SDF Modeler
A downloadable tool for Windows and Linux
SDF Modeler is an experimental 3D modeling tool, offering a non-destructive, procedural workflow in a simple and easy-to-use graphical interface.
Features
- Non-Destructive Workflow: Flexible 3D modeling using Signed Distance Fields.
- Scene Editor: Create multiple independent layers and combine shapes by applying Boolean operations, transformations and blending in real-time.
- Boolean Operations: Add, subtract, intersect and paint shapes.
- Boolean Subgroups: Organize and manage complex Boolean hierarchies.
- Shape Primitives: Basic shapes include spheres, cubes, Bezier curves, polygons and prisms.
- Shape Modifiers: Modifiers for beveling, rounding and more to create cylinders, stars, cones and other complex shapes.
- Splines: Define and manipulate smooth curves for advanced shape modeling.
- Repetition: Linear, radial and smooth symmetry tools.
- Path-Traced Renderer: Realistic light interaction and support for transparent, metallic and emissive materials.
- Export: Export models as .ply files or render high-quality path-traced .png images.
System Requirements
- OS: Windows 10, Linux
- GPU: Minimum 2GB VRAM and OpenGL 4.5 support
Download
Install instructions
Unzip the archive and run the SDFModeler executable. You can find common shortcuts in the readme.txt file.
Development log
Comments
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Hi Sacha. An idea (as a fellow Macbook m1 developer) could be to port the entire app to WebAssembly/WebGPU (some unity games have done this on itch.io)
Then anyone with a web browser can use the tool and share their creations: limitless possibilities
Limitless until you have an internet connection... limitless until you allow others to benefit your hard works your art to give your author rights to these people for their own profits ....š
Until you have to pay for your own work. But that's just my own thinking about what if simply downloading an app could not be possible anymore one day...some major software no more available. I dont want a future like this... and Im not the only one I hope!;
The only advantage imho (if it keeps the ability to be downloaded) is to be accessible to different platforms.
Other than that I doubt...
Hi Sacha,
Testing latest 0.51 version Im again pleased to use the latest features and noticed that's rejoining my modeling needs to make this tool uncredibly fast and extremely fun to use. The reference image import, the spline, circular and rectangular repeats etc...all of this is "magic" and I have a lot of fun using all of it. I heard about changing the mirroring plane orientation in the future. Or maybe choosing one of the regular XY,XZ,YZ . This could be cool, even if the actual tools already allow this in some way. Is that in your plans ?
What if posting renders in a gallery for those wanting to show what is possible to make in SDF Modeler now, could that be possible ?
Again Sacha, thanks for your hard works!!! Have a good day take care.
Thanks Dan, Iāve actually already thought about adding an option to pick the mirroring axis ā itāll probably make its way in at some point. This also would add more flexibility to mirror on a single layer. Best regards
Wow, nice! You mean, picking the mirroring plane and moving it around ? That's a big idea !
Great ! š¤©
So cool ... it would probably be ... if I could only run it on my M1 Mac ;( Any chance of having a Mac-Version? Even windows under parallels has only OpenGl 4.1 so no chance this way.
Hi, Iāll try to get my hands on a Mac in the near future and look into what kind of effort it is to port it. You're definitely not the first one to ask about this :D
Yeah, I think so too ;) I wish you success ( of course :)) just make sure to get a Mac with the Silicon Chips. If you need help, the only ting I successfully did compiling wise is compiling Godot. That was an easy procedure though.
Okay so I had trouble running this on Debian. Some of the lib files are not exported as links. Im not sure how you can create installation work but I had to do following commands to get it work:
cd /lib
rm -f libOpenImageDenoise.so libOpenImageDenoise.so.1
ln -sf libOpenImageDenoise.so.1.4.3 libOpenImageDenoise.so
ln -sf libOpenImageDenoise.so.1.4.3 libOpenImageDenoise.so1
rm -f libtbb.so libtbb.so.12
ln -sf libtbb.so.12.5 libtbb.so
ln -sf libtbb.so.12.5 libtbb.so.12
This navigates to the lib folder, removes broken files and creates new links.
Interesting! Iām not creating the links myself; they just come as part of Intelās Open Image Denoise library. I also have a laptop with a recent Debian version for testing and havenāt run into this issue so far. But Iām still learning how to properly deploy software on Linux, so have mercy on me! :P Iāll try to look into it. Thank you for letting me know.
Best regards,
Sascha
If you have some time to spare, you could try replacing the library with the one from their GitHub page and let me know if the issue still persists.
