K1T-K4T Adobe Substance 3D - Robot Challenge

The final render! Scroll down to the bottom and look at my creative process!

Update 6 - 24/11/2022

Turntable Render of the final lighting and model :)

Stage Seven - Lighting and Rendering 

For lighting and rendering the model, I imported the textures from substance painter into Maya and used multiple area lights to give a cyberpunk aesthetic. Using guidance from the "Disney style lighting tutorial" by Arvid Schneider, I chose to add area lights to either side of the model to create highlights, with soft lighting and a light at the top showing the character's gentle nature.

This darker lighting shows off the emissive! 

Update 5 - 24/11/2022

 Stage six: Texturing 

In these process views above and below, you can see how the model came to life through the textures. Through the usage of ambient occlusion, I managed to create a stylised and softer feel to the model. Whilst colouring the model, I originally experimented with using blue and purple but personal preferences made me choose pink and purple instead. I feel that the pink and purple colour scheme makes K1T-K4T look friendly!

Whilst texturing, I also decided to name the catbot 'K1T-K4T' :)

 Here you can see the process of the LED screen! I used a brick generator as the base and inverted it, so I could apply colour over the top, then added some light dots onto the screen.

Below is an image of the screen before I used the generator, I am glad I made this change as they didn't quite have an LED look and appeared flat.

Update 4 - 23/11/2022

This is a larger update post filled with mini updates

Stage four: Modelling

Once I had decided on the basic shape that I wanted for my catbot, I noticed that it was looking plain and began visualising what could be added to create an interesting shape. I started off by focusing on the jet at the bottom of the body, adding some extruded edges to give the jet shape some more complexity.

I decided to get rid of the whisker speakers, as I felt that they would have been an interesting idea, but they ultimately took away from the personality I was aiming for and I struggled to fit them into the sleek design

Stage four: modelling

The next focus area for me to add some detailing to, was the main body area. Adding an extruded edge to the lower half of the body, made the shape look more assembled than before. The chest panel represents the coloured pattern that a lot of cats have on their chests, plus, a panel for the catbot that could perhaps come off for repairs and maintenance. 

Stage 5: Detailing

When focused on the arms, I imagined them to have some kind of moving panels or accessible opening, similar to Buzz Lightyear's arm panel that opens to show dials. 

The paw print on the stomach panel was added for cute detailing, but then I later realised that maybe this could have been the way to open the panel, when the paw is pressed. I also gave the catbot a collar, for identification purposes and extra cuteness points.

Stage 5: Detailing

When I felt that the front of the model was looking good, panned around the model and noticed that the back didn't have any shaping. Initially, I began looking at how I could implement a tail onto the cat but felt that it wouldn't have fit with the sleek model.
I added another split which is seen on the arms, to add some repeating shapes. With the panels on the top of the body being similar to the large panel on the front. 
The vents on the lower half of the body were originally placed lengthways, but when thinking about how vents look on other mechanical objects, I felt that they looked better placed sideways and would read better.
The raised strips were added to give a mechanical replication of tabby cat stripes, and I will be focusing on what these could be used for in the texturing stage.

Final wireframe and UV's 

Tri count: 56k 

Update 3 - 23/11/2022 (Accidentally forgot to update for a while!)

Stage three: Further Blockout experimentation
Apologies for forgetting to update!

After playing with the shape design, it became clear that I was happy with the rounder looking catbot that takes inspiration from EVE in the pixar movie, Wall.E! I did try to make the shape look smaller and circular, but found that the shape didn't read well for a cat. But whilst playing with the circular design, I realised that the ears looked better when positioned a bit lower down the head.

When I was working on the shapes for this design, I decided that I wanted the cat to have speaker ears and created a lattice-like mesh to cover the ear holes.

Update two - 21 Oct 2022

Stage two: Blockout experimentation

During this stage, I have taken some of the shapes from my previous conceptual drawings and tried to recreate some of these shapes within Autodesk Maya. I have found that some of the drawings that I liked the most, didn't actually translate very well into a 3D space as they don't take consideration of the depth of the shape into account. It's been very interesting to see the different kinds of shape language that does and doesn't translate right into 2D/3D!

I will continue to experiment with shapes and the general design and once I have created a blockout that I find interesting, I will be going back to the conceptual drawings and seeing what kind of intricate details can be added onto the model, to add more personalisation and character to the little catbot!

Update one: 10/10/2022

Stage one: Conceptualising 

After doodling with a sharpie, it became clear that I wanted to create some form of cat robot! I have begun experimenting with different shapes and body pieces that I think may be interesting to translate into 3D. 

Coming up with these designs and experimenting with different shape language has given me many ideas for how I might use this robot within a scene and the main purpose/functionality of the bot.