Need help in perline noise ursina to make an a plain land - unity3d

i understood using perlin-noise to make a pattern with cubes but what i want to is a random terrain
plain land such as this game called muck (that has been devolped by unity)
i've tried doing:
noise = PerlinNoise(octaves=3, seed=2007)
amp = 3
freq = 24
width = 30
for po in range(width*width):
s = randint(200, 255)
q = Entity(model="cube", collider="box", texture="white_cube",
color=color.rgb(s, s, s))
q.x = floor(po/width)
q.z = floor(po % width)
q.y = floor(noise([q.x/freq, q.z/freq]) * amp)
so this would give a -almost- perfect random terrain but i want my terrain look more realistic than cubic
thanks in advance ;)

Unsurprisingly, your landscape looks cubic because you're constructing it from cubes. So to make it more realistic, use a more flexible Mesh for it. You will have to assign each point of the surface separately and connect it to its surrounding via triangles:
level_parent = Entity(model=Mesh(vertices=[], uvs=[]), color=color.white, texture='white_cube')
for x in range(1, width):
for z in range(1, width):
# add two triangles for each new point
y00 = noise([x/freq, z/freq]) * amp
y10 = noise([(x-1)/freq, z/freq]) * amp
y11 = noise([(x-1)/freq, (z-1)/freq]) * amp
y01 = noise([x/freq, (z-1)/freq]) * amp
level_parent.model.vertices += (
# first triangle
(x, y00, z),
(x-1, y10, z),
(x-1, y11, z-1),
# second triangle
(x, y00, z),
(x-1, y11, z-1),
(x, y01, z-1)
)
level_parent.model.generate()
level_parent.model.project_uvs() # for texture
level_parent.model.generate_normals() # for lighting
level_parent.collider = 'mesh' # for collision
However, this will be quite slow to generate, mostly due to the Perlin noise implementation used (I'm assuming this one). A faster option can be found in this answer.

Related

Make ring of vectors "flat" relative to world space

I am trying to simulate liquid conformity in a container. The container is a Unity cylinder and so is the liquid. I track current volume and max volume and use them to determine the coordinates of the center of where the surface should be. When the container is tilted, each vertex in the upper ring of the cylinder should maintain it's current local x and z values but have a new local y value that is the same height in the global space as the surface center.
In my closest attempt, the surface is flat relative to the world space but the liquid does not touch the walls of the container.
Vector3 v = verts[i];
Vector3 newV = new Vector3(v.x, globalSurfaceCenter.y, v.z);
verts[i] = transform.InverseTransformPoint(newV);
(I understand that inversing the point after using v.x and v.z changes them, but if I change them after the fact the surface is no longer flat...)
I have tried many different approaches and I always end up at this same point or a stranger one.
Also, I'm not looking for any fundamentally different approach to the problem. It's important that I alter the vertices of a cylinder.
EDIT
Thank you, everyone, for your feedback. It helped me make progress with this problem but I've reached another roadblock. I made my code more presentable and took some screenshots of some results as well as a graph model to help you visualize what's happening and give variable names to refer to.
In the following images, colored cubes are instantiated and given the coordinates of some of the different vectors I am using to get my results.
F(red) A(green) B(blue)
H(green) E(blue)
Graphed Model
NOTE: when I refer to capital A and B, I'm referring to the Vector3's in my code.
The cylinders in the images have the following rotations (left to right):
(0,0,45) (45,45,0) (45,0,20)
As you can see from image 1, F is correct when only one dimension of rotation is applied. When two or more are applied, the surface is flat, but not oriented correctly.
If I adjust the rotation of the cylinder after generating these results, I can get the orientation of the surface to make sense, but the number are not what you might expect.
For example: cylinder 3 (on the right side), adjusted to have a surface flat to the world space, would need a rotation of about (42.2, 0, 27.8).
Not sure if that's helpful but it is something that increases my confusion.
My code: (refer to graph model for variable names)
Vector3 v = verts[iter];
Vector3 D = globalSurfaceCenter;
Vector3 E = transform.TransformPoint(new Vector3(v.x, surfaceHeight, v.z));
Vector3 H = new Vector3(gsc.x, E.y, gsc.z);
float a = Vector3.Distance(H, D);
float b = Vector3.Distance(H, E);
float i = (a / b) * a;
Vector3 A = H - D;
Vector3 B = H - E;
Vector3 F = ((A + B)) + ((A + B) * i);
Instantiate(greenPrefab, transform).transform.position = H;
Instantiate(bluePrefab, transform).transform.position = E;
//Instantiate(redPrefab, transform).transform.position = transform.TransformPoint(F);
//Instantiate(greenPrefab, transform).transform.position = transform.TransformPoint(A);
//Instantiate(bluePrefab, transform).transform.position = transform.TransformPoint(B);
Some of the variables in my code and in the graphed model may not be necessary in the end, but my hope is it gives you more to work with.
Bear in mind that I am less than proficient in geometry and math in general. Please use Laymans's terms. Thank you!
And thanks again for taking the time to help me.
As a first step, we can calculate the normal of the upper cylinder surface in the cylinder's local coordinate system. Given the world transform of your cylinder transform, this is simply:
localNormal = inverse(transform) * (0, 1, 0, 0)
Using this normal and the cylinder height h, we can define the plane of the upper cylinder in normal form as
dot(localNormal, (x, y, z) - (0, h / 2, 0)) = 0
I am assuming that your cylinder is centered around the origin.
Using this, we can calculate the y-coordinate for any x/z pair as
y = h / 2 - (localNormal.x * x + localNormal.z * z) / localNormal.y

