Mesh Sequence Cache Modifier

The Mesh Sequence Cache modifier loads data from Alembic files. It supports static meshes, but is mostly used to load animated meshes. Despite its name, this modifier also supports curves. It also handles file sequences, as well as meshes and curves with varying topology (like the result of fluid simulations).

When importing an Alembic file, Mesh Sequence Cache modifiers are automatically added to time-varying meshes. For time-varying object transforms (so animation of rotation, location, or scale), the Transform Cache Constraint is used.

Non-Alembic files, like MDD and PC2 files, can be loaded using the Mesh Cache modifier.

Options

Cache File

Data-block menu to select the Alembic file.

File Path

Path to Alembic file.

Sequence

Whether or not the cache is separated in a series of files.

Override Frame

Whether to use a custom frame for looking up data in the cache file, instead of using the current scene frame.

The Frame value is the time to use for looking up the data in the cache file, or to determine which to use in a file sequence.

Frame Offset

Subtracted from the current frame to use for looking up the data in the cache file, or to determine which file to use in a file sequence.

Velocity Attribute

The name of the Alembic attribute used for generating motion blur data; by default, this is .velocities which is standard for most Alembic files.

Velocity Unit

Defines how the velocity vectors are interpreted with regard to time.

Frame

The velocity unit was encoded in frames and does not need to be scale by scene FPS.

Second

The velocity unit was encoded in seconds and needs to be scaled by the scene FPS (1 / FPS).

Object Path

The path to the Alembic object inside the archive.

Read Data

Type of data to read for a mesh object, respectively: vertices, polygons, UV maps and Vertex Color layers.

Vertices, Faces, UV, Color

Velocity Scale

Multiplier used to control the magnitude of the velocity vector for time effects such as motion blur.