Loader Reference

Module defined in lua/common/jbeam/loader.lua. Main orchestrator for the JBeam vehicle loading pipeline. Coordinates all processing stages from file loading to 3D mesh attachment.

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Exports

Functions

M.loadVehicleStage1(objID, vehicleDir, vehicleConfig)

Entry point for vehicle loading. Runs on both vehicle and GE Lua. Normalizes directory paths, calls loadJbeam for the full processing pipeline, optionally writes debug files, then calls loadBundle for 3D object setup.

• Parameters:
  • objID - number - Object ID of the vehicle being spawned
  • vehicleDir - string - Vehicle directory path (e.g. "/vehicles/pickup/")
  • vehicleConfig - table - Configuration with parts/partsTree, paints/colors, mainPartName, additionalVehicleData, etc.
• Returns: self (module table, for chaining)

M.loadBundle(objID, vehicleBundle, loadingProgress)

Second stage: attaches 3D objects to the vehicle. Processes events, license plates, skins, colors, paints, initial node positions, ref nodes, flexbodies, props, visual ropes, materials, and mirrors. Requires the game engine (vehicleObj from scenetree).

• Parameters:
  • objID - number - Object ID
  • vehicleBundle - table - Bundle from loadVehicleStage1
  • loadingProgress - object|nil - Loading progress reporter
• Returns: nil

Variables

M.defaultBeamSpring

• Type: number
• Description: Default beam spring constant
• Expected structure: 4300000

M.defaultBeamDeform

• Type: number
• Description: Default beam deformation threshold
• Expected structure: 220000

M.defaultBeamDamp

• Type: number
• Description: Default beam damping value
• Expected structure: 580

M.defaultNodeWeight

• Type: number
• Description: Default node weight in kg
• Expected structure: 25

M.defaultBeamStrength

• Type: number
• Description: Default beam breaking strength
• Expected structure: math.huge (infinite - beams don't break by default)

M.data

• Type: table
• Description: General-purpose data storage table
• Expected structure: {} (empty by default)

M._noSerialize

• Type: boolean
• Description: Flag to prevent serialization of this module
• Expected structure: true

Internal Notes

• Loading pipeline order (inside loadJbeam):

  1. jbeamIO.startLoading - parse all .jbeam files
  2. jbeamSlotSystem.findParts - resolve part tree from config
  3. jbeamVariables.getAllVariables → processComponents → processParts - variable resolution
  4. jbeamSlotSystem.unifyPartJournal - merge parts together
  5. jbeamVariables.postProcessVariables + cleanup
  6. jbeamTableSchema.process - convert table schemas to objects
  7. sectionMerger.process - merge renamed sections
  8. jbeamLinks.prepareLinksDestructive - find cross-references
  9. jbeamOptimization.assignCIDs - assign continuous IDs
  10. jbeamLinks.resolveLinks - resolve references to CIDs
  11. jbeamNodeBeam.process - nodes/hydros/ropes/quads
  12. jbeamCamera.process - camera setup (GE only)
  13. jbeamWheels.processWheels - wheel construction
  14. jbeamLinks.resolveGroupLinks - group references
  15. jbeamAssorted.process, processRotators, jbeamGroups.process, jbeamScaling.process
  16. Default beam/node options applied
  17. jbeamOptimization.process - cleanup and dereference
  18. jbeamIO.finishLoading - clears some caches
  19. jbeamInteraction.process - input action loading

• M.materials and M.materialsMap are loaded from particles.getMaterialsParticlesTable() at module load time.

• Debug output controlled by -debugVehicleLoading command-line arg.

• Runs on both GE and vehicle Lua; camera processing only happens on GE (vmType == 'game').