Projection of circular region of interest onto rectangle [duplicate]

BOUNTY STATUS UPDATE:
I discovered how to map a linear lens, from destination coordinates to source coordinates.
How do you calculate the radial distance from the centre to go from fisheye to rectilinear?
1). I actually struggle to reverse it, and to map source coordinates to destination coordinates. What is the inverse, in code in the style of the converting functions I posted?
2). I also see that my undistortion is imperfect on some lenses - presumably those that are not strictly linear. What is the equivalent to-and-from source-and-destination coordinates for those lenses? Again, more code than just mathematical formulae please...
Question as originally stated:
I have some points that describe positions in a picture taken with a fisheye lens.
I want to convert these points to rectilinear coordinates. I want to undistort the image.
I've found this description of how to generate a fisheye effect, but not how to reverse it.
There's also a blog post that describes how to use tools to do it; these pictures are from that:
(1) : SOURCE Original photo link
Input : Original image with fish-eye distortion to fix.
(2) : DESTINATION Original photo link
Output : Corrected image (technically also with perspective correction, but that's a separate step).
How do you calculate the radial distance from the centre to go from fisheye to rectilinear?
My function stub looks like this:
Point correct_fisheye(const Point& p,const Size& img) {
// to polar
const Point centre = {img.width/2,img.height/2};
const Point rel = {p.x-centre.x,p.y-centre.y};
const double theta = atan2(rel.y,rel.x);
double R = sqrt((rel.x*rel.x)+(rel.y*rel.y));
// fisheye undistortion in here please
//... change R ...
// back to rectangular
const Point ret = Point(centre.x+R*cos(theta),centre.y+R*sin(theta));
fprintf(stderr,"(%d,%d) in (%d,%d) = %f,%f = (%d,%d)\n",p.x,p.y,img.width,img.height,theta,R,ret.x,ret.y);
return ret;
}
Alternatively, I could somehow convert the image from fisheye to rectilinear before finding the points, but I'm completely befuddled by the OpenCV documentation. Is there a straightforward way to do it in OpenCV, and does it perform well enough to do it to a live video feed?
The description you mention states that the projection by a pin-hole camera (one that does not introduce lens distortion) is modeled by
R_u = f*tan(theta)
and the projection by common fisheye lens cameras (that is, distorted) is modeled by
R_d = 2*f*sin(theta/2)
You already know R_d and theta and if you knew the camera's focal length (represented by f) then correcting the image would amount to computing R_u in terms of R_d and theta. In other words,
R_u = f*tan(2*asin(R_d/(2*f)))
is the formula you're looking for. Estimating the focal length f can be solved by calibrating the camera or other means such as letting the user provide feedback on how well the image is corrected or using knowledge from the original scene.
In order to solve the same problem using OpenCV, you would have to obtain the camera's intrinsic parameters and lens distortion coefficients. See, for example, Chapter 11 of Learning OpenCV (don't forget to check the correction). Then you can use a program such as this one (written with the Python bindings for OpenCV) in order to reverse lens distortion:
#!/usr/bin/python
