z fighting, so i raised the near clipping plane of my main camera. It did help a fair amount, but roads in far distances still had the flickering problem, so I feel like the near clipping plane adjustment is more of a "band-aid" solution rather than an actual working solution.

I apologize if this is not the place to ask questions like this, but I couldn't find a better place to ask this question to be honest.

 

Hi! Is this related to v2 or the v3 beta? This is the link to the main v2 thread, http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/ea...d-rivers-procedural-geometry-for-unity.82331/

Roads are created just above the terrain, to deal with z-fighting the package comes with a set of shaders that use an offset. There should not be any standard z-fighting / flickering if you are using the offset shaders. Depending on the nature of your terrains, especially in hilly areas, bumpy roads and on a low heightmapscale, it could be that the road disappears a little bit below the terrain in certain areas and on certain cam angles (usually horizontal very close to the ground). In that case, you could try tweaking the offset values a bit, or you can indeed also try moving the roads upwards, up to 0.05 or so should not be noticable.

Can you show screenshots or if you want you can contact me through our website or send me a PM. If you want you can also send me a simple example project (pm or email) so I can look at it myself.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

Oh yeah, I'm using version 2, oops. I'll check out the offset shaders, but any further questions I'll post in the V2 thread.

Thanks for the quick response! Very much appreciated!

EDIT:

Quick update, added a line of code to the shader I was using (Marmoset Specular IBL Shader) in the subshader area Offset -5,-5 and that seems to have fixed the problem.

 

Yes, when you are using your own shaders just add that line Offset -5, -5 to avoid z-fighting.

 

hey i have bought your product 3 times because of supporting you guys. love your work. i have a simple question you never pointed out. i am working on a very big world, a map that is 20K x 20K big, and it's gonna be a mmo game actually similar like dayZ but i don't have Zombies. so my question is i wanna do a main road that's going around the whole map like this Picture (road). is there possible to do that with easy roads ? because i need that big road but then i need to slice it, because i can't have a objekt/road that is that big for then i gonna lose ..??.. i don't know that is called but if i have a object that is so big then from the pivot point and from the other side i wanna see big z-fighting because the road is too far from the pivot point bucuse of the size of the road. so is that possible? if so, how can i slice it after i have made the road around, for then the road will be one big object, right. then i need to slice it too many pieces. because then the roads doesn't gets so far from their pivot points. for all the pieces of roads have their own pivot points. like this Picture (road i need it)

i really hope you understand what i trying to say ThX

 

Hi adde210, thanks for the support!

Is your question v2 or v3 related? In v2 you can start new LOD segments per marker, this will create seperate Mesh objects for each segment. It doesn't change the pivot point for each mesh object but that is fairly easy to adjust (let me know if you need this). All this is not yet implemented in v3, it will be implemented but as v3 supports crossings and each segment between crossings is a seperate mesh object it depends on the final road network whether you will actually need that v2 LOD segment option which can already automatically be activated in v3 for each mesh segment. In the images you mention "Main Road" does that mean that indeed you will have more roads connected to the main road?

Apart from that, I am not sure how the pivot point of the road object will result in z-fighting issues. Do you currently have issues with this?

Thanks,
Raoul

 

i use both v2 and the beta v3 but its working the same on both of this kinda question. if the object (road) is that big as 20000x20000, the farest you get on the road from the pivot point on the rode then it losing performance like if we say this terrein that i have that is 20000x20000 big if i go to the other side and place a object there on the ground, then i see z-fighting going on and i fix that by using floating origin and cut my terrain into chunks so i got more of pivot points and iam neer the space origin all the time and from there i got more performance all over the terrain, i first tried to only have the floating origin without to cut my terrain but i still lose the performance and have the z-fighting from far away from pivot point and a guy told me that it is because of i was too far from the pivot point, so first all told me that i was far from the space origin and that's why i am losing the performance and then i still have that problem and then a guy told me it was because i was far from the pivot point of the object and i need to cut my terrain in to cunks. so i thinking that is the same problem with the road when it going to big and the road is too far from the pivot point its start z.fighting betwen the road and the terrain more and more that loger i go from the pivot point . this is right , right ? that is what every1 told me, that i cant have a big object for when i go to far on this big object its losing performance and etcetera as long as I go from the pivot, the more I lose performance .