When I download current OpenImage release v2.3.2 I get this error:
./SDFModeler: error while loading shared libraries: libOpenImageDenoise.so.1: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory
If I create symlink "libOpenImageDenoise.so.1" to latest library "libOpenImageDenoise.so.2.3.2" I get this error:
./SDFModeler: symbol lookup error: ./SDFModeler: undefined symbol: oidnSetFilter1b
Its likely latest library is not compatible with application
Version v1.4.3 works fine. There is no need to remake symlinks they work when extracted.
Yes, that is expectedāthe OIDN interface changed after version 1.4.3 and the library even became more bloated with all the GPU support. I havenāt been able to reproduce the issue so far, but I might try reuploading the release to see if that helps. Thanks for trying it out!
Fun and interesting little modeler, great work! Is there any chance you could open source this in the future? I'd love to have a good FOSS alternative to MagicaCSG and extend the functionality. There aren't many serious SDF modelers out there unfortunately.
Thanks! Glad you like it :) Open-sourcing is the most likely scenario at some point in the future.
This is ABSOLUTELY HUGE ! SDF Modeler is becoming a very serious app with everything to get professional results. Now I understand why you choose to arrange things inside it in a logical way before adding a ton of features. This keeps it simple to use and intuitive in the same time. In comparison to paid (and often very expensive )alternatives, for me it's so nice.Thanks a lot for allowing me to get this for free. I'm trying to share to friends as much as I can.
Wishing you the best.
Yours sincerely. Dan.
Hi Dan,
Thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate your support. Iāll try my best to make it as cool and fun to use as possible, there is still plenty to do, but messages like yours are super motivating.
Wishing you all the best as well!
Cheers, Sascha
I've been on Itch ever since I first joined the platform but I don't usually comment on things here.
So far this seems to be pretty good! Feels like I'm right at home as for simple SDF modeling since I've been using MagicaCSG for quite some time in the past before the dev scrapped its fully-functional free license (which left me wondering why there hasn't been any updates past 0.0.2).
I know you might've already had this planned, but would you consider being able to insert reference images into the viewport? I've seen Blender, Plasticity, and MagicaCSG have this feature and I'm wondering if this would also be possibleāobviously not now.
Hi,
Thank you for your feedback! Iām glad youāre enjoying the software. The ability to insert reference images into the viewport is indeed on my to-do list for a while. Currently, Iām focusing mostly on the big core features, but I plan to implement this functionality down the line, I promise. :)
Best regards,
Sascha
Hi Sasha.
I tested a lot all the new features and thats looking great ! Im impressed by the infinite potential modeling abilities it gives for the user. I thought about some little toggles that could be very useful to add to get even more intuitive interaction : a reset 0 to position, a reset 1 to scale ( a sketch) , an ungroup button in some way ... Is it in your plans at some time ?
I must say the linear/ rectangular array is very useful and saves me a lot of time, like all the features you introduced from the beginning. Thanks again for all your hard works!
Bye. Have a nice day!
Dan
Hi Dan,
Thank you for the kind words! Iām really glad youāre enjoying the new features. The next update will include radial repetition as well as linear repetition in all three dimensions.
For now, my main focus is on the bigger core features, but Iāll continue to add smaller quality-of-life improvements along the way as well.
Best regards
WOW that's great !!! Super nice !
A big + Thanks..š
New update looks really good! Feels like this can turn into something great. Are there plans to add cylinders which can be tapered into cones? Also, in your cornell box screenshot it seems as if you can set roughness and ior on materials, but I haven't found that setting (similarly, metalness).
Thanks for the kind words! Itās still pretty early, but Iām working on making everything more solid as I progress toward 1.0. You can already modify a cylinder by setting the cubeās bevel factor to 100% and adjusting the cone percentage. Material attributes like metalness, roughness and IOR can be controlled on the layer level, and youāll see the results in the render preview.
OMG, I can't believe I glossed over the cone slider (guess I didn't expect it there, or I was looking too hard for "taper"). Similarly, also did not realize that the inspector changed contents when I selected a layer, which is great! Now, just to double check, I see that the blending of strokes can be set to chamfer, but can the round of a stroke also be set to chamfer somehow (although I'm getting a feeling of deja vu from a previous comment writing this)...
Thanks for your comment! You're correct that it's currently not possible to bevel all edges directly, for example, on a cube. However, you might achieve a similar effect by using a negative shape with a chamfer blend. Let me know if that works for your use case!
Version 0.4 is back! Please note that using old 0.4 files is not recommended, as they might not work. Have fun!
Sorry, I had to revert to v0.3.3 for now. Iāll re-upload v0.4 once a few issues are resolved.