# ./undistort 0_0000.jpg 1367.451167 1367.451167 0 0 -0.246065 0.193617 -0.002004 -0.002056
import sys
import cv
def main(argv):
if len(argv) < 10:
print 'Usage: %s input-file fx fy cx cy k1 k2 p1 p2 output-file' % argv[0]
sys.exit(-1)
src = argv[1]
fx, fy, cx, cy, k1, k2, p1, p2, output = argv[2:]
intrinsics = cv.CreateMat(3, 3, cv.CV_64FC1)
cv.Zero(intrinsics)
intrinsics[0, 0] = float(fx)
intrinsics[1, 1] = float(fy)
intrinsics[2, 2] = 1.0
intrinsics[0, 2] = float(cx)
intrinsics[1, 2] = float(cy)
dist_coeffs = cv.CreateMat(1, 4, cv.CV_64FC1)
cv.Zero(dist_coeffs)
dist_coeffs[0, 0] = float(k1)
dist_coeffs[0, 1] = float(k2)
dist_coeffs[0, 2] = float(p1)
dist_coeffs[0, 3] = float(p2)
src = cv.LoadImage(src)
dst = cv.CreateImage(cv.GetSize(src), src.depth, src.nChannels)
mapx = cv.CreateImage(cv.GetSize(src), cv.IPL_DEPTH_32F, 1)
mapy = cv.CreateImage(cv.GetSize(src), cv.IPL_DEPTH_32F, 1)
cv.InitUndistortMap(intrinsics, dist_coeffs, mapx, mapy)
cv.Remap(src, dst, mapx, mapy, cv.CV_INTER_LINEAR + cv.CV_WARP_FILL_OUTLIERS, cv.ScalarAll(0))
# cv.Undistort2(src, dst, intrinsics, dist_coeffs)
cv.SaveImage(output, dst)
if __name__ == '__main__':
main(sys.argv)
Also note that OpenCV uses a very different lens distortion model to the one in the web page you linked to.
(Original poster, providing an alternative)
The following function maps destination (rectilinear) coordinates to source (fisheye-distorted) coordinates. (I'd appreciate help in reversing it)
I got to this point through trial-and-error: I don't fundamentally grasp why this code is working, explanations and improved accuracy appreciated!
def dist(x,y):
return sqrt(x*x+y*y)
def correct_fisheye(src_size,dest_size,dx,dy,factor):
""" returns a tuple of source coordinates (sx,sy)
(note: values can be out of range)"""
# convert dx,dy to relative coordinates
rx, ry = dx-(dest_size[0]/2), dy-(dest_size[1]/2)
# calc theta
r = dist(rx,ry)/(dist(src_size[0],src_size[1])/factor)
if 0==r:
theta = 1.0
else:
theta = atan(r)/r
# back to absolute coordinates
sx, sy = (src_size[0]/2)+theta*rx, (src_size[1]/2)+theta*ry
# done
return (int(round(sx)),int(round(sy)))
When used with a factor of 3.0, it successfully undistorts the images used as examples (I made no attempt at quality interpolation):
Dead link
(And this is from the blog post, for comparison:)
If you think your formulas are exact, you can comput an exact formula with trig, like so:
Rin = 2 f sin(w/2) -> sin(w/2)= Rin/2f
Rout= f tan(w) -> tan(w)= Rout/f
(Rin/2f)^2 = [sin(w/2)]^2 = (1 - cos(w))/2 -> cos(w) = 1 - 2(Rin/2f)^2
(Rout/f)^2 = [tan(w)]^2 = 1/[cos(w)]^2 - 1
-> (Rout/f)^2 = 1/(1-2[Rin/2f]^2)^2 - 1
However, as #jmbr says, the actual camera distortion will depend on the lens and the zoom. Rather than rely on a fixed formula, you might want to try a polynomial expansion:
Rout = Rin*(1 + A*Rin^2 + B*Rin^4 + ...)
By tweaking first A, then higher-order coefficients, you can compute any reasonable local function (the form of the expansion takes advantage of the symmetry of the problem). In particular, it should be possible to compute initial coefficients to approximate the theoretical function above.
Also, for good results, you will need to use an interpolation filter to generate your corrected image. As long as the distortion is not too great, you can use the kind of filter you would use to rescale the image linearly without much problem.
Edit: as per your request, the equivalent scaling factor for the above formula:
