FBX Converter Guide

FBX Converter November 2006

Documentation Disclaimer Autodesk FBX Converter 2003 - 2006 Autodesk, Inc. and/or its licensors. All rights reserved. Document: Version: Date:
FBX Converter Guide FBX Converter 200611 November 2006

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Contents
1 Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Windows installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Macintosh installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2 Converting files (Windows) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Converting to .fbx file format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format . . . . . 8 Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version . . . . . . . . 10

3 Converting files (Macintosh) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Converting to .fbx file format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format . . . . 15 Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version . . . . . . . . 17

4 Conversion options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
3DS conversion options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 DXF conversion options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 OBJ conversion options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 FBX to FBX conversion options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Collada conversion notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 FBX Converter naming conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

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Table of Contents

FBX Converter Guide iv

Installation

The FBX Converter lets you convert .fbx files into other file formats and versions, as well as from into other file formats into .fbx files. This chapter describes how to install the FBX Converter on Windows and Mac OS X systems.

Windows installation
The FBX Converter is available for Windows 2000 and Windows XP. To install the FBX Converter: 1 2 Download the install file from the Autodesk web site (http:// www.Autodesk.com/fbx). Double-click the install file to launch the FBX Converter installer (figure 1-1).

figure 1-1: Autodesk Installer window

Click I accept to accept the terms of the license agreement, and then click Next.

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1 | Installation

The next window shows the recommended installation location for the FBX Converter (figure 1-2). If you want to specify another location, click Browse to launch the file browser. Click Next.

figure 1-2: Autodesk Destination folder window.

The next window shows the recommended installation location for the FBX Converters documentation. If you want to specify another location, click Browse to launch the file browser. Click Next A dialog box appears asking if you would like to view the FBX Converter documentation. Select Yes or No. The installation completed window appears. Click Close to exit the installer.

6 7

The FBX Converter is now installed.

Macintosh installation
The FBX Converter is available for MacOS X. 1 2 Download the .sit file from the Autodesk web site (http:// www.Autodesk.com/fbx) to your desktop. Double-click the .sit file to extract the Installation disk image.

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1 | Installation

Double-click the package icon to start the installation. The Welcome pane appears (figure 1-3).

figure 1-3: Mac installation Welcome pane.

4 5

Click Continue to start the installation process. The Software License Agreement pane appears. Read the License Agreement and click Continue. A dialog box appears asking if you accept the terms and continue with the installation.

figure 1-4: Terms of Software License Agreement dialog box,

Click Agree to accept. The Select a Destination pane appears. Select the destination disk where you want install the FBX Converter and click Continue. The Easy Install pane appears. Click Upgrade.

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1 | Installation

A dialog box appears asking you to enter your name and login password to continue the installation. You must obtain administrator privileges to continue installation.

Note

The installation begins. A progress bar indicates the time remaining of the installation. When the progress reaches 100%, the Finish Up pane appears.

figure 1-5: Finish Up pane.

10 Click Finish to exit the installation program. Note The FBX Converter is installed in the following directory: <Macintosh Drive>/ Applications/ Autodesk/FbxConverter.

FBX Converter Guide 4

Converting files (Windows)

The following section shows you how to use the windows FBX Converter to convert .fbx files into other file formats and versions. Select from the following three conversion options by clicking the tabs that appear at the top of the FBX Converter window: Procedure
Convert to FBX

Purpose
Converts 3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files into the .fbx file format. To do this, see "Converting to .fbx file format" on page 5.

Convert from FBX

Converts .fbx files into the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats. To do this, see "Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format" on page 8. Converts .fbx files into a different version .fbx file format. To do this, see "Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version" on page 10

Convert FBX to FBX

Converting to .fbx file format

Use the Convert to FBX option to convert .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files into the latest version of the .fbx file format. To convert a file to .fbx format: 1 Open the FBX Converter. (Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > MotionBuilder > FBX Converter.)
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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Select the Convert to FBX tab.

figure 2-6: Convert to FBX tab

Drag the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files you want to convert into the Source file list. You can also click Add to open a file browser to locate the files. To remove files from the Source file list, select Remove all or Remove Selected.

Note

The files automatically appear in the Destination file list. You can do three things: Leave the file name, and overwrite your original files. The name will remain the same but the file extension changes, for example, car.3ds becomes car.fbx.

