FBX
Encyclopedia
FBX is technology and a file format (.fbx) owned and developed by Autodesk
. It is used to provide interoperability between digital content creation applications.
for Montreal
-based Kaydara's (company founded in 1993) Filmbox software. FiLMBOX was designed for users to capture motion data from motion capture
devices. Prior to 1996, FiLMBOX 1.0 used .FLM as its file format. This format only supported motion data, users' preferences and a list of devices used in the capturing of the motion data. This data was a serialized
version of the libraries (binary dump), containing read/write memory data. Because the data was written in this format, problems would eventually arise in supporting legacy files with upcoming FiLMBOX releases. Parallel to this issue, there was an immediate demand from the early-adopting users of FiLMBOX for Kaydara to implement a target character in a scene with the motion capture data, so as to enable the visualization of the data in a 3D view with display markers. In order to support this request, Kaydara had enough reasons to go ahead and change FiLMBOX' native file format.
To separate itself from the FLM file extension name, Kaydara decided upon "FBX" (an abbreviation for the FiLMBOX product name). FBX was therefore born in 1996, with the release of FiLMBOX 1.5. This new file format was an object-based
model, allowing for the storing of motion data along with 2D, 3D, audio, and video data. The support for other software packages started with SoftImage 3D, Alias|Wavefront PowerAnimator
, NewTek LightWave
, Kinetix 3D Studio MAX
and the Unity game engine.
Years passed, more releases were supported by the format and FiLMBOX was renamed to MotionBuilder, with its 4.0 release in 2002. Kaydara launched FBX for Apple's QuickTime
Viewer in 2003. Alias
announced its intention to acquire Kaydara on August 8, 2004, sealing the deal in September of the same year. A Software Development Kit
was developed in 2005 to ensure that everyone used the same object model, in turn allowing other software developers to provide plug-ins of their own. Alias was then acquired by Autodesk
on January 10, 2006.
There have been numerous optimizations made to the FBX object model since then, most notably in 2005 in regards to how the data is stored and in 2006 to allow for properties support. As the demands and imagination of 3D artists change over time, the FBX file format continues to evolve. The goal of the FBX technology is to constantly and significantly improve interoperability
between Autodesk products and other Digital content creation
(DCC) software packages.
The FBX file format is proprietary, however, the format description is exposed in the FBX Extensions SDK which provides source code for the FBX readers and writers.
Currently there are 2 FBX SDK bindings: one for C++ and Python supplied by Autodesk. Blender
includes a Python export script for FBX, written without using the FBX SDK and OpenEndedGroup's Field
includes a Java based library for loading and extracting interesting parts from a FBX file .
FBX SDK is designed with interactive desktop applications in mind, and does not have much functionality useful in server (web, virtual worlds, etc) applications. In particular, there is no support for data streaming - the whole scene has to be loaded together.
The current version of FBX SDK (2012.1) supports Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, along with the previous version 2011.3.1.
Autodesk
Autodesk, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that focuses on 3D design software for use in the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media and entertainment industries. The company was founded in 1982 by John Walker, a coauthor of the first versions of the company's...
. It is used to provide interoperability between digital content creation applications.
History
FBX originated as a replacement file formatFile format
A file format is a particular way that information is encoded for storage in a computer file.Since a disk drive, or indeed any computer storage, can store only bits, the computer must have some way of converting information to 0s and 1s and vice-versa. There are different kinds of formats for...
for Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
-based Kaydara's (company founded in 1993) Filmbox software. FiLMBOX was designed for users to capture motion data from motion capture
Motion capture
Motion capture, motion tracking, or mocap are terms used to describe the process of recording movement and translating that movement on to a digital model. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, and medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robotics...
devices. Prior to 1996, FiLMBOX 1.0 used .FLM as its file format. This format only supported motion data, users' preferences and a list of devices used in the capturing of the motion data. This data was a serialized
Serial communication
In telecommunication and computer science, serial communication is the process of sending data one bit at a time, sequentially, over a communication channel or computer bus. This is in contrast to parallel communication, where several bits are sent as a whole, on a link with several parallel channels...
version of the libraries (binary dump), containing read/write memory data. Because the data was written in this format, problems would eventually arise in supporting legacy files with upcoming FiLMBOX releases. Parallel to this issue, there was an immediate demand from the early-adopting users of FiLMBOX for Kaydara to implement a target character in a scene with the motion capture data, so as to enable the visualization of the data in a 3D view with display markers. In order to support this request, Kaydara had enough reasons to go ahead and change FiLMBOX' native file format.
