Exploring Multiple Uv Sets In Substance Painter

As of 2016, Substance Painter does not support multiple UV sets. However, there are some ways to work around this limitation. One method is to use the Blast Node to remove UV sets for other material groups and geometry groups. Another approach is to separate objects according to UV sets and assign them individual materials with corresponding names. Additionally, it is important to ensure that UVs remain within the 0-1 space for all parts during import, especially when dealing with UDIMs. While these techniques may help, it is worth noting that the official support for multiple UV sets in Substance Painter is yet to be released.

Substance Painter's multiple UV sets limitations

Substance Painter has some limitations when it comes to working with multiple UV sets. One of the main limitations is that Substance Painter does not inherently support multiple UV sets. This means that users cannot have UVs outside of the 0 to 1 UV space, unless they are using UDIMS. This limitation can be frustrating for artists who want to work with multiple UV sets for more complex projects.

To work around this limitation, some users suggest keeping the UVs inside the 0 to 1 UV space for all parts and importing them as a single material. This allows Substance Painter to recognize the different parts based on UV island positions. Additionally, it is recommended to use different materials or multiple material channels for objects with more than one material. This can be achieved by using the Blast Node to remove UV sets and geometry groups for each material group and then merging them into one.

Another limitation arises when painting across multiple UV maps. Currently, Substance Painter only allows painting on one UV map at a time, which can be inconvenient when trying to create a seamless texture across multiple UV tiles. To overcome this, it is suggested to combine all the UV maps into a single UV channel, mapped to a chosen coordinate grid. While this workaround exists, it is not a native feature of Substance Painter, and users have expressed hopes for future updates to address this issue.

The limitations of Substance Painter's handling of multiple UV sets can create challenges for artists, especially those working in VFX and film industries. While workarounds exist, they can be time-consuming and convoluted. It is hoped that future updates to the software will provide a more seamless and efficient workflow for artists working with multiple UV sets.

Preparing UVs for Substance Painter

When preparing UVs for Substance Painter, it's important to note that the software does not support multiple UV sets. This means that you will need to arrange your UVs into a single UV tile. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to prepare your UVs for Substance Painter:

Firstly, it is recommended to create your UVs on your low poly mesh as late as possible, right after both your low and high poly meshes are finished and before baking and texturing. This will prevent double work. When baking, you will only need UVs on your low poly mesh, as you will be baking the high data onto it.

If you are using pre-made geometry or models with pre-UV wrapping, you may encounter issues with overlapping UV maps. To resolve this, you can use the Blast Node to remove UV sets for other material groups and geometry groups. This will ensure that each UV set fits within a single 0-1 UV tile.

Next, use UV Layout to arrange each of the individual UV sets into a single UV 0-1 tile. This process can be time-consuming, but it is necessary to ensure that Substance Painter can compute and bake proper AO, Normal, and Curvature maps.

Finally, merge the branches back into one and add a Material node. This will allow you to assign different materials to each UV set, enabling you to paint them separately in Substance Painter.

Additionally, Substance Painter offers an Auto UVs feature that can be useful when working with tight deadlines or for achieving more detailed results. However, keep in mind that auto-unwrapping may require adjustments to projection modes or exporting with Include UVs turned on to ensure optimal results.

Using UDIMs with Substance Painter

Substance Painter does not support multiple UV sets. However, it does support UDIMs, which allow artists to surpass the texture set and resolution barrier. To use UDIMs in Substance Painter, there are a few methods that can be employed.

One method is to use the Blast Node to eliminate UV sets for other material groups and geometry groups for each material group. Then, use UV Layout to arrange each of the individual UV sets into a single UV 0-1 Tile. Finally, merge the branches, add a Material node, and assign different materials so that Substance Painter can compute and bake proper maps.

Another method is to separate the objects according to your UV sets and assign them individual materials, naming them according to your UV sets. For example, if you have a model with multiple UV tiles, you can import it into Substance Painter, and it will read the materials as different objects.

Additionally, when dealing with pre-made geometry, the UV maps may overlap and extend beyond the typical UV tile. In this case, you can delete the existing UV Attribute and use tools like LABS AutoUV's to generate a new UV Map that is correctly laid out on a single UV Tile before exporting it to Substance Painter.

It is important to note that when using UDIMs, you should keep the UVs inside 0,1 for all parts and import it as a single material. The UV island positions will then recognize the model into its separate parts.

Using multiple UV maps in a single mesh

It is possible to create multiple UV maps in a single mesh in Substance Painter. However, it is important to note that all UVs must be contained within the 0-1 UV space. This can be achieved by arranging each of the individual UV sets into a single 0-1 UV tile.

To create multiple UV maps in a single mesh, you can follow these general steps:

• Separate the objects according to your desired UV sets.
• Assign each object a unique material and name them accordingly. For example, you can have separate materials for "Weapons" and "Body" in a game engine.
• Use the Blast Node to remove UV sets and geometry groups for each material group.
• Re-compute the normals to ensure consistency.
• Utilize UV Layout to organize each individual UV set into a single 0-1 UV tile.
• Merge the branches back into one and add a Material node, allowing you to assign different materials to each UV set.

By following these steps, you can create multiple UV maps within a single mesh in Substance Painter. This provides the flexibility to target different textures to specific UV sets, enhancing the overall texturing process.

It is worth mentioning that while Substance Painter is continuously evolving, some users have reported challenges with importing certain file formats, such as FBX, and managing multiple UV maps. It is recommended to refer to the latest documentation and community forums for updated information on supported features and workflows.

Using multiple UV sets in Blender

Substance Painter does not support multiple UV sets. However, as long as each object has a separate material, they can be painted separately. This can be achieved by separating the objects according to their UV sets, assigning them individual materials, and naming them according to the UV sets.

To prepare a model with multiple UV sets for Substance Painter, the following steps can be taken:

• Use the Blast Node to remove UV sets for the other material groups, as well as geometry groups for each material group.
• Use UV Layout to arrange each of the individual UV sets into a single UV 0-1 Tile.
• Merge the branches back into one, add a Material node, and assign different materials so that Substance Painter will recognize them.

Additionally, when importing a model with multiple UV sets into Substance Painter, it is important to keep the UVs inside 0,1 for all parts and not to use UDIMs. If UDIMs are required, the model should be imported as a single material, and the UV island positions will recognize it into multiple parts.

It is worth noting that in Blender, multiple UV sets can be used for different objects, but when using multiple UV maps within a single object, issues may arise.

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