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Select Change folder for all to browse for a new location to store your converted files. Select Save as selected to save your file with a different name. This option also lets you choose a new destination for your converted files. 5 6 7 Select a file compatibility type from the Compatibility for saved FBX options. Activate the Save FBX in ASCII option if you want the file to be converted to ASCII format. Depending on the type of files loaded in the Source file list, activate the necessary options in the Conversion options area. Information about the conversion of each of these options is displayed in the Conversion options notes area. You can click the Set to Default button to restore the conversion defaults. It is recommended to use the default conversion settings for file conversion to avoid unpredictable results.

Note

Click Convert.

If any conversion errors occurred, an error log is created. View this file in the FBX Converters Log file menu.

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format

Use the Convert From FBX option to convert .fbx files into the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats. Note There are no options available for .dae (Collada) file conversions. See "Collada conversion notes" on page 30.

To convert .fbx files to the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats: 1 Open the FBX Converter window. (Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > MotionBuilder > FBX Converter.)

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Select the Convert from FBX tab.

figure 2-7: Convert from FBX tab

Drag the .fbx files you want to convert into the Source file list. You can also click Add to open a file browser to locate the files. If you need to remove files from the Source file list, select Remove all or Remove Selected.

The files automatically appear in the Destination file list. You can do three things: Leave the file name, and overwrite your original files. (The name will remain the same but the file extension changes, for example, car.fbx becomes car.3ds.) Select Change folder for all to browse for a new location to store your converted files.

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Select Save as selected to save your file with a different name. This option also lets you choose a new destination for your converted files. 5 6 Select a file format for the .fbx files that you want to convert from the Destination file format options. Depending on the type of files loaded in the Source file list, activate the necessary options in the Conversion options area. Information about the conversion of each of these options is displayed in the Conversion options notes area. You can click the Set to Default button to restore the conversion defaults. It is recommended to use the default conversion settings for file conversion to avoid unpredictable results.

Note

Click Convert.

If any conversion errors occurred an error log is created. View this file in the FBX Converters Log file menu.

Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version

Use the Convert FBX to FBX option to convert .fbx files into a different version .fbx file format, so you can update old files from earlier versions of MotionBuilder or make newly created .fbx files readable in older versions of MotionBuilder. Note Only MotionBuilder versions 5.5, 6.0, 7.0, 7.5 (200602), 7.5 (200608), and 7.5 (200611) are available for conversion.

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

To convert .fbx files to another .fbx format version: 1 2 Open the FBX Converter window. (Click Start > All Programs > Autodesk > MotionBuilder > FBX Converter.) Select the Convert FBX to FBX tab.

figure 2-8: Convert FBX to FBX tab

3 4 5

Drag the .fbx files you want to convert into the Source file list. You can also click Add to open a file browser to locate the files. If you need to remove files from the Source file list, select Remove all or Remove Selected. The files automatically appear in the Destination file list. You can do three things: Leave the file name, and overwrite your original files.

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2 | Converting files (Windows)

Select Change folder for all to browse for a new location to store your converted files. Select Save as selected to save your file with a different name. (This option also lets you choose a new destination for your converted files.) 6 7 8 Select the .fbx format version you want to convert the .fbx files to from the Compatibility for saved FBX options. Activate the Save FBX in ASCII option if you want the file to be converted to ASCII format. Activate the Embed texture in the Conversion options area if you want textures to be saved along with the .fbx file. You cannot save textures with your file(s) if you select the Save FBX in ASCII format option.

Note

You can click the Set to Default button to restore the conversion defaults. It is recommended to use the default conversion settings for file conversion to avoid unpredictable results.

Note

10 Click Convert. If any conversion errors occurred an error log is created. View this file in the FBX Converters Log file menu.