(Rout/f)^2 = 1/(1-2[Rin/2f]^2)^2 - 1
-> Rout/f = [Rin/f] * sqrt(1-[Rin/f]^2/4)/(1-[Rin/f]^2/2)
If you plot the above formula alongside tan(Rin/f), you can see that they are very similar in shape. Basically, distortion from the tangent becomes severe before sin(w) becomes much different from w.
The inverse formula should be something like:
Rin/f = [Rout/f] / sqrt( sqrt(([Rout/f]^2+1) * (sqrt([Rout/f]^2+1) + 1) / 2 )
I blindly implemented the formulas from here, so I cannot guarantee it would do what you need.
Use auto_zoom to get the value for the zoom parameter.
def dist(x,y):
return sqrt(x*x+y*y)
def fisheye_to_rectilinear(src_size,dest_size,sx,sy,crop_factor,zoom):
""" returns a tuple of dest coordinates (dx,dy)
(note: values can be out of range)
crop_factor is ratio of sphere diameter to diagonal of the source image"""
# convert sx,sy to relative coordinates
rx, ry = sx-(src_size[0]/2), sy-(src_size[1]/2)
r = dist(rx,ry)
# focal distance = radius of the sphere
pi = 3.1415926535
f = dist(src_size[0],src_size[1])*factor/pi
# calc theta 1) linear mapping (older Nikon)
theta = r / f
# calc theta 2) nonlinear mapping
# theta = asin ( r / ( 2 * f ) ) * 2
# calc new radius
nr = tan(theta) * zoom
# back to absolute coordinates
dx, dy = (dest_size[0]/2)+rx/r*nr, (dest_size[1]/2)+ry/r*nr
# done
return (int(round(dx)),int(round(dy)))
def fisheye_auto_zoom(src_size,dest_size,crop_factor):
""" calculate zoom such that left edge of source image matches left edge of dest image """
# Try to see what happens with zoom=1
dx, dy = fisheye_to_rectilinear(src_size, dest_size, 0, src_size[1]/2, crop_factor, 1)
# Calculate zoom so the result is what we wanted
obtained_r = dest_size[0]/2 - dx
required_r = dest_size[0]/2
zoom = required_r / obtained_r
return zoom
I took what JMBR did and basically reversed it. He took the radius of the distorted image (Rd, that is, the distance in pixels from the center of the image) and found a formula for Ru, the radius of the undistorted image.
You want to go the other way. For each pixel in the undistorted (processed image), you want to know what the corresponding pixel is in the distorted image.
In other words, given (xu, yu) --> (xd, yd). You then replace each pixel in the undistorted image with its corresponding pixel from the distorted image.
Starting where JMBR did, I do the reverse, finding Rd as a function of Ru. I get:
Rd = f * sqrt(2) * sqrt( 1 - 1/sqrt(r^2 +1))
where f is the focal length in pixels (I'll explain later), and r = Ru/f.
The focal length for my camera was 2.5 mm. The size of each pixel on my CCD was 6 um square. f was therefore 2500/6 = 417 pixels. This can be found by trial and error.
Finding Rd allows you to find the corresponding pixel in the distorted image using polar coordinates.
The angle of each pixel from the center point is the same:
theta = arctan( (yu-yc)/(xu-xc) ) where xc, yc are the center points.
Then,
xd = Rd * cos(theta) + xc
yd = Rd * sin(theta) + yc
Make sure you know which quadrant you are in.
Here is the C# code I used
public class Analyzer
{
private ArrayList mFisheyeCorrect;
private int mFELimit = 1500;
private double mScaleFESize = 0.9;
public Analyzer()
{
//A lookup table so we don't have to calculate Rdistorted over and over
//The values will be multiplied by focal length in pixels to
//get the Rdistorted
mFisheyeCorrect = new ArrayList(mFELimit);
