GlslPipeline 🖌📦

GlslPipeline is a class that allows quick prototyping of pipelines directly from a single shader by branching it into different special stages using #if, #elif, #else, define flags. It also allows you to handle multiple buffers and post-processing passes using keywords (defines) such as BUFFERS, DOUBLE_BUFFERS, BACKGROUND and POSTPROCESSING.

GlslPipeline also handles some basic uniforms such as u_resolution, u_mouse, u_time, u_delta and u_frame.

All these specs are based 100% on the glslViewer workflow and are designed so you can start your prototypes there and then port them to WebGL using ThreeJS in a few seconds by just loading your shader code in GlslPipeline.

It supports both Vanilla and React! Typescript also supported!

Install, load and run your shader

Through your terminal install the package:

npm install glsl-pipeline --save

Render Main

If you are not using geometry, you just create a new instance of GlslPipeline, load your shader, and start rendering it:

import { GlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline';

const renderer = new WebGLRenderer();
const sandbox = new GlslPipeline(renderer, {
    // Optional uniforms object to pass to the shader
    u_color: { value: new Vector3(1.0, 0.0, 0.0) },
    u_speed: { value: 0.5 },
    ...
});

sandbox.load(fragment_shader);

const draw = () => {
    sandbox.renderMain();
    requestAnimationFrame(draw);
};

const resize = () => {
    sandbox.setSize(window.innerWidth, window.innerHeight);
};

window.addEventListener("resize", resize);
resize();

draw();

import { GlslPipelineReact, useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'

function MainShader(props){
    const shaderRef = React.useRef();

    const fragmentShader = React.useMemo(() => `varying vec4 v_texcoord;
    uniform float u_time;

    void main(void){
        gl_FragColor = vec4(vec3(mod(u_time, 3.)), 1.);
    }`);

    useGlslPipeline(({ uniforms }, { size }) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        console.log("Get current uniforms:", uniforms);
        console.log("useThree() states:", size);
    }, shaderRef);

    return (
        <GlslPipelineReact ref={shaderRef} type={"main"} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} {...props} />
    )
}

function App() {

  return (
    <Canvas>
        <MainShader />
    </Canvas>
  )
}

export default App

Render Geometry

If you want to use geometry you will need to create a scene and a camera, provide a vertex and fragment shader and then render the scene using renderScene method:

💡 React Note: You don't have to set renderScene in react. By default, the props for type='scene' will handle automatically on render the scene.

import { GlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline';

const renderer = new WebGLRenderer();
const glsl_sandbox = new GlslPipeline(renderer, {
    // Optional uniforms object to pass to the shader
    u_color: { value: new Vector3(1.0, 0.0, 0.0) },
    u_speed: { value: 0.5 },
    ...
});
glsl_sandbox.load(shader_frag, shader_vert);

// Create your scene and use the main material shader
const camera = new PerspectiveCamera(45, window.innerWidth / window.innerHeight, 0.01, 100);
const mesh = new Mesh(new BoxGeometry(1, 1, 1), glsl_sandbox.material);
const scene = new Scene();
scene.add(mesh);

const draw = () => {
    glsl_sandbox.renderScene(scene, cam);
    requestAnimationFrame(draw);
};

const resize = () => {
    sandbox.setSize(window.innerWidth, window.innerHeight);
};

window.addEventListener("resize", resize);
resize();

draw();

import { GlslPipelineReact, useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'

function MainShader(props){
    const shaderRef = React.useRef();

    const fragmentShader = React.useMemo(() => `varying vec4 v_texcoord;
    uniform float u_time;

    void main(void){
        gl_FragColor = vec4(vec3(mod(u_time, 3.)), 1.);
    }`);

    useGlslPipeline(({ uniforms }, { size }) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        console.log("Get current uniforms:", uniforms);
        console.log("useThree() states:", size);
    }, shaderRef);

    return (
        <mesh>
            <planeGeometry args={[10, 10, 10, 10]} />
            <GlslPipelineReact ref={shaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} {...props} />
        </mesh>
    )
}

