Importing Alembic Files

• File menu > Import > Select File to Import dialog > Files of Type: Alembic (*.ABC)

When you import an Alembic file, you automatically import data for:

• Node Transform
• Node Visibility
• Shape Objects
  • Nurbs
  • Beziers
  • Lines
• Mesh/Polygons
  • Faces
  • Position Channel
  • Normals
  • UV Channel
  • Velocity
  • Edge Vertex SubDiv Weights
  • OSD support
  Note: Any Extra Mesh Channels are added into 3ds Max map channels.
• Cameras
  • DOF FStop
  • Near/Far : Clip Dist
  • FOV

Note: Any node not supported is added as a dummy object.

There are also several options for additional data you can import should you wish.

Note: 3ds Max does not import particle systems from Alembic files.

Interface

Inspect Alembic File

Opens the Inspect dialog, letting you see what is inside the file before it is imported.

Tip: Use the search bar to quickly filter and find content.

Import group

Coordinate System

Imports Alembic geometry in a Y-up or Z-up coordinate system.

Import to Scene Root

Imports objects to the scene's root level as children of the scene. Otherwise, objects import as children of an Alembic container object named Alembic. Default=off.

Remove Shape Suffix

Removes the "shape" suffix(es).

Animation group

Fit Time Range

Changes the active time range to match the animation in the file. Default=on.

Note: If the file is not an animation, the active time range does not change.

Set Current Time to Start Frame

Sets the scene's current time to the imported animation's start time.

Import Data group

UVs

Applies the UVs to the geometry in the file. The faceset and extra channel names are checked, and if the names end with a number, the number will be used as Material ID for the UV channel number. For example: if the face group name is group_7, the faces will have Material ID 7 on import.

Note: If multiple UV channels are in the file via other channels, they will be imported regardless.

Normals

Applies the normals to the geometry in the file. When off, face normals are not assigned as being faceted.

Vertex Colors

Applies the vertex colors to the geometry in the file.

Extra Channels

Imports all other channel data.

Velocity

Imports the per vertex/particle velocity as a velocity channel if the Alembic file has standard velocity.

Note: Each renderer must be configured to use this channel properly in order to achieve the desired effects.

Material IDs

Imports the Material IDs stored as Alembic face sets.

Visibility

Imports visibility data.

Object Properties

Applies the object properties of the geometry.

Custom Attributes

Applies custom attributes to the nodes.

Note: Only basic types such as strings, integers, and floats are supported. Array data is ignored.

Note: Alembic format specification does not include any standard for most of this data.