//i corresponds to Rundist/focalLengthInPixels * 1000 (to get integers)
for (int i = 0; i < mFELimit; i++)
{
double result = Math.Sqrt(1 - 1 / Math.Sqrt(1.0 + (double)i * i / 1000000.0)) * 1.4142136;
mFisheyeCorrect.Add(result);
}
}
public Bitmap RemoveFisheye(ref Bitmap aImage, double aFocalLinPixels)
{
Bitmap correctedImage = new Bitmap(aImage.Width, aImage.Height);
//The center points of the image
double xc = aImage.Width / 2.0;
double yc = aImage.Height / 2.0;
Boolean xpos, ypos;
//Move through the pixels in the corrected image;
//set to corresponding pixels in distorted image
for (int i = 0; i < correctedImage.Width; i++)
{
for (int j = 0; j < correctedImage.Height; j++)
{
//which quadrant are we in?
xpos = i > xc;
ypos = j > yc;
//Find the distance from the center
double xdif = i-xc;
double ydif = j-yc;
//The distance squared
double Rusquare = xdif * xdif + ydif * ydif;
//the angle from the center
double theta = Math.Atan2(ydif, xdif);
//find index for lookup table
int index = (int)(Math.Sqrt(Rusquare) / aFocalLinPixels * 1000);
if (index >= mFELimit) index = mFELimit - 1;
//calculated Rdistorted
double Rd = aFocalLinPixels * (double)mFisheyeCorrect[index]
/mScaleFESize;
//calculate x and y distances
double xdelta = Math.Abs(Rd*Math.Cos(theta));
double ydelta = Math.Abs(Rd * Math.Sin(theta));
//convert to pixel coordinates
int xd = (int)(xc + (xpos ? xdelta : -xdelta));
int yd = (int)(yc + (ypos ? ydelta : -ydelta));
xd = Math.Max(0, Math.Min(xd, aImage.Width-1));
yd = Math.Max(0, Math.Min(yd, aImage.Height-1));
//set the corrected pixel value from the distorted image
correctedImage.SetPixel(i, j, aImage.GetPixel(xd, yd));
}
}
return correctedImage;
}
}
I found this pdf file and I have proved that the maths are correct (except for the line vd = *xd**fv+v0 which should say vd = **yd**+fv+v0).
http://perception.inrialpes.fr/CAVA_Dataset/Site/files/Calibration_OpenCV.pdf
It does not use all of the latest co-efficients that OpenCV has available but I am sure that it could be adapted fairly easily.
double k1 = cameraIntrinsic.distortion[0];
double k2 = cameraIntrinsic.distortion[1];
double p1 = cameraIntrinsic.distortion[2];
double p2 = cameraIntrinsic.distortion[3];
double k3 = cameraIntrinsic.distortion[4];
double fu = cameraIntrinsic.focalLength[0];
double fv = cameraIntrinsic.focalLength[1];
double u0 = cameraIntrinsic.principalPoint[0];
double v0 = cameraIntrinsic.principalPoint[1];
double u, v;
u = thisPoint->x; // the undistorted point
v = thisPoint->y;
double x = ( u - u0 )/fu;
double y = ( v - v0 )/fv;
double r2 = (x*x) + (y*y);
double r4 = r2*r2;
double cDist = 1 + (k1*r2) + (k2*r4);
double xr = x*cDist;
double yr = y*cDist;
double a1 = 2*x*y;
double a2 = r2 + (2*(x*x));
double a3 = r2 + (2*(y*y));
double dx = (a1*p1) + (a2*p2);
double dy = (a3*p1) + (a1*p2);
double xd = xr + dx;
double yd = yr + dy;
double ud = (xd*fu) + u0;
double vd = (yd*fv) + v0;
thisPoint->x = ud; // the distorted point
thisPoint->y = vd;
This can be solved as an optimization problem. Simply draw on curves in images that are supposed to be straight lines. Store the contour points for each of those curves. Now we can solve the fish eye matrix as a minimization problem. Minimize the curve in points and that will give us a fisheye matrix. It works.
It can be done manually by adjusting the fish eye matrix using trackbars! Here is a fish eye GUI code using OpenCV for manual calibration.

