About
Some examples one can find in the web of using OpenGL in wxPython no longer work, presumably due to minor changes in wxPython, but a working program can be found in the wxPython demo package. At http://wxpython.org/download.php#unstable, download an appropriate wxPython-docs-demo package. In the demo package, run demo.pyw to explore a large number of wxPython demos. In the Miscellaneous section is an example GLCanvas which you can run. The code for this demo is the file GLCanvas.py located in the same demo folder as demo.pyw and is not a self-standing program; it is run within the demo.pyw context.
I wanted a single-file complete working example of using OpenGL, so I extracted the necessary components from the demo environment and combined them with GLCanvas.py. The completed program provided below creates a panel containing two buttons and a small version of the 3D cube. Clicking a button creates in a separate window a larger OpenGL canvas, either a cube or a cone. In any of these OpenGL windows, dragging the mouse rotates the view.
Example Usage
import wx
import sys
# This working example of the use of OpenGL in the wxPython context
# was assembled in August 2012 from the GLCanvas.py file found in
# the wxPython docs-demo package, plus components of that package's
# run-time environment.
# Note that dragging the mouse rotates the view of the 3D cube or cone.
try:
from wx import glcanvas
haveGLCanvas = True
except ImportError:
haveGLCanvas = False
try:
# The Python OpenGL package can be found at
# http://PyOpenGL.sourceforge.net/
from OpenGL.GL import *
from OpenGL.GLUT import *
haveOpenGL = True
except ImportError:
haveOpenGL = False
#----------------------------------------------------------------------
buttonDefs = {
wx.NewId() : ('CubeCanvas', 'Cube'),
wx.NewId() : ('ConeCanvas', 'Cone'),
}
class ButtonPanel(wx.Panel):
def __init__(self, parent):
wx.Panel.__init__(self, parent, -1)
box = wx.BoxSizer(wx.VERTICAL)
box.Add((20, 30))
keys = buttonDefs.keys()
keys.sort()
for k in keys:
text = buttonDefs[k][1]
btn = wx.Button(self, k, text)
box.Add(btn, 0, wx.ALIGN_CENTER|wx.ALL, 15)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_BUTTON, self.OnButton, btn)
# With this enabled, you see how you can put a GLCanvas on the wx.Panel
if 1:
c = CubeCanvas(self)
c.SetMinSize((200, 200))
box.Add(c, 0, wx.ALIGN_CENTER|wx.ALL, 15)
self.SetAutoLayout(True)
self.SetSizer(box)
def OnButton(self, evt):
if not haveGLCanvas:
dlg = wx.MessageDialog(self,
'The GLCanvas class has not been included with this build of wxPython!',
'Sorry', wx.OK | wx.ICON_WARNING)
dlg.ShowModal()
dlg.Destroy()
elif not haveOpenGL:
dlg = wx.MessageDialog(self,
'The OpenGL package was not found. You can get it at\n'
'http://PyOpenGL.sourceforge.net/',
'Sorry', wx.OK | wx.ICON_WARNING)
dlg.ShowModal()
dlg.Destroy()
else:
canvasClassName = buttonDefs[evt.GetId()][0]
canvasClass = eval(canvasClassName)
cx = 0
if canvasClassName == 'ConeCanvas': cx = 400
frame = wx.Frame(None, -1, canvasClassName, size=(400,400), pos=(cx,400))
canvasClass(frame) # CubeCanvas(frame) or ConeCanvas(frame); frame passed to MyCanvasBase
frame.Show(True)
class MyCanvasBase(glcanvas.GLCanvas):
def __init__(self, parent):
glcanvas.GLCanvas.__init__(self, parent, -1)
self.init = False
self.context = glcanvas.GLContext(self)
# initial mouse position
self.lastx = self.x = 30
self.lasty = self.y = 30
self.size = None
self.Bind(wx.EVT_ERASE_BACKGROUND, self.OnEraseBackground)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_SIZE, self.OnSize)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_PAINT, self.OnPaint)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_LEFT_DOWN, self.OnMouseDown)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_LEFT_UP, self.OnMouseUp)
self.Bind(wx.EVT_MOTION, self.OnMouseMotion)
def OnEraseBackground(self, event):
pass # Do nothing, to avoid flashing on MSW.