function App() {

  return (
    <Canvas>
        <MainShader />
    </Canvas>
  )
}

React Advance Render

For React, you can run render manually by setting the autoRender={false}. Typescript also supported

import { GlslPipelineReact, useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'

function MainShader(props){
    const shaderRef = React.useRef();
    const secondShaderRef = React.useRef();

    const fragmentShader = React.useMemo(() => `varying vec4 v_texcoord;
    uniform float u_time;

    void main(void){
        gl_FragColor = vec4(vec3(mod(u_time, 3.)), 1.);
    }`);

    useGlslPipeline((props, state) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        // This will run on second priority
        secondShaderRef.current.renderScene(state.scene, state.camera);
    }, secondShaderRef, 2);

    useGlslPipeline((props, state) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        // This will run first!
        shaderRef.current.renderMain();
    }, shaderRef, 1);

    return (
        <>
            <group>
                <mesh>
                    <planeGeometry args={[10, 10, 10, 10]} />
                    <GlslPipelineReact ref={shaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} autoRender={false} {...props} />
                </mesh>
            </group>
            <group>
                <mesh>
                    <planeGeometry />
                    <GlslPipelineReact ref={secondShaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} type={"scene"} autoRender={false} {...props} />
                </mesh>
            </group>
        </>
    )
}

function App() {

  return (
    <Canvas>
        <MainShader />
    </Canvas>
  )
}

import { GlslPipelineReact, useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'
import { GlslPipelineClass } from 'glsl-pipeline/types'

function MainShader(props){
    const shaderRef = React.useRef<GlslPipelineClass | null>(null);
    const secondShaderRef = React.useRef<GlslPipelineClass | null>(null);

    const fragmentShader = React.useMemo(() => `varying vec4 v_texcoord;
    uniform float u_time;

    void main(void){
        gl_FragColor = vec4(vec3(mod(u_time, 3.)), 1.);
    }`);

    useGlslPipeline((props, state) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        // This will run on second priority
        secondShaderRef.current.renderScene(state.scene, state.camera);
    }, secondShaderRef, 2);

    useGlslPipeline((props, state) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        // This will run first!
        shaderRef.current.renderMain();
    }, shaderRef, 1);

    return (
        <>
            <group>
                <mesh>
                    <planeGeometry args={[10, 10, 10, 10]} />
                    <GlslPipelineReact ref={shaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} autoRender={false} {...props} />
                </mesh>
            </group>
            <group>
                <mesh>
                    <planeGeometry />
                    <GlslPipelineReact ref={secondShaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} type={"scene"} autoRender={false} {...props} />
                </mesh>
            </group>
        </>
    )
}

function App() {

  return (
    <Canvas>
        <MainShader />
    </Canvas>
  )
}

Shader Material Options

Now you can add more options into the GlslPipeline & GlslPipelineReact as example below:

import { GlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline';
import * as THREE from 'three';

const renderer = new WebGLRenderer();
const sandbox = new GlslPipeline(renderer, {
    // Optional uniforms object to pass to the shader
    u_color: { value: new Vector3(1.0, 0.0, 0.0) },
    u_speed: { value: 0.5 },
    ...
},{
    side: THREE.DoubleSide,
    wireframe: true
});

sandbox.load(fragment_shader);

const draw = () => {
    sandbox.renderMain();
    requestAnimationFrame(draw);
};

const resize = () => {
    sandbox.setSize(window.innerWidth, window.innerHeight);
};

window.addEventListener("resize", resize);
resize();

draw();

import { GlslPipelineReact, useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'
import * as THREE from 'three';

function MainShader(props){
    const shaderRef = React.useRef();

    const fragmentShader = React.useMemo(() => `varying vec4 v_texcoord;
    uniform float u_time;

    void main(void){
        gl_FragColor = vec4(vec3(mod(u_time, 3.)), 1.);
    }`);