create cylinders in 3D volumetric data

I'm trying to create a dataset of raw volumetric data consisting of geometrical shapes. The point is to use volume ray casting to project them in 2D but first I want to create the volume manually.
The geometry is consisting of one cylinder that is in the middle of the volume, along the Z axis and 2 smaller cylinders that are around the first one, deriving from rotations around the axes.
Here is my function so far:
function cyl= createCylinders(a, b, c, rad1, h1, rad2, h2)
% a : data width
% b : data height
% c : data depth
% rad1: radius of the big center cylinder
% rad2: radius of the smaller cylinders
% h1: height of the big center cylinder
% h2: height of the smaller cylinders
[Y X Z] =meshgrid(1:a,1:b,1:c); %matlab saves in a different order so X must be Y
centerX = a/2;
centerY = b/2;
centerZ = c/2;
theta = 0; %around y
fi = pi/4; %around x
% First cylinder
cyl = zeros(a,b,c);
% create for infinite height
R = sqrt((X-centerX).^2 + (Y-centerY).^2);
startZ = ceil(c/2) - floor(h1/2);
endZ = startZ + h1 - 1;
% then trim it to height = h1
temp = zeros(a,b,h1);
temp( R(:,:,startZ:endZ)<rad1 ) = 255;
cyl(:,:,startZ:endZ) = temp;
% Second cylinder
cyl2 = zeros(a,b,c);
A = (X-centerX)*cos(theta) + (Y-centerY)*sin(theta)*sin(fi) + (Z-centerZ)*cos(fi)*sin(theta);
B = (Y-centerY)*cos(fi) - (Z-centerZ)*sin(fi);
% create again for infinite height
R2 = sqrt(A.^2+B.^2);
cyl2(R2<rad2) = 255;
%then use 2 planes to trim outside of the limits
N = [ cos(fi)*sin(theta) -sin(fi) cos(fi)*cos(theta) ];
P = (rad2).*N + [ centerX centerY centerZ];
T = (X-P(1))*N(1) + (Y-P(2))*N(2) + (Z-P(3))*N(3);
cyl2(T<0) = 0;
P = (rad2+h2).*N + [ centerX centerY centerZ];
T = (X-P(1))*N(1) + (Y-P(2))*N(2) + (Z-P(3))*N(3);
cyl2(T>0) = 0;
% Third cylinder
% ...
cyl = cyl + cyl2;
cyl = uint8(round(cyl));
% ...
The concept is that the first cylinder is created and then "cut" according to the z-axis value, to define its height. The other cylinder is created using the relation A2 + B 2 = R2 where A and B are rotated accordingly using the rotation matrices only around x and y axes, using Ry(θ)Rx(φ) as described here.
Until now everything seems to be working, because I have implemented code (tested that it works well) to display the projection and the cylinders seem to have correct rotation when they are not "trimmed" from infinite height.
I calculate N which is the vector [0 0 1] aka z-axis rotated in the same way as the cylinder. Then I find two points P of the same distances that I want the cylinder's edges to be and calculate the plane equations T according to that points and normal vector. Lastly, I trim according to that equality. Or at least that's what I think I'm doing, because after the trimming I usually don't get anything (every value is zero). Or, the best thing I could get when I was experimenting was cylinders trimmed, but the planes of the top and bottom where not oriented well.
I would appreciate any help or corrections at my code, because I've been looking at the geometry equations and I can't find where the mistake is.
Edit:
This is a quick screenshot of the object I'm trying to create. NOTE that the cylinders are opaque in the volume data, all the inside is considered as homogeneous material.
I think instead of:
T = (X-P(1))*N(1) + (Y-P(2))*N(2) + (Z-P(3))*N(3);
you should try the following at both places:
T = (X-P(1)) + (Y-P(2)) + (Z-P(3));
Multiplying by N is to account for the direction of the axis of the 2nd cylinder which you have already done just above that step.