def OnSize(self, event):
wx.CallAfter(self.DoSetViewport)
event.Skip()
def DoSetViewport(self):
size = self.size = self.GetClientSize()
self.SetCurrent(self.context)
glViewport(0, 0, size.width, size.height)
def OnPaint(self, event):
dc = wx.PaintDC(self)
self.SetCurrent(self.context)
if not self.init:
self.InitGL()
self.init = True
self.OnDraw()
def OnMouseDown(self, evt):
self.CaptureMouse()
self.x, self.y = self.lastx, self.lasty = evt.GetPosition()
def OnMouseUp(self, evt):
self.ReleaseMouse()
def OnMouseMotion(self, evt):
if evt.Dragging() and evt.LeftIsDown():
self.lastx, self.lasty = self.x, self.y
self.x, self.y = evt.GetPosition()
self.Refresh(False)
class CubeCanvas(MyCanvasBase):
def InitGL(self):
# set viewing projection
glMatrixMode(GL_PROJECTION)
glFrustum(-0.5, 0.5, -0.5, 0.5, 1.0, 3.0)
# position viewer
glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW)
glTranslatef(0.0, 0.0, -2.0)
# position object
glRotatef(self.y, 1.0, 0.0, 0.0)
glRotatef(self.x, 0.0, 1.0, 0.0)
glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST)
glEnable(GL_LIGHTING)
glEnable(GL_LIGHT0)
def OnDraw(self):
# clear color and depth buffers
glClear(GL_COLOR_BUFFER_BIT | GL_DEPTH_BUFFER_BIT)
# draw six faces of a cube
glBegin(GL_QUADS)
glNormal3f( 0.0, 0.0, 1.0)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glNormal3f( 0.0, 0.0,-1.0)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glNormal3f( 0.0, 1.0, 0.0)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glNormal3f( 0.0,-1.0, 0.0)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glNormal3f( 1.0, 0.0, 0.0)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f( 0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glNormal3f(-1.0, 0.0, 0.0)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5,-0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5,-0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5, 0.5)
glVertex3f(-0.5, 0.5,-0.5)
glEnd()
if self.size is None:
self.size = self.GetClientSize()
w, h = self.size
w = max(w, 1.0)
h = max(h, 1.0)
xScale = 180.0 / w
yScale = 180.0 / h
glRotatef((self.y - self.lasty) * yScale, 1.0, 0.0, 0.0);
glRotatef((self.x - self.lastx) * xScale, 0.0, 1.0, 0.0);
self.SwapBuffers()
class ConeCanvas(MyCanvasBase):
def InitGL( self ):
glMatrixMode(GL_PROJECTION)
# camera frustrum setup
glFrustum(-0.5, 0.5, -0.5, 0.5, 1.0, 3.0)
glMaterial(GL_FRONT, GL_AMBIENT, [0.2, 0.2, 0.2, 1.0])
glMaterial(GL_FRONT, GL_DIFFUSE, [0.8, 0.8, 0.8, 1.0])
glMaterial(GL_FRONT, GL_SPECULAR, [1.0, 0.0, 1.0, 1.0])
glMaterial(GL_FRONT, GL_SHININESS, 50.0)
glLight(GL_LIGHT0, GL_AMBIENT, [0.0, 1.0, 0.0, 1.0])
glLight(GL_LIGHT0, GL_DIFFUSE, [1.0, 1.0, 1.0, 1.0])
glLight(GL_LIGHT0, GL_SPECULAR, [1.0, 1.0, 1.0, 1.0])
glLight(GL_LIGHT0, GL_POSITION, [1.0, 1.0, 1.0, 0.0])
glLightModelfv(GL_LIGHT_MODEL_AMBIENT, [0.2, 0.2, 0.2, 1.0])
glEnable(GL_LIGHTING)
glEnable(GL_LIGHT0)
glDepthFunc(GL_LESS)
glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST)
glClear(GL_COLOR_BUFFER_BIT | GL_DEPTH_BUFFER_BIT)
# position viewer
glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW)
# position viewer
glTranslatef(0.0, 0.0, -2.0);
#
glutInit(sys.argv)
def OnDraw(self):
# clear color and depth buffers
glClear(GL_COLOR_BUFFER_BIT | GL_DEPTH_BUFFER_BIT)
# use a fresh transformation matrix
glPushMatrix()
# position object
#glTranslate(0.0, 0.0, -2.0)
glRotate(30.0, 1.0, 0.0, 0.0)
glRotate(30.0, 0.0, 1.0, 0.0)
glTranslate(0, -1, 0)
glRotate(250, 1, 0, 0)
glutSolidCone(0.5, 1, 30, 5)
glPopMatrix()
glRotatef((self.y - self.lasty), 0.0, 0.0, 1.0);
glRotatef((self.x - self.lastx), 1.0, 0.0, 0.0);
# push into visible buffer
self.SwapBuffers()
#----------------------------------------------------------------------
class RunDemoApp(wx.App):
def __init__(self):
wx.App.__init__(self, redirect=False)
def OnInit(self):
frame = wx.Frame(None, -1, "RunDemo: ", pos=(0,0),
style=wx.DEFAULT_FRAME_STYLE, name="run a sample")
#frame.CreateStatusBar()
menuBar = wx.MenuBar()
menu = wx.Menu()
item = menu.Append(wx.ID_EXIT, "E&xit\tCtrl-Q", "Exit demo")
self.Bind(wx.EVT_MENU, self.OnExitApp, item)
menuBar.Append(menu, "&File")
frame.SetMenuBar(menuBar)
frame.Show(True)
frame.Bind(wx.EVT_CLOSE, self.OnCloseFrame)
win = runTest(frame)
# set the frame to a good size for showing the two buttons
frame.SetSize((200,400))
win.SetFocus()
self.window = win
frect = frame.GetRect()
self.SetTopWindow(frame)
self.frame = frame
return True
def OnExitApp(self, evt):
self.frame.Close(True)
def OnCloseFrame(self, evt):
if hasattr(self, "window") and hasattr(self.window, "ShutdownDemo"):
self.window.ShutdownDemo()
evt.Skip()
def runTest(frame):
win = ButtonPanel(frame)
return win
app = RunDemoApp()
app.MainLoop()