WebGL2RenderingContext.vertexAttribIPointer()

This is an experimental technology
Check the Browser compatibility table carefully before using this in production.

The WebGL2RenderingContext.vertexAttribIPointer() method of the WebGL 2 API specifies integer data formats and locations of vertex attributes in a vertex attributes array.

Syntax

void gl.vertexAttribIPointer(index, size, type, stride, offset);

Parameters

index
A GLuint specifying the index of the vertex attribute that is to be modified.
size
A GLint specifying the number of components per vertex attribute. Must be 1, 2, 3, or 4.
type
A GLenum specifying the data type of each component in the array. Must be one of: gl.BYTE, gl.UNSIGNED_BYTE, gl.SHORT, gl.UNSIGNED_SHORT, gl.INT, or gl.UNSIGNED_INT.
stride
A GLsizei specifying the offset in bytes between the beginning of consecutive vertex attributes.
offset
A GLintptr specifying an offset in bytes of the first component in the vertex attribute array. Must be a multiple of type.

Return value

None.

Description

Very similar to WebGLRenderingContext.vertexAttribPointer(). The main difference is that while values specified by vertexAttribPointer are always interpreted as floating-point values in the shader (even if they were originally specified as integers in the buffer), this method allows specifying values which are interpreted as integers in the shader.

Examples

Linear Blend Skinning

//Describe the layout of the buffer:
//1. position
gl.vertexAttribPointer(0, 3, gl.FLOAT, false, 20, 0);
gl.enableVertexAttribArray(0);
//2. bone weights, normalized to [0, 1]
gl.vertexAttribPointer(1, 4, gl.UNSIGNED_BYTE, true, 20, 12);
gl.enableVertexAttribArray(1);
//3. bone indices, interpreted as integer
gl.vertexAttribIPointer(2, 4, gl.UNSIGNED_BYTE, 20, 16);
gl.enableVertexAttribArray(2);

//Connect to attributes from the vertex shader
gl.bindAttribLocation(shaderProgram, 0, "position");
gl.bindAttribLocation(shaderProgram, 1, "boneWeights");
gl.bindAttribLocation(shaderProgram, 2, "boneIndices");
<script id="shader-vs" type="x-shader/x-vertex">#version 300 es

uniform mat4 mvMatrix;
uniform mat4 bones[120];

in vec3 position;
in vec4 boneWeights;
in uvec4 boneIndices;//read as 4-component unsigned integer

void main() {
    vec4 skinnedPosition =
        bones[boneIndices.s] * vec4(position, 1.0) * boneWeights.s +
        bones[boneIndices.t] * vec4(position, 1.0) * boneWeights.t +
        bones[boneIndices.p] * vec4(position, 1.0) * boneWeights.p +
        bones[boneIndices.q] * vec4(position, 1.0) * boneWeights.q;
    gl_Position = mvMatrix * skinnedPosition;
}
</script>

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
WebGL 2.0
The definition of 'vertexAttribIPointer' in that specification.
Editor's Draft Initial definition for WebGL.
OpenGL ES 3.0
The definition of 'glVertexAttribPointer' in that specification.
Standard Man page of the (similar) OpenGL API.

Browser compatibility

DesktopMobile
ChromeEdgeFirefoxInternet ExplorerOperaSafariAndroid webviewChrome for AndroidFirefox for AndroidOpera for AndroidSafari on iOSSamsung Internet
vertexAttribIPointerChrome Full support 56Edge Full support 79Firefox Full support 51IE No support NoOpera Full support 43Safari No support NoWebView Android Full support 58Chrome Android Full support 58Firefox Android Full support 51Opera Android Full support 43Safari iOS No support NoSamsung Internet Android Full support 7.0

Legend

Full support
Full support
No support
No support

See also