    useGlslPipeline(({ uniforms }, { size }) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        console.log("Get current uniforms:", uniforms);
        console.log("useThree() states:", size);
    }, shaderRef);

    return (
        <mesh>
            <planeGeometry args={[10, 10, 10, 10]} />
            <GlslPipelineReact wireframe side={THREE.DoubleSide} ref={shaderRef} fragmentShader={fragmentShader} {...props} />
        </mesh>
    )
}

function App() {

  return (
    <Canvas>
        <MainShader />
    </Canvas>
  )
}

GlslPipelineReact Properties

| Properties | Type | Available Values | Default Value | Description | | ---------- | ---- | ---------------- | ------------- |----------- | | type | string | 'main' | 'scene' | 'scene' | To determine how GlslPipeline will render. | | uniforms | object | none | - | You can insert your own uniforms here. | | fragmentShader | string | none | - | You must insert your own fragmentShader string here. | | vertexShader | string | none | getPassThroughVertexShader() | This is optional either you can insert your own vertexShader or just leave it empty. | | branch | string | Array<string> | none | - | You can set your own define(s) named here. It will uppercase the string of your defined name. | | resize | boolean | true | false | true | Automatically resize GlslPipelineReact or not. | | autoRender | boolean | true | false | true | Automatically render GlslPipelineReact or not. | | renderPriority | number | any number | 0 | useFrame render priority value as refer to this documentation | ...props | THREE.ShaderMaterialParameters | { [key: string]: any } | - | This is an options value for ShaderMaterial class. You can refer more parameters here for ShaderMaterialParameters & MaterialParameters

useGlslPipeline Hook

As refer to the above example, the useGlslPipeline hook will send you all the GlslPipeline properties with useThree states so that you can manipulate the uniforms directly from there.

⚠️ WARNING: This hook executed 60fps! Watch out when set any value in the hook callback. Preferable use useRef value due to that invisible to React render.

    import { useGlslPipeline } from 'glsl-pipeline/r3f'
    useGlslPipeline((props, state) => {
        // This hook runs on render (60 fps)
        shaderRef.current.renderMain();
    }, shaderRef, 1);

| Argument | Type | Description | | -------- | ---- | ----------- | | callback | (props: GlslPipelineProperties, state: ReactThreeFiber.RootState) => void | You can set any value here or debug the value in here during 60fps render. | | ref | React.MutableRefObject<GlslPipelineClass | null> | To use which ref is refered to. | | priority | number | Priority of callback (lower priority callbacks are called first) |

If you use createRef as ref second argument, the value returns in useGlslPipeline hook will not be mutated. If you want to adjust the value from hook, preferable use useRef.

PIPELINE STAGES

Before getting into the different stages is important to understand that we are using #if, #elif, #else and #endif directives to branch a single shader into multiple. This are pre-compilation macros that are evaluated before the shader is compiled. This means that the shader code will be different depending on the defines that are active at the moment of compiling it. This avoid realtime logic branching and allow us to create a pipeline of stages that will be executed in a specific order, with very little performance overhead.

GlslPipeline will detect the use of the following keywords to define the different stages of the pipeline: BUFFER_<N>, DOUBLE_BUFFER_<N>, BACKGROUND, and POSTPROCESSING. It will create new render passes for each one of them (except BACKGROUND, which just renders a billboard in your scene). Each one will use the same shader code but "injecting" these keywords at the top of it, so its behavior will "activate" different parts of the code. That's what we call forking the shader.

In the particular case of BUFFERS and DOUBLE_BUFFERS it will also create a new render target for each one of them. All BUFFER_X will be rendered first into textures with the name u_bufferX (where X is the index number) and then all DOUBLE_BUFFER_X will be rendered into the u_doubleBufferX textures.

In 3D scenes, when POSTPROCESSING is used, the geometry will be rendered into a framebuffer associated with the u_scene texture. This allows you to perform postprocessing in a pass that occurs at the end of the pipeline.