Hi Sacha again. Well, I downloaded 0.4 last sunday, before you retired from your site. And I must admit I couldnt find major issues testing it, at my own risk of course...š And.. the only issue I found was only the position of new strokes after moving a layer was not zeroed. And thats it !
Otherwise all seems rock-solid. At this point, everything is WOW promising, indeed !!
A great LIKE !
Hi Dan, there were some issues with group transformations. Iāll be re-uploading a new version tomorrow, but my changes are partially incompatible with the earlier version. Thatās mainly why I took it downāchildren of grouped strokes will likely end up misplaced. Cheers, Sascha
Totally agree. Cant wait to test it. At least I could explore the new features around before someone else ! š¤£
If you solved this I can only imagine the complexity to tackle this in such a short time.
Bravo ! Have a nice weekend.
Yours sincerely.
For sure i must admit this looks simple to a noob like me, but surely a challenge to code this type of thing, but could this be implemented, in the future ?
Thanks a lot, as I said earlier, i can not put my hands out of it.
Have a good day. Dan
Hi Dan,
Thanks for reaching out and sharing your thoughts. Itās great to hear that SDF Modeler reminded you of Organica.
The extrapolate feature you described sounds like it could be a really nice addition for creating more complex shapes. Right now, Iām focused on finalizing version 0.4, which will include a good set of new features and improvements, but Iāve also been considering adding something in the future that could create shapes along a curve, which sounds similar to what youāre describing.
Thanks again for the suggestion and for your interest in the tool.
Best regards
Sascha
Wow, first im glad to know you heard about Organica, which was a very in advance tool over its time, because it had animation features, and triangulations with decimations, faces colors even ! And all this in 1997 ! But sadly disapeared not long after this. I can now discover a PC version, downloaded and used it recently to test these and... it works !
Second, im so happy you are thinking of making those features or abilities inside SDF modeler future !
Third, i couldnt think anyone appreciate it as a suggestion, and YOU did !
So, man, greatly appreciate all of this !! good continuation ....
hi Sascha!
a great new tool!the simple streightforward UI is very elegant! will there be a feature like nested object boolean operation(its like layer boolean with other layer in your software context,also they can have instance copy of the layer) like blender plugin ConjureSDF?It will be great in practical usage,especially in hard surface design.also some basic like array ,symmetry will be really helpful.
as I know every sdf tool cant dill with smooth surface like cars nowadays,the curve stroke is a really intersting and potencial one,if the curve can be extrude into a surface and have thickness option it will be a game changer(like zbrush curve cut tool,curve will cut off object parts aside the curve)or maybe curve can do loft surface and surface can extrude,curve can add points will be also very sweet feature.
SDF tool like conjureSDF different objs the faces are at the same position but bevel effect are not.So does your tool,is there a solution?
more brush strokes will be great like elongated cone,capsule ,curve closed polygon to extrude and so on.when number of strokes is too big ,its hard to select specific stroke
anyway impressive software! Very fun to use! even a raytrace renderļ¼ļ¼cant believe its 34mb software..what a talent developerļ¼
Hi, thanks for the kind words and for your feedback!
For version 0.4, Iām planning to add Boolean subgroups as the main new feature, which will allow for more flexible object operations.
In the next smaller update, Iāll be introducing smooth blending for mirrored strokes. Iām also working on making the current BĆ©zier curve more robust and giving users more control over the curveās points.
Arrays are definitely on the way as well, as Iāve received a lot of requests for them.
A more powerful curve tool is something I plan to tackle in the future, once the core feature set is more developed.
Best regards!
that is great!really looking forward to it,also hotkey workflow and right click menu will be more profesional
Hi, Sacha..
I tried 0.3.2 version. This time transparent and refractive surfaces, ply export with colors, toggle perspective/ortho view... SDF Modeler gets better and better everyday ! Thanks again for your hard work. š
(Perhaps linear or circular arrays, next ? Are they difficult to implement ? )
Good job man.
Hi, glad you like it! I plan to focus on adding more basic features first. Next, Iāll be reworking the object structure, adding boolean subgroups, and enabling group and layer transformations. This will open up a lot more possibilities. Best regards.
Ok, for now I personaly found very few limitations in the features themselves. But if you say that some new reorganizations of the 3d scene must be done first, I trust you...perhaps on intersection of sketches or groups among sketches or layers, why not ? If the interface does not get too crazy as I saw elsewhere. I wont tell whereš.
In an artist point of view the story is not how the tool is complex Imo, but how efficient you get. And SDF modeler is relatively complete already for most of my workflow, I think...
But why not more? Okš
Have a good day.