Trigonometry calculation

I assume this is would be a basic question however, my math skills are lacking.
I am working on an iphone game where people draw their own platform to bounce an egg up.
The game consists of a platform connecting 2 nodes each of these nodes has an x and y value this platform can be at any angle depending on how the user draws it, when something hits this platform I need it to hit off perpendicularly. I know how much total power I need, how would I break it down between X and Y. I drew a picture to better explain...
Here are two examples the info I have about the problem is the X & Y coordinate of the nodes, and the length of the dotted perpendicular line. What I need to find is the length of the X and Y lines and if the X is going in a positive or negative direction.
If you have two nodes, N1 and N2, and line length of L, then:
ndx = N1.x - N2.x
ndy = N1.y - N2.y
ndist = sqrt(ndx*ndx + ndy*ndy)
x = ndy * L / ndist
y = ndx * L / ndist
If your two points are A and B, and the length of your line is L, you first need to find the angle AB makes with respect to the x-axis:
theta = atan( (B.x - A.x) / (B.y - A.y) )
Armed with this, you can figure out x and y thusly:
x = L * cos( theta )
y = L * sin( theta )
The only edge case you will have to consider is for a horizontal line (in which case the computation will fail because of divide by zero when calculating theta). In the case of a horizontal line, x=0 and y=L.

3d movement around a sphere

I'm working in 3d for the first time in a long time. Basically I'm rotating a sphere and projecting x y z cords to place things on the surface based on the spheres X and Y rotation.
Heres the code im using:
#define piover180 0.01745329252f
GLfloat cosy = cos(yrot * piover180);
island[i].x = rad * sin(xrot * piover180)* cosy;
island[i].y = rad * sin(yrot * piover180);
island[i].z = rad * cos(xrot * piover180) * cosy;
Problem is the Xrot positioning works fine but the Yrot placement always draw the objects into the north and south pole so they all cross at the top, which isn't correct for rotating. I need a way to solve this. Here's a picture to help explain:
Any help would be greatly appreciated, let me know if you need any more information?
The code sample you pasted is incomplete, because you didn't show how you applied these calculations via glRotate et al. Here's how I would do this. Although you could certainly optimize it by doing the matrix calculations yourself in one step, it's likely not necessary.
// Move object out to its radius
glTranslatef(radius, 0, 0);
// Apply latitudinal rotation (aka "Yrot")
glRotatef(latitude, 0, 1, 0);
// Apply longitudinal rotation (aka "Xrot")
glRotatef(longitude, 0, 0, 1);
After that, you can do the drawing. You'll also want to wrap the whole thing in calls to glPushMatrix and glPopMatrix to isolate this transformation.
I ended up solving it using the Spherical Coordinate System.
Here's the code:
island[i].x = rad*sin(xrot*(PI/180))*cos(yrot*(PI/180));
island[i].y = rad*sin(xrot*(PI/180))*sin(yrot*(PI/180));
island[i].z = cos(xrot*(PI/180));
Here are the equations:
x = r sinq cosf
y = r sinq sinf
z = r cosq
r = (x2 + y2 + z2)1/2
q = tan-1(z/(x2+y2)1/2)
f = tan-1(y/x)
Just in case anyone could do with it, it's perfect for camera control or any exact 3d coord calculations you need to do.
Reference: http://electron9.phys.utk.edu/vectors/3dcoordinates.htm