FBX Converter Guide 12

Converting files (Macintosh)

The following section shows you how to use the Macintosh version of the FBX Converter to convert .fbx files into other file formats and versions. The following are the three conversion options you can choose: Procedure
Convert to FBX

Purpose
Converts 3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files into the .fbx file format. To do this, see "Converting to .fbx file format" on page 13. Converts .fbx files into the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats. To do this, see "Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format" on page 15. Converts .fbx files into a different version .fbx file format. To do this, see "Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version" on page 17

Convert from FBX

Convert FBX to FBX

Converting to .fbx file format

Use the Convert to FBX option to convert 3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files into the latest version of the .fbx file format. To convert a file to .fbx format: 1 Open the FBX Converter.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

If you want save your converted file in a place other than its original folder, select File > Preferences to open the Preferences window. In the Destination folder area, activate the Use option and click Search to browse for a new location (figure 3-9, A). If you want save your file to be converted to ASCII format, select File > Preferences to open the Preferences window and activate the Save FBX in ASCII option (figure 3-9, C). If you want to create an error log to document any errors that occur, select File > Preferences to open the Preferences window and activate the Create log files if errors occur option (figure 3-9, B). If any conversion errors occurred, an error log is created and stored in the same location as the original file.

Note

Click Ok.

figure 3-9: Preferences window A. Destination folder area B. Create log files if errors occur option C. Save FBX in ASCII

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

Drag the 3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) files you want to convert onto the FBX Converter (figure 3-14).

figure 3-10: FBX Converter

The files are converted into the latest version of .fbx format, and if you did not specify a destination location in step 2, they are stored in the same location as the original file. If any conversion errors occurred an error log is created and stored in the same location as the original file.

Converting from .fbx to .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) format

This feature lets you convert .fbx files into the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats. Note There are no options available for .dae (Collada) file conversions. See "Collada conversion notes" on page 30.

To convert .fbx files to the .3ds, .dxf, .obj or .dae (Collada) file formats: 1 Open the FBX Converter.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

Select File > Preferences. The FBX Converter Preferences window opens (figure 3-13).

figure 3-11: Preferences window

3 4

Select DXF, OBJ, 3DS, or the COLLADA file format option for the file(s) you want to convert. Activate Same as Original to save your converted file in its original folder, or activate the Use option and click Search to browse for a new location. Activate the Save FBX in ASCII option if you want the file to be converted to ASCII format. Activate Create log files if errors occur to document any errors that occur during the conversion process. If any conversion errors occurred, an error log is created and stored in the same location as the original file.

5 6

Note

Click Ok.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

Drag the .fbx files you want to convert onto the FBX Converter (figure 3-14).

figure 3-12: FBX Converter

If any conversion errors occurred an error log is created and stored in the same location as the original file.

Converting from .fbx format to another .fbx format version

This feature lets you convert .fbx files into a different version .fbx file format, so you can update old files from earlier versions of FBX Converter or make newly created .fbx files readable in older versions of MotionBuilder. Note Only MotionBuilder versions 5.5, 6.0, 7.0, 7.5 (200602), 7.5 (200608), and 7.5 (200611) are available for conversion.

To convert .fbx files to another .fbx format version: 1 2 Open the FBX Converter. Select File > Preferences. The FBX Converter Preferences window opens.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

Select one of the FBX file formats for the file(s) you want to convert (figure 3-13).

figure 3-13: Preferences window

Activate Same as Original to save your converted file in its original folder, or activate the Use option and click Search to browse for a new location. Activate the Save FBX in ASCII option if you want the file to be converted to ASCII format. Activate Create log files if errors occur to document any errors that occur. If any conversion errors occurred, an error log is created and stored in the same location as the original file.

5 6

Note

Click Ok.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

Drag the .fbx files you want to convert onto the FBX Converter (figure 3-14).

figure 3-14: FBX Converter

A special naming convention is used so none of the original files are overwritten. See "FBX Converter naming conventions" on page 31 for more information.

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3 | Converting files (Macintosh)

FBX Converter Guide 20

Conversion options

The following section describes each conversion option and their related settings, as well as a special section on naming conventions for .fbx files that are converted into other .fbx format versions. We recommend leaving the default conversion options as they are, except in special cases. for example, if your scene is large and you do not need textures or materials imported. Note These descriptions apply to both the Macintosh and Windows versions of the FBX Converter.

The options that concerning the following conversion types are covered: 3DS conversion options (page 21) DXF conversion options (page 26) OBJ conversion options (page 28) FBX to FBX conversion options (page 30) Collada conversion notes (page 30)

3DS conversion options

The following are the options for converting files to and from the 3ds Max file format.