yes the main road is going around the map then i will give it more roads in to the circle and even out of the circle of the main road where it will stop at the village or anything else (image added named "stops")

so i need to cut my road after i have (process the terrain and create road geometry) for when i have done the processing then all roads is gonna be one big object and One pivot point going to place on the space origin, so again i need to cut it to many objects and have to have the pivot point in the middle of each roads mesh like in the image (Cut road)
as you say at each marker so can i just adjust the way a small part of the whole road, that's how I want it after I'm done with the roads. there will be individual pieces as it is when I working with marks in easyroad. like in the image (Print)

The Print Image

sorry for my draw skills, haha

Ps i am doing this when i am done whit my roads i process the terrain...... and then i drag out the road from the RoadObject1 in the Hierarchy and the remove the RoadObject1 so i only have the road mesh left. if you understand what i mean

I do not know how I can explain it better than this :/ sorry

its working the same on v3 as it does on v2 with this.

would not require too much. but can you make a video tutorial on this (v2 and v3) so I can see how to do =? I'm still a nooby on this asset.
for this was the only reason I bought this asset, in order to build roads this size instead of drawing them on the terrain and keep on trying to do it in a nice way and so on. I really hope there is a solution to this so that i can do it this way what I have tried to explain

 

Hi adde210, in the 5 years EasyRoads3D exists I have never heard of issues caused by the pivot point position of the road object. We ourselves certainly have never experiences issues with this although our terrains usually are not bigger then 5000x5000.

Anyway, as mentioned in v2, you can create LOD segments per marker which will result in multiple road mesh segments. If you want I can send you a little script that will adjust the mesh so the pivot point is in the center of the bounds of the mesh. Looking at your maps, in v3 the main road will be split in segments anyway because of the crossings. You will be able to use that same script on each segment to adjust the pivot point.

The video tutorial you mention, is that also regarding the pivot point? That is a matter of adjusting the mesh position and the mesh vertices. For that you need a script, as mentioned, if you want I can make that for you.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

okey that would be great. pm me or something

 

Hi Raoul, when you plan to release v3? Any approximate date?

 

Hi Dreamland, I cannot give an approximate date for the official public release as the final feature set for v3.0 is not yet decided on.

v3 is currently released in open betas for those who have an EasyRoads3D Pro license. You can see the current status in the various beta movies that are available in this thread. Other then that it really depends on what you need? New betas will follow as new features have been implemented.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

Hi adde210, here is the script that will create a copy of the selected road mesh and reposition road it with the pivot point in the center. You can select multiple road meshes.

1. the package wil put the script in /Assets/EasyRoads3D/Editor, a new menu item will be created at the top (EasyRoads3D > Center Pivot)
2. select on or more road meshes and execute "Center Pivot"

Let me know if you need further help with this.

Raoul

 

any idea on this new update how long it will take?

 

Hi aquilinajake,

The next beta will include a first build of the additional custom crossings / connection prefabs feature. This is already functional. At the moment we are working on some art assets demonstrating this new feature for both the demo project and video. There are some other small things that must be taken care of for the next beta. I expect all this to be ready within a week or so.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

I have a question. in the latest beta, when I have a 3x3 terrain (generated with WorldComposer), and create a simple road, and then go to "Build Terrain," I get "ArgumentException: Trying to access out-of-bounds terrain height information." It happens even if all roads are within a single terrain section. It doesn't seem to happen however, if my terrain is simply 1x1 (a single terrain segment). How do I get around this?

A second question, when I have a single terrain, and successfully build terrain of the road network, I can no longer add roads to that road network, but I can also no longer even create a second road network in the same scene. Is it true, that once you click "build terrain", you can no longer add new roads or edit in any way in that scene forever?

Thanks for any help! Absolutely awesome asset, really is great what all it can do..

 

We have been using road architect for our project since it has been released, but it's not receiving promised updates. If in easyroads v3 intersections would work nice and if it will support side objects in a better way than before (similar to road architect) we will convert our game to easy roads.

After updating to easyroads v3, will easyroads v2 side objects (without roads, just meaning fences, railroads etc) work just as before? Or will we need to re-arrange all of them. It would be lot's of work if they will need to be re-arranged.

We didn't use easyroads for generating roads before. Can you briefly explain advantages/disadvantages of easyroads comparing to road architect?

