What is this?
Open Asset Import Library (assimp) - a C++ library that loads 40+ 3D file formats into one shared in-memory data structure, with post-processing tools that clean up the meshes on the way in.
Open Asset Import Library (assimp) - a C++ library that loads 40+ 3D file formats into one shared in-memory data structure, with post-processing tools that clean up the meshes on the way in.Is it a library I link into my code, or a ready-made model viewer?A library, not an app: it exposes C and C++ APIs you call from your own program. The viewers you may have heard of (Qt5-ModelViewer, Assimp-Viewer) are separate projects built on top of it.
A library, not an app: it exposes C and C++ APIs you call from your own program. The viewers you may have heard of (Qt5-ModelViewer, Assimp-Viewer) are separate projects built on top of it.How do I get it and hook it into my project?Build it with its CMake build system or pull it in through vcpkg; pre-built binaries are also downloadable from the project's Itch page.
Build it with its CMake build system or pull it in through vcpkg; pre-built binaries are also downloadable from the project's Itch page.Can it write 3D files back out, or only read them?It reads more than 40 formats but writes only a smaller, growing selection, so saving back to the format you loaded from is not guaranteed.
It reads more than 40 formats but writes only a smaller, growing selection, so saving back to the format you loaded from is not guaranteed.Do I need to be building my own engine to get value out of it?Mostly it serves game and 3D-application developers who would otherwise hand-parse FBX, glTF or Collada themselves; Unity and Unreal plugins and standalone viewers cover people using ready-made engines.
Mostly it serves game and 3D-application developers who would otherwise hand-parse FBX, glTF or Collada themselves; Unity and Unreal plugins and standalone viewers cover people using ready-made engines.Will it run on my phone, or is this desktop-only?The README says assimp also runs on Android and iOS, in addition to the desktop targets you build with CMake.
The README says assimp also runs on Android and iOS, in addition to the desktop targets you build with CMake.Can I ship it inside a closed-source commercial game?Yes. The modified 3-clause BSD license lets you do whatever you want as long as you include Assimp's license text with your product, and static linking is explicitly allowed.
Yes. The modified 3-clause BSD license lets you do whatever you want as long as you include Assimp's license text with your product, and static linking is explicitly allowed.I am not a C++ developer - can I still use it?Yes. Beyond the native C and C++ APIs there are bindings for C#, Java, Python, Delphi and D, plus ports and plugins: Rust, a full JVM port, Node.js (alpha), and Unity 3D and Unreal Engine plugins.
Yes. Beyond the native C and C++ APIs there are bindings for C#, Java, Python, Delphi and D, plus ports and plugins: Rust, a full JVM port, Node.js (alpha), and Unity 3D and Unreal Engine plugins.Does it just parse files, or does it fix the models up too?It ships post-processing steps: normals and tangent-space generation, triangulation, vertex cache locality optimization, removal of degenerate primitives and duplicate vertices, and merging of redundant materials.
It ships post-processing steps: normals and tangent-space generation, triangulation, vertex cache locality optimization, removal of degenerate primitives and duplicate vertices, and merging of redundant materials.Which 3D formats does it actually support?More than 40 for import - FBX, Collada, glTF 2, STL, 3MF and IFC among them - with a smaller, growing list of export formats.
More than 40 for import - FBX, Collada, glTF 2, STL, 3MF and IFC among them - with a smaller, growing list of export formats.Is there test data I can try it against?Yes, the project maintains a separate model database repository of test files you can clone to exercise the importer on real assets.
Yes, the project maintains a separate model database repository of test files you can clone to exercise the importer on real assets.What are similar projects?bgfx, Vulkan, filament, imgui, SFML, 3d-game-shaders-for-beginners, cocos2d-x, luanti
bgfx, Vulkan, filament, imgui, SFML, 3d-game-shaders-for-beginners, cocos2d-x, luantiWhich topics is it in?stl, assets, gltf, opengl, computer-graphics, c-plus-plus, game-engine, gamedev, vulkan, rendering, game-development, graphics
stl, assets, gltf, opengl, computer-graphics, c-plus-plus, game-engine, gamedev, vulkan, rendering, game-development, graphics