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4 | Conversion options

3DS to FBX options

The following options are available if you are converting 3ds Max .3ds files to the .fbx format: Option
Texture

Behavior
Activate this option to include texture mapping with the file conversion. This option is active by default.

Material

Activate this option to include materials with the file conversion. If this option is disabled, the Texture option is disabled as well. This option is active by default.

Animation

Disable this option to load only the first keyframe into the scene. This option is active by default.

Mesh

Disable this option to transform all meshes in the scene to null objects. The animation and hierarchies are kept. This option is active by default.

Light

Disable this option to exclude all Omni and Spot lights in the scene from the file conversion. Their animation and hierarchies are also excluded. This option is active by default.

Camera

Disable this option to exclude all cameras in the scene from the file conversion, as well as all camera animation and hierarchies. This option is active by default.

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4 | Conversion options

Option
Rescale

Behavior
Disable this option to ignore the specified conversion unit. For example, a cube with a side of one inch in 3ds Max is converted to a cube with a side of one centimetre in the FBX Converter. This option is active by default.

Ambient light

Disable this option to apply the ambient light color to the scene. This option is active by default.

Smooth group

Activate this option to use the smoothgroup definition to compute the normals of the vertices of meshes. In these cases vertices with multiple smoothgroups are duplicated. Disable this option to compute vertex normals as if the whole model contained only one smoothing group. This option is active by default.

Filter

Activate this option to apply the Constant Key Reducer filter to all animation curves. This reduces the number of redundant keyframes. Activate this option to add a null object named 'Fbx_Root' to the scene. This node is the root parent of all objects in the scene and is used to compute the unit conversion (inches to centimetres) while retaining the original coordinates of the scene in local transformations. Disable this option to create the scene without reference node and to convert all data to the current unit. In that case, original coordinates will be lost. To keep them, see "Rescale" on page 23. This option is active by default.

Ref. node

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4 | Conversion options

Option
Embed Texture

Behavior
Activate this option to embed textures with the .fbx file. Note: You cannot embed textures in .fbx files that are saved in ASCII format.

FBX to 3DS options

The following options are available if you are converting .fbx files to the 3ds Max .3ds format: Option
Texture

Behavior
Disable this option to exclude texture mapping from the scene. This option is active by default.

Material

Disable this option to exclude materials from the scene. When this option is disabled, the Texture option is also disabled. This option is active by default.

Animation

Disable this option to write only the first keyframe to the file. This option is active by default.

Mesh

Disable this option to exclude all meshes, patches and NURBS from the file conversion, as well as any related animation and hierarchies. This option is active by default.

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4 | Conversion options

Option
Light

Behavior
Disable this option to exclude all omni lights and spot lights from the scene, as well as their related animation and hierarchies. This option is active by default.

Camera

Disable this option to exclude all cameras from the scene, along with any related animation and hierarchies. If a camera has a null object as an interest, the null object remains in the scene. This option is active by default.

Rescale

Disable this option to ignore the conversion unit. For example, a cube with a side of one centimetre is converted to a cube with a side of one inch in 3Ds Max. This option is active by default.

Ambient light

Disable this option to apply the ambient light color to the scene. This option is active by default.

Smooth group

Activate this option to use the smoothgroup definition to compute the normals of the vertices of meshes. In that case, any vertex with multiple smoothgroups is duplicated. If this option is disabled, vertex normals are computed as if the whole model contained only one smoothing group. This option is active by default.

Ref. node

Activate this option to add a dummy named 'RootNode' at the origin of the scene. This node lets you move all the objects in the scene at the same time.

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4 | Conversion options

Option
Tex UV by poly

Behavior
If the texture UV of a model is defined by polygon vertices, activate this option to retain the exact texture UV coordinates of the model. If you activate this option, smoothing is lost. If this option is disabled and the texture UV of a model is defined by polygon vertices, the smoothing group is saved. Texture UV coordinates are unpredictable when vertices with different texture UV coordinates share common control points. Any polygon containing one of these vertices may not be displayed as expected. This option has no effect on models with other texture UV definition. This option is active by default.

DXF conversion options

The following are the options for converting files to and from the Autocad .dxf file format.

