Actors
An actor represents an entity in the 3D environment that you can interact with or manipulate. Use the MATLAB® or Simulink® interface to build 3D models with actors in the Unreal Engine environment.
Associate visual representations, behaviors, and properties with actors, such as visual meshes, vehicles, lights, and annotations.
Define coordinate systems in which to simulate 3D actor transformations.
Organize actors into a hierarchical structure by defining parent-child relationships. These relationships allow child actors to inherit properties and behaviors from their parent actors, which allows you to more efficiently manage and manipulate actors within the 3D environment.
Control and access the actor object in the 3D environment to perform tasks such as basic 3D modeling and agent-based modeling, where you can create and simulate autonomous actor objects.
Build an appearance for an empty actor in the Unreal Engine environment using 3D graphic primitives and mesh data, or import 3D file formats, including FBX, STL, and URDF.
Simulate actors using advanced features such as the physics engine and object interaction events, like collision detection.
Classes
sim3d.Actor | Create empty actor in 3D environment (Since R2022b) |
sim3d.Light | Create light actor (Since R2024a) |
sim3d.Joint | Link sim3d.Actor objects with physics-based
constraints (Since R2025a) |
sim3d.graphics.Arrow | Create arrow actor (Since R2024a) |
sim3d.graphics.Text | Create text actor (Since R2024a) |
sim3d.graphics.PathMarker | Display trajectory (Since R2025a) |
sim3d.person.Pedestrian | Create pedestrian that follows ground in 3D environment (Since R2024b) |
sim3d.person.Bicyclist | Create bicyclist that follows ground in 3D environment (Since R2024b) |
sim3d.vehicle.ground.PassengerVehicle | Create four-wheeled passenger vehicle that follows ground in 3D environment (Since R2024b) |
Functions
Blocks
| Simulation 3D Actor | Create actors in 3D environment (Since R2022b) |
| Simulation 3D Actor Transform Get | Get actor translation, rotation, scale (Since R2022b) |
| Simulation 3D Actor Transform Set | Set actor translation, rotation, scale (Since R2022b) |
| Simulation 3D Vehicle with Ground Following | Implement vehicle that follows ground in 3D environment (Since R2024a) |
| Simulation 3D Bicyclist | Implement bicyclist in 3D environment (Since R2024a) |
| Simulation 3D Pedestrian | Implement pedestrian in 3D environment (Since R2024a) |
Topics
Simulation Basics
- Create 3D Simulations in Unreal Engine Environment
Use MATLAB or Simulink to create, view, and interact with 3D simulations and access Unreal Engine features. - Interact with 3D Simulation Environment
Control actors using the Simulation 3D Viewer interface and programmatically control the simulation. - Navigate in 3D Environment
Control the view of the 3D environment in the Simulation 3D Viewer using keyboard shortcuts and mouse controls. - Coordinate Systems in Simulink 3D Animation
Understand coordinate systems for representing models in Unreal Engine simulation environment.
Visualize in Unreal Engine Environment
- Build Actor from Imported 3D File Using MATLAB
Import an actor from an STL file into the Unreal Engine visualization environment using MATLAB. - View Actor Orientation in MATLAB Coordinate System
Select a coordinate system and visualize the orientation of an actor in the 3D environment. - Build Actor from Mesh Data and Apply Texture Using MATLAB
Create an actor from mesh data in the Unreal Engine visualization environment using MATLAB. - Build Actor from Mesh Data and Apply Texture Using Simulink
Create an actor from mesh data in the Unreal Engine visualization environment using Simulink. - Delete Actor During Simulation Using Simulink
Remove an actor during simulation from the Unreal Engine visualization environment using Simulink. - Simulate Actor Movement Using MATLAB
Control an actor in the Unreal Engine visualization environment using MATLAB, and capture the actor image from the 3D environment using a camera sensor.
Simulate in Unreal Engine Environment
- Simulate Actor with Kinematics Properties Using MATLAB
Visualize actor simulation with kinematic properties such as linear and angular velocity in the Unreal Engine simulation environment using MATLAB. - Simulate Actors with Dissipative Properties Using MATLAB
Visualize actor simulation with dissipative properties such as friction and restitution in the Unreal Engine simulation environment using MATLAB. - Report Events Using Event Containers
Use event containers to report actor events in the Unreal Engine simulation environment, and access actor properties.
Featured Examples
Build Actor from Imported 3D File Using Simulink
Import an actor from an STL file into the Unreal Engine visualization environment using Simulink.
Simulate Actor Movement Using Simulink
Control an actor in the Unreal Engine visualization environment using Simulink, and capture the actor image from the 3D environment using a camera sensor.
Delete Actor During Simulation Using MATLAB
Remove an actor during simulation from the Unreal Engine visualization environment using MATLAB.
Simulate Actor with Kinematics Properties Using Simulink
Visualize actor simulation with kinematic properties such as linear and angular velocity in the Unreal Engine simulation environment using Simulink.
Simulate Actors with Kinetics Properties Using MATLAB
Visualize actor simulation with kinetic properties such as force and torque in the Unreal Engine simulation environment using MATLAB.
Report Events Using Actor Callbacks
Use the Unreal Engine simulation environment to report actor events in the 3D environment, and access actor properties using event callbacks.
Create Multiple Instances of Actors
Use For Each Subsystem block to create multiple instances of an actor.
Simulate a Quadcopter
Use Simulation 3D Actor block to simulate a quadcopter.