BACKGROUND (3D scene stage)

This stage is used to render the background of the scene. It is only available when using the renderScene method. It is defined by using the BACKGROUND keyword.

uniform vec2    u_resolution;

varying vec4    v_position;
varying vec3    v_normal;

void main(void) {
    vec4 color = vec4(0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0);
    vec2 pixel = 1.0/u_resolution;
    vec2 st = gl_FragCoord.xy * pixel;

    #if defined(BACKGROUND)

    // Draw a ciruclar gradient background
    float dist = distance(st, vec2(0.5));
    color.rgb += 1.0-dist;

    #else

    // Basic diffuse shading from directional light
    vec3 N = normalize(v_normal);
    vec3 L = vec3(1.0, 1.0, 0.0);
    vec3 Ld = normalize(L - v_position.xyz);
    color.rgb += dot(N, Ld) * 0.5 + 0.5;
    
    #endif

    gl_FragColor = color;
}

POSTPROCESSING (3D scene stage)

This stage is used to render the postprocessing effects of the scene. It is only available when using the renderScene method. It is defined by using the POSTPROCESSING keyword.

It's important to notice that at this stage the 3D scene have been already rendered into a framebuffer and is available as u_scene texture uniform.

#ifdef GL_ES
precision mediump float;
#endif

uniform sampler2D   u_scene;

uniform vec2        u_resolution;

varying vec4        v_position;
varying vec3        v_normal;

void main(void) {
    vec4 color = vec4(0.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0);
    vec2 pixel = 1.0/u_resolution;
    vec2 st = gl_FragCoord.xy * pixel;

    #if defined(POSTPROCESSING)

    // Render the scene with a circular RGB shift
    float dist = distance(st, vec2(0.5)) * 2.0;
    color.r = texture2D(u_scene, st + pixel * dist).r;
    color.g = texture2D(u_scene, st).g;
    color.b = texture2D(u_scene, st - pixel * dist).b;

    #else

    // Basic diffuse shading from directional light
    vec3 N = normalize(v_normal);
    vec3 L = vec3(1.0, 1.0, 0.0);
    vec3 Ld = normalize(L - v_position.xyz);
    color.rgb += dot(N, Ld) * 0.5 + 0.5;

    #endif

    gl_FragColor = color;
}

BUFFERs

Buffers are used to render something in an offscreen render pass. They are defined by using the keyword BUFFER_ followed by the index number. The content of that pass will be available as a texture uniform named u_buffer followed by the same index number.

This kind of buffers is useful, for example, for creating blurs that require two passes (one horizontal and one vertical).

uniform vec2        u_resolution;

uniform sampler2D   u_buffer0;
uniform sampler2D   u_tex0;

#include "lygia/filter/gaussianBlur.glsl"

void main (void) {
    vec3 color = vec3(0.0);
    vec2 pixel = 1.0/u_resolution;
    vec2 st = gl_FragCoord.xy * pixel;

#ifdef BUFFER_0
    color = gaussianBlur(u_tex0, st, pixel * vec2(1.0, 0.0), 5).rgb;

#else
    color = gaussianBlur(u_buffer0, st, pixel * vec2(0.0, 1.0), 5).rgb;

#endif

    gl_FragColor = vec4(color,1.0);
}

DOUBLE BUFFERs

Double buffers are used to render something in an offscreen render pass by alternating a single pair of frame buffers. This allows using the output of one pass as the input for the following pass. They are defined by using the keyword DOUBLE_BUFFER_ followed by the index number, and the content of that pass will be available as a texture uniform named u_doubleBuffer followed by the same index number.