When working with the software, there are two things I really miss right now. First, Iād like to be able to rearrange the mirroring plane to move subparts away from the origināthis is something layer/subgroup transformations would allow. Second, especially with the newly added intersection operation, I really miss being able to do a cutout of the intersected shape with another additive shape underneath. Hope that makes sense. Cheers!
PS: My primary design goal for this software is to make it easy to use and fun, so no worries!
Yes, totally agree. I've tested the latest 0.33 and I completely understand why now. The new bevel/ rounded is again a very welcome feature ! I saw in the comments you were working on it, and you made that so fast. A great thanks !
I tried the Linux version, but I run a Gnome Wayland desktop with 200% scaling, and I get a window largely black with the app contents in the bottom left corner (cursor input still seems to be relative to the actual window size, though).
Hi, thanks for your feedback. I'll look into the issue.
Hi again, you might want to check out the 0.3 release. The issue "should" be fixed. Best regards!
Thank you, I had a chance to test it again and it works! If you'd like, some quick feedback:
Hi, thanks for the feedback! I plan to add more blending modes, including a chamfer blend, in the future. Iāll also add tool-tips to make the parameters easier to understand. The higher the bevel percentage, the more the shape transforms into a cylinder; the higher the round percentage, the more it becomes a sphere or capsule. Hopefully, that helps clarify things. Best regards!
Nice project!
I added your SDF Modeler to my SDF thread over at Blender Artists, and posted about it on Mastodon.
Would a macOS and/or iOS version be an option? I'd gladly donate for that.
Thanks in advance for considering it.
Thank you for the boost in visibility! I really appreciate your support. I'd love to work on macOS/iOS versions in the future, but unfortunately, I currently don't have the necessary hardware to work on those ports :)
Thanks for your reply! Too bad a macOS or iOS version isn't possible at the moment. I'd love to see a solid SDF 3D editor for one or both operating systems.
Keep up the good work!
@metinseven, hi, I saw your blender artist thread about SDF apps, and you were searching for an app working on Mac...I found on itch.io something called Trash.bash . I can't say if it's in an really active state and for sure it's not as much as SDF Modeler is, but it exists, right?
What do you think?
Thanks for letting me know, appreciated. š I'll check it out.
Tried it, but I get a message that the app is damaged. It looks very basic anyway, so I'll wait for SDF Modeler to become available for macOS. šš
Im glad you heard about SDF modeler, because I posted a comment on your channel as I heard you were searching for something like this. Hope this helps.
š SDF Modeler is definitely a promising tool, but I will probably return to macOS in the near future, so until a macOS or iOS version is announced I'm afraid I'll personally have to look for an other SDF editor. But I will surely keep an eye on SDF Modeler. š
Hello, thanks for your software. I have a question why SDFModeler does not use all the RAM?
Thank you for reaching out and for your interest in the software! I designed SDFModeler with a minimum spec target of 2GB of VRAM to ensure it can run on a wide range of machines. Currently, there's no way to scale the internal resources significantly for higher-end systems.
If your question is about the memory usage statistic displayed at the bottom left of the screen, this number shows how much memory the SDF data uses within the 3D texture atlas. The purpose of this feature is to help users understand how much memory their creations are consuming. Additionally, the application dynamically adjusts the resolution of layers if the texture atlas nears full capacity. If you create many layers at maximum resolution, they may be down-scaled, and the memory usage statistic will explain when and why this happens.
I hope this clarifies things! If you have any further questions, feel free to ask.
Thank you, you helped me.
Hi. I'm interested in this amazing piece of software. I'm asking you if a 3d navigation like trackball could be implemented in the future versions. Cause im in a trouble with WASD. Wich for me is not intuitive at all. So please please...
Thanks a lot for your interest.
Hi, thanks for your feedback. My plan is to add different navigation modes (e.g. orbit, first-person, etc) and in addition there will be a UI element to change between different camera directions. I also want to add the option to assign custom key bindings. Hopefully that will answer your question :)
Wow nice ! Can't wait for it ! Glad to see it s in your plans. š this is just what I needed . Thanks a lot. Good continuation man.
Wow, how fast you answered! I just came back from holidays and you done it !
Ill probably make a video on my youtube channel if you allow me to do so, because i put my hands on it and i cant give up š! Gooood work !!!
Hi, sure go ahead. Glad you like it :)
Done, guy !
You ll find there
Hope this help people to find some free alternatives to paid software (sometimes very expensive ones) or speed their workflows creating fun shapes quickly without having to struggle with " hard surface modeling " as they call it.Ah cool. Thanks for your little introduction video. I really appreciate it :)