 

Hi Owen_Gusson, Glad you like it! There was an issue that raised this error when road(s) do not cross all terrains and you have "All Terrains" selected. I have to check the release notes but I belief this was already resolved in the last beta 2. Which beta are you using? What if you select to only flatten a single terrain with road(s) crossing that terrain? Does that work?

Regarding your second question, after you click the "Build Terrain" button, the Inspector changes, you will see a button "Restore Terrain". I should probably rename that button to "Return to Edit Mode" or so, that is what it does, you will be able to continue working on your road network afterwards.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

H

Hi Meceka, the idea to offer more than just roads resulted in the sideobjects in v2. The idea was to provide a system where you are not limited to prefab assets provided by the tool but instead offer a system where you can create your own sideobjects. In our opinion a lot more powerful but yes, it is something to get familiar with. For v3 the side objects system will be further expanded and we are also planning to include more presets.

v3 is an entirely new system, at this moment (beta state) it does not include an upgrade from v2 feature yet. But that will probably be included in next releases, certainly if there is demand for it.

I am unfamiliar with other road tools so I cannot really give comparisons but it seems like you do have an EasyRoads3D license, your name certainly looks familiar too and I think we have been in contact before.If you have a Pro license you can try the betas. The next beta will be a big update in terms of what you can achieve with it.

Raoul

 

Thanks for your response, I have easyroads license, we talked about a side object problem before. After that big update I would like to test beta.

Will it be easy to make roads like these in easyroads;
http://forum.unity3d.com/attachments/deliverysimulator-png.113686/

 

Yes, you will be able to do all that quickly. The roads are floating above the terrain and at some points the terrain is popping through the road edges. I am not sure whether that is on purpose to keep the roads close to the the terrain edges in these hilly areas but that is not something that will happen with EasyRoads3D if you use the default settings for terrain deformation.

Nice traffic system

Raoul

 

Yes, I had "All Terrains" selected before. I just tried selecting a single terrain, and it worked! It did seem to actually build terrains in all segments, not just the selected one - does it actually matter which one is selected, or can I just select any single one, build, and then it will automatically find all roads in all terrains and build them?

Ah, that worked perfectly! Thank you so much for the quick reply.

 

Hi i have purchased easyroads, any idea on a Beta release for V3 really looking forward to this update =)

 

Hi Owen_Gusson, when you select a single terrain from the dropdown instead of "All Terrains", terrain changes should include all road network objects within the bounds of the selected terrain and only affect that selected terrain. I will double check that.

Raoul

 

Hi aquilinajake, can you send me a pm or email with your email address? I will add you to the beta list for all future betas and also send the current beta.

Thanks,
Raoul

 

Hello Raoul,

I just began to play with the v3 beta in order to create very single track over multiple terrains. If I create a road network inside with just one terrain and click on "build the terrain" it works but not if the road network is over 2 tiles. So If I build the terrain with All terrain option on, I get the following error :

ArgumentException: Trying to access out-of-bounds terrain height information.
EasyRoads3Dv3.QDQDOOQQOOQDD.UpdateTerrain (EasyRoads3Dv3.ERModularBase scr, EasyRoads3Dv3.ERTerrain terrainScr, UnityEngine.Terrain terrain, Single m_minx, Single m_maxx, Single m_minz, Single m_maxz)
EasyRoads3Dv3Editor.ODOQCOCOQC.OOOOODDQOO (EasyRoads3Dv3.ERModularBase scr)
EasyRoads3Dv3Editor.ODQOOCCOQQ.OnInspectorGUI ()
UnityEditor.InspectorWindow.DrawEditor (UnityEditor.Editor editor, Int32 editorIndex, Boolean forceDirty, System.Boolean& showImportedObjectBarNext, UnityEngine.Rect& importedObjectBarRect, Boolean eyeDropperDirty) (at C:/BuildAgent/work/d63dfc6385190b60/Editor/Mono/Inspector/InspectorWindow.cs:1089)
UnityEditor.DockArea:OnGUI()

I am using Unity 4.6.0b018, working with 8x8 terrains, each terrain has a 1025 Heightmap resolution (and 512 for splatmap and basemap resolution). They have been created with TerrainComposer.

Also, is there a way to delete a road marker (Not the road) ?

Thanks in advance for your support.