USD Instancing / Disabled, Enabled
Chooses between full USD duplicates and USD instances.
← Fusion node reference
USD / 3DAdvanced
uDuplicate
USD duplication and instancing
Creates repeated USD prims with copy ranges, probability, time offsets, transform accumulation, jitter and optional USD instancing.
uDuplicate
DaVinci Resolve · Fusion
uDuplicate repeats selected USD content without manually cloning branches. It supports regular copies, accumulated or linear transforms, random jitter, region conditions and instancing, making it useful for environments, arrays and procedural scene layout.
Overview
What uDuplicate does
uDuplicate repeats selected USD content without manually cloning branches. It supports regular copies, accumulated or linear transforms, random jitter, region conditions and instancing, making it useful for environments, arrays and procedural scene layout.
Mental model
Think of uDuplicate as a procedural copy generator for USD prims: define how many copies exist, how transforms accumulate and whether they become true USD instances.
Common uses
Rows and arrays of USD objects
Procedural environments
Repeated props
Randomized scene dressing
Efficient USD instancing
Time-offset repeated animation
Flow anatomy
Inputs & outputs
The port structure shows how this node fits into a Fusion graph.
SceneInput
Existing USD or 3D stage that receives this node or provides the scene context.
uDuplicate
Fusion node
SceneOutput
Updated USD/3D stage for further composition, rendering or export.
Inspector
Important parameters
Start with these controls before reaching for more complicated workarounds.
Transform Method / Accumulated, Linear
Chooses whether duplicate transforms accumulate from one copy to the next or increase linearly from the original.
Transform Order / SRT, STR, RTS, RST, TSR, TRS
Chooses the order in which scale, rotation and translation are evaluated.
Jitter / Translation, Rotation, Pivot, Scale
Sets the pivot used for rotation and scaling.
Move the pivot when the element needs to rotate or scale around a point other than its current center.
Region Mode / Ignore region, When inside region, When not inside region
Excludes region, When inside region, When not inside region from the operation.
Region / All, Cube, Mesh, Rectangle, Sphere
Selects All, Cube, Mesh, Rectangle, Sphere.
USD Instancing
Creates efficient USD instances when enabled instead of fully independent geometry copies.
Copies / First / Last
Defines the duplicate range.
Copy Probability
Controls whether individual copies are created.
Time Offset
Offsets animated source timing between copies.
Transform Method
Chooses accumulated or linear transform behavior.
Transform Order
Chooses the order in which scale, rotation and translation are applied to each duplicate.
Translation / X Offset / Y Offset / Z Offset
Sets the Z Offset.
Rotation / Order / X / Y / Z
Sets the X, Y and Z components of order.
Pivot / X / Y / Z
Sets the pivot position on the X, Y and Z axes.
Scale / Lock X/Y/Z / Scale
Links the X, Y and Z values for scale.
Duplicate Along Path
Enables distribution of the USD duplicates along a path.
Export as Separate Stage
Outputs this operation as a separate USD stage instead of folding it into the incoming stage.
Jitter Mode
Adds controlled random variation to this property.
Random Seed / Reseed
Sets the random seed so a procedural variation can be reproduced.
Jitter Probability
Adds controlled random variation to this property.
Translation Jitter / X Y Z
Sets Translation Jitter on the X, Y and Z axes.
Rotation Jitter / X Y Z
Sets Rotation Jitter on the X, Y and Z axes.
Pivot Jitter / X Y Z
Sets the pivot position on the X, Y and Z axes.
Scale Jitter / Lock X/Y/Z / Scale
Links the X, Y and Z values for scale.
Region Mode
Selects the particle region type.
Chooses the geometric region used by the particle operation.
Region
Uses a region region for this particle operation.
Practical setup
A reliable workflow
- 1
Feed the source USD branch into uDuplicate.
- 2
Set the first/last copy range.
- 3
Choose instancing when identical geometry should remain lightweight.
- 4
Define the base transform between copies.
- 5
Add jitter only after the regular distribution works.
- 6
Use probability or region controls for sparse arrangements.
- 7
Render the result and watch memory when instancing is disabled.
Typical node chain
USD Asset→
uDuplicate→
uMerge→
uRenderer
Examples
Where this node fits in real work
Repeated props
Create a regular row of USD assets.
uLoaderuDuplicateuMergeuRenderer
Procedural scatter
Use probability and jitter for less regular duplication.
uShapeuDuplicateuDomeLightuRenderer
Troubleshooting
Common mistakes
Disabling instancing for hundreds of identical heavy assets.
Stacking translation at several hierarchy levels and losing predictable spacing.
Adding random jitter before the base array is correct.
Production notes
Practical tips
Use USD instancing whenever repeated assets do not need unique topology.
Keep random seeds stable while lighting and framing the shot.
Name separate uDuplicate branches by layout role.
Related nodes