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4 | Conversion options

DXF to FBX options

The following options are available if you are converting Autocad .dxf files to the .fbx format: Option
Reference node

Behavior
Activate this option to create a reference node (null root) at the top of the hierarchy. This option is active by default.

Weld vertices

Activate this option for the importer to compare and merge vertices if they are equal (or very close). This gives interpolated normals smoother shading. This option is active by default.

Layer

Activate this option to derive one object from each layer. This is the default mode.

Block

Activate this option to group all entities into one single object. Only block imports are considered separate objects. Activate this option to derive one object from each entity in the file. Activate this option to embed textures with the .fbx file. Note: You cannot embed textures in .fbx files that are saved in ASCII format.

Entity Embed texture

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4 | Conversion options

FBX to DXF options

The following options are available if you are converting .fbx files to Autocad .dxf format: Option
Force triangulation of exported meshes

Behavior
Activate this option to force the conversion of quads to triangles. Nurbs and patches are always triangulated, regardless of this option. Because the .dxf format does not export NURBS or Patch geometry, the FBX Converter approximates NURBS or Patch geometry with polygon meshes made of triangles. This option is active by default.

Compute link and shape deformation on exported meshes

Activate this option to bake vertices in their deformed state, since DFX and .obj formats do not support deformations. This option is active by default.

OBJ conversion options

The following are the options for converting files to and from the .obj file format.

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4 | Conversion options

OBJ to FBX options

The following options are available if you are converting .obj files to the .fbx format: Option
Reference node

Behavior
Activate this option to create a reference node (null root) at the top of the hierarchy. This option is active by default.

Embed texture

Embeds textures with the .fbx file. Note: You cannot embed textures in .fbx files that are saved in ASCII format.

FBX to OBJ options

The following options are available if you are converting .fbx files to .obj format: Option
Force triangulation of exported meshes

Behavior
Activate this option to force the conversion of quads to triangles. Nurbs and patches are always triangulated, regardless of this option. Because the .obj format does not export NURBS or Patch geometry, the FBX Converter approximates NURBS or Patch geometry with polygon meshes made of triangles. This option is active by default.

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Option
Compute link and shape deformation on exported meshes

Behavior
Activate this option to bake vertices in their deformed state, since .dxf and .obj formats do not support deformations. This option is active by default.

FBX to FBX conversion options

The following option is available if you are converting .fbx files to another .fbx format: Option
Embed texture

Behavior
Embeds textures with the .fbx file in cases where the textures accompanying the file were not embedded. Note: You cannot embed textures in .fbx files that are saved in ASCII format.

Collada conversion notes

Collada (.dae) files converted to the .fbx format are limited to what the .fbx format supports. Anything not supported by the current .fbx version is lost, even if it was previously supported by the .dae format before conversion. Collada conversion can export meshes, bones, skin and morph controllers, as well as basic assets, materials, light and cameras with transforms animation (without shearing). It can re-import what has been exported. Only a U-up axis is supported.

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Whats not supported by Collada

The following is a list of elements that are not supported by export or import to .dae (Collada). Some elements are destroyed while others can produce unpredictable results on import/export: Triangles, polylist and polygons. Polygons are exported without holes, and imported without holes and triangles. Bake & single matrices are not supported. Variable sampling rates are not supported. Absolute Paths, when invalid, are not supported. Instances are not supported. Skew is not supported. Non-standard Materials and maps for different parameters are not supported. Orthographic cameras are not supported. Normals (for skin and shape) are not supported. Light parameters are not supported. Vertex animation is not supported. Material parameters animations are not supported. Effects specialized profiles are not supported. Collada physics are not supported.

FBX Converter naming conventions

The FBX Converter uses a special naming convention if you convert an .fbx file into a different .fbx format version. This is so you can differentiate between the original and converted .fbx file.

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The following is the convention for the file x.fbx, where x is the name of the file you want to convert: Saved as version
MotionBuilder 5.5 MotionBuilder 6.0 MotionBuilder 7.0 MotionBuilder 7.5 (200602) MotionBuilder 7.5 (200608) MotionBuilder 7.5 (200611)

Name used
x.5.fbx x.6.fbx x.70_2005_08.fbx x.75_2006_02.fbx x.75_2006_08.fbx x.75_2006_11.fbx

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