Screen flash when adding VolumetricLightScatteringPostProcess (and CPU load)

[qqdarren]

I'm adding a VolumetricLightScatteringPostProcess on mouse click, and there is a noticeable screen flash when I do this. It is the screen going all black for one frame.

 

I am actually adding two of them (one each to two different meshes), and the flash is longer (at least twice as long). (So I tried adding some more, and it gets longer and longer - but the FPS is plummeting by this point, so harder to be objective.)

 

Previously I was actually adding them at app initialization, with decay set to 0, then just setting decay when they were needed. But I realized they still use CPU in that case, so I am now not creating the object until it is needed.

 

BTW, the CPU load is quite significant: I'm getting 45 to 55fps before, then with one VolumetricLightScatteringPostProcess added it drops to 30-35fps, and with two of them it drops to 18-22fps.  (i.e. 50 -> 33 -> 20)  (Not a problem as they only run for a few seconds; but it is a problem if they run all the time.)

 

So, my first question is if the screen flash is a bug that can be fixed, or just tough?

 

And, if tough, is there a way to pre-create the objects (so I can have the screen flash when it does not matter), but still not have them use any CPU until I am ready?

P.S. I guess I mean GPU, not CPU, as according to 'top' the load average does not change, nor do the CPU% shown by Firefox or Xorg. But when I add the effect the FPS goes down and the CPU core temperatures go up!! I'm developing on a nothing-special notebook, i7-4702MQ with integrated Intel HD Graphics 4600.

 

 

 

[Wingnut]

Hi Q!  Hey, how does this demo look/act for you?   http://www.babylonjs-playground.com/#1BAPRM#18

Click on those mesh, if you please. The VLS rays should project from the bullet holes.

 

I had 20 VLS bullet hole beams clicked onto the mesh, and still at 59 fps.

 

But, all the VLS/godrays in the above demo... are instances of a "papa" godray-diator, which is located way out in the country.  (pan camera a bit... you'll see tiny dot flashes from papa godray). 

 

You might not be using instances, so your mileage may vary.

 

Is it possible for you to create a playground scene that shows the issue, Q?  thx.

[qqdarren]

The difference is I don't create the godrays until the first click. I've hacked your demo, and I can see the flash on the first click:

    http://www.babylonjs-playground.com/#1BAPRM#27

 

I added a wireframe grid to make it easier to see, though it is literally just one frame. Also because the background gets lighter, it is hard to spot.

BTW, I get 35-50fps on your demo (http://www.babylonjs-playground.com/#1BAPRM#18) in Firefox. It does not change however bullet holes I shoot in the crate. But if I change so the godrays are not created then I get 60fps, and then it drops to the 35-50fps rate after the first click.  Conclusion: the god rays are what are taking the time.

Under Chromium I get 60fps either way. (My own code also has notably better FPS under Chromium...)  Conclusion: Chrome is quicker than Firefox for WebGL stuff!

[Wingnut]

hunh, interesting.  *scratch scratch*  Thanks for showing me/us that, Q.

[julien-moreau]

Hi qqdarren !

For your questions :

 

"So, my first question is if the screen flash is a bug that can be fixed, or just tough?"

I can't reproduce the bug and I can't see the bug in the demo provided in this topic

 

And, if tough, is there a way to pre-create the objects (so I can have the screen flash when it does not matter), but still not have them use any CPU until I am ready ?

The method should be to unattach the post-process from the camera. Then, it'll save performances.

The post-process is CPU and GPU computed. When the post-process is created, an internal pass is rendered every frame into a render target texture. Also, if the post-process is attached to a camera, the GPU will execute the post-process on every pixel, even if decay = 0.0;.

[qqdarren]

Thanks for the idea. I tried passing camera as null, to set it later, but instantly get a JavaScript error This line:

 

https://github.com/BabylonJS/Babylon.js/blob/d7d3c34b15166bc2198c988e49896b08283826ef/Babylon/PostProcess/babylon.volumetricLightScatteringPostProcess.js#L52

 

I then tried creating the object, then setting camera to null:

godrays = new BABYLON.VolumetricLightScatteringPostProcess('godrays',1, camera, Q, 50, BABYLON.Texture.BILINEAR_SAMPLINGMODE, engine, true);godrays.camera = null;

But that seems to have no effect, as the objects are still glowing.

 

...a bit more searching, and I suspect you are telling me to use one of the functions described here? https://github.com/BabylonJS/Babylon.js/wiki/How-to-use-PostProcessRenderPipeline   However I don't explicitly have a PostProcessRenderPipelineManager: do I need to create one, or is one already existing behind the scenes?

[julien-moreau]

I think "detachPostProcess" and "attachPostProcess" are better : http://doc.babylonjs.com/page.php?p=24457

By passing the "godrays" reference to the functions

[julien-moreau]

Oh, and I'll fix the constructor to enable this post-process for rendering pipelines. This is an error from me 

[qqdarren]

Thanks, Luaacro - camera.detachPostProcess() and camera.attachPostProcess() did work. But they cause the camera to give a nasty jerk; I might be out of time for a few days, but I will try to set up a playground minimal example.

[julien-moreau]

Fixed, you can now use the post-process in a rendering pipeline.

If "camera" is undefined or null, you must provide the "scene" reference into the constructor