This particular technique allows you to preserve the content of the previous frame and use it as input for the next one. This technique is useful, for example, for creating all sorts of interesting effects like motion blur, trails, simulations, etc.

uniform sampler2D   u_doubleBuffer0;

uniform vec2        u_resolution;
uniform float       u_time;

#include "lygia/space/ratio.glsl"
#include "lygia/color/palette/hue.glsl"
#include "lygia/draw/circle.glsl"

void main() {
    vec3 color = vec3(0.0);
    vec2 pixel = 1.0/u_resolution.xy;
    vec2 st = gl_FragCoord.xy * pixel;

#ifdef DOUBLE_BUFFER_0
    color = texture2D(u_doubleBuffer0, st).rgb * 0.998;

    vec2 sst = ratio(st, u_resolution);
    sst.xy += vec2(cos(u_time * 2.0), sin(u_time * 1.7)) * 0.35;
    color.rgb += hue(fract(u_time * 0.1)) * circle(sst, 0.1) * 0.05;

#else
    color += texture2D(u_doubleBuffer0, st).rgb;

#endif

    gl_FragColor = vec4(color, 1.0);
}

Native Uniforms

• uniform int u_frame;: frame number

• uniform float u_time;: shader playback time (in seconds)

• uniform float u_delta;: delta time between frames (in seconds)

• uniform vec4 u_date;: year, month, day and seconds

• uniform vec2 u_resolution;: viewport resolution (in pixels)

• uniform vec2 u_mouse;: mouse pixel coords

• uniform vec3 u_camera: Position of the camera

• uniform float u_cameraFarClip: far clipping

• uniform float u_cameraNearClip: near clipping

• uniform float u_cameraDistance: camera distance to (0,0,0)

• uniform mat3 u_normalMatrix: Normal Matrix

• uniform mat4 u_modelMatrix: Model Matrix

• uniform mat4 u_viewMatrix: View Matrix

• uniform mat4 u_inverseViewMatrix: Inverse View Matrix

• uniform mat4 u_projectionMatrix: Projection Matrix

• uniform mat4 u_inverseProjectionMatrix: Inverse Projection Matrix

• uniform vec3 u_light: Position of the light

• uniform vec3 u_lightColor: Color of the light

• uniform float u_lightIntensity: Intensity of the light

• uniform mat4 u_lightMatrix: Light Matrix for reprojecting shadows

• uniform sampler2D u_scene: color texture buffer of the scene, available on POSTPROCESSING subshader. Learn more about it here

• uniform sampler2D u_sceneDepth: color texture buffer of the scene, available on POSTPROCESSING subshader. Learn more about it here

• uniform sampler2D u_lightShadowMap: Shadow map

• uniform sampler2D u_buffer[number]: extra buffers forked with the define flag BUFFER_[number] on a subshaders. learn more about this here

• uniform sampler2D u_doubleBuffer[number]: extra double buffers forked with the define flag DOUBLE_BUFFER_[number] on a subshaders. learn more about this here

Examples

To build/run from source, first git clone this repo

git clone [email protected]:patriciogonzalezvivo/glsl-pipeline.git

And then:

This project is specifically build for yarn

yarn

Once installed, you can test the demo like this:

# to run demo dev for React examples
yarn dev-react

# to run demo dev for Vanilla examples
yarn dev-vanilla

Then you will encounter similar output to your console like this:

  VITE v4.5.0  ready in 248 ms

  ➜  Local:   http://localhost:5173/
  ➜  Network: use --host to expose
  ➜  press h to show help

You can enter keyboard h to view more info and enter o for opening the example test to your browser automatically:

Change example package to test

In package.json file on the root folder, you'll see:

{
    "dev-vanilla": "preconstruct dev && yarn workspace <package-name> dev",
    "dev-react": "preconstruct dev && yarn workspace <package-name> dev",
}

Simply change the <package-name> to other example package names inside these directories:

• /examples/react-js
• /examples/react-ts
• /examples/vanilla-js
• /examples/vanilla-ts

⚠️ NOTE: The <package-name> must be without directory name.

{
    ❌ "dev-vanilla": "preconstruct dev && yarn workspace examples/react-js/<package-name> dev",
    ✅ "dev-vanilla": "preconstruct dev && yarn workspace <package-name> dev",
}

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to main contributors:

• Amin Shazrin
• Mario Carrillo
• Matt Henderson

Contributions

If you would like to contribute to this package. Please refer this documentation.

License

MIT, see LICENSE.md for details.