To separate itself from the FLM file extension name, Kaydara decided upon "FBX" (an abbreviation for the FiLMBOX product name). FBX was therefore born in 1996, with the release of FiLMBOX 1.5. This new file format was an object-based
Object-based
In general, object-based indicates that something such as a theory, language, or model is based on the concept of object.In computer science, the term object-based has two different senses:...
model, allowing for the storing of motion data along with 2D, 3D, audio, and video data. The support for other software packages started with SoftImage 3D, Alias|Wavefront PowerAnimator
PowerAnimator
PowerAnimator and Animator, also referred to simply as "Alias", the precursor to what is now Maya and StudioTools, was a highly-integrated industrial 3D modeling, animation, and visual effects suite. It has had a long track record, starting with Terminator 2: Judgment Day in 1991 and ending in Star...
, NewTek LightWave
LightWave
LightWave 3D is a high end computer graphics program developed by NewTek. The latest release of LightWave runs on Windows and Mac OS X.- Overview:...
, Kinetix 3D Studio MAX
3D Studio Max
Autodesk 3ds Max, formerly 3D Studio MAX, is for making 3D animations. It was developed and produced by Autodesk Media and Entertainment. It has modeling capabilities, a flexible plugin architecture and can be used on the Microsoft Windows platform. It's frequently used by video game developers, TV...
and the Unity game engine.
Years passed, more releases were supported by the format and FiLMBOX was renamed to MotionBuilder, with its 4.0 release in 2002. Kaydara launched FBX for Apple's QuickTime
QuickTime
QuickTime is an extensible proprietary multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. The classic version of QuickTime is available for Windows XP and later, as well as Mac OS X Leopard and...
Viewer in 2003. Alias
Alias Systems Corporation
Alias Systems Corporation , headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was a software company that produced high-end 3D graphics software. The company was formed in 1995 when Silicon Graphics bought Alias Research, which was founded in 1983, and Wavefront Technologies, founded in 1984, then merged...
announced its intention to acquire Kaydara on August 8, 2004, sealing the deal in September of the same year. A Software Development Kit
Software development kit
A software development kit is typically a set of software development tools that allows for the creation of applications for a certain software package, software framework, hardware platform, computer system, video game console, operating system, or similar platform.It may be something as simple...
was developed in 2005 to ensure that everyone used the same object model, in turn allowing other software developers to provide plug-ins of their own. Alias was then acquired by Autodesk
Autodesk
Autodesk, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that focuses on 3D design software for use in the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media and entertainment industries. The company was founded in 1982 by John Walker, a coauthor of the first versions of the company's...
on January 10, 2006.
There have been numerous optimizations made to the FBX object model since then, most notably in 2005 in regards to how the data is stored and in 2006 to allow for properties support. As the demands and imagination of 3D artists change over time, the FBX file format continues to evolve. The goal of the FBX technology is to constantly and significantly improve interoperability
Interoperability
Interoperability is a property referring to the ability of diverse systems and organizations to work together . The term is often used in a technical systems engineering sense, or alternatively in a broad sense, taking into account social, political, and organizational factors that impact system to...
between Autodesk products and other Digital content creation
Digital content creation
Digital Content Creation is a modern term denoting the creation and modification of digital content, such as animation, audio, graphics, images and video, as part of the production process before presentation in its final medium. This large field encompasses many segments such as 3D graphics,...
(DCC) software packages.
Limitations
Autodesk provides a C++ FBX SDK that can read, write, and convert to/from FBX files.The FBX file format is proprietary, however, the format description is exposed in the FBX Extensions SDK which provides source code for the FBX readers and writers.
Currently there are 2 FBX SDK bindings: one for C++ and Python supplied by Autodesk. Blender
Blender (software)
Blender is a free and open-source 3D computer graphics software product used for creating animated films, visual effects, interactive 3D applications or video games. The current release version is 2.60, and was released on October 19, 2011...
includes a Python export script for FBX, written without using the FBX SDK and OpenEndedGroup's Field
The OpenEnded Group
The OpenEnded Group is a digital art collective comprising Marc Downie, Shelley Eshkar, and Paul Kaiser. They are known for their advances in dance technology , non-photorealistic rendering, and the use of artificial intelligence in art.In dance, the OpenEnded Group has collaborated with prominent...
includes a Java based library for loading and extracting interesting parts from a FBX file .
FBX SDK is designed with interactive desktop applications in mind, and does not have much functionality useful in server (web, virtual worlds, etc) applications. In particular, there is no support for data streaming - the whole scene has to be loaded together.
The current version of FBX SDK (2012.1) supports Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, along with the previous version 2011.3.1.