HdTemplate

2025-01-01 | Solo Project

A simple Hydra Delegate raytracer written for UsdView and Houdini Solaris.

Overview

In order to understand how USD is making moves in the world of software development I decided to experiment with making a Hydra Delegate raytracer. The delegate works in multiple DCCs and the Github repository can be found at https://github.com/cjhosken/hdTemplateRenderer.

UsdView

The delegate was originally built for UsdView in C++. Using a BVH structure and a hard-coded distant light, the USD Kitchen Scene could be rendered.

The render shown below is the HdTemplateRenderer after ~ 10 minutes. The basic sphere scene was rendered in ~ 30 seconds.

A render of the USD Kitchen Scene in Usdview using HdTemplateRenderer after ~ 10 minutes.

Houdini

Using the Houdini USD build, the delegate was expanded for use in Houdini Solaris. The delegate has 3 AOVs, Beauty, Normal, Depth.

Written Jan 1, 2025 by Christopher Hosken