CrowdControl/Assets/AnimateShine.cs

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEngine.UI;
using System.Collections;

public class AnimateShine : MonoBehaviour
{
    public Material shineMaterial; // Assign the original material (a reference from Inspector)
    public Image targetImage; // Assign the UI Image component
    public float shineSpeed = 1f; // Speed of shine animation
    public float shinePauseDuration = 0.5f; // Half-second pause after a shine cycle

    private Material instanceMaterial; // Unique instance of the material
    private float shineLocation = 0f;
    private bool isPaused = false;
    private void Awake()
    {
        targetImage = GetComponent<Image>();
    }

    void Start()
    {
        if (shineMaterial != null && targetImage != null)
        {
            // Create a new instance of the material so each image has its own copy
            instanceMaterial = new Material(shineMaterial);

            // Assign the instance material to the UI Image
            targetImage.material = instanceMaterial;
        }
        else
        {
            Debug.LogError("ShineEffect: Material or Target Image is missing!");
        }
    }

    void Update()
    {
        if (instanceMaterial != null && !isPaused)
        {
            // Animate the "Shine Location" property
            shineLocation += Time.deltaTime * shineSpeed;

            if (shineLocation > 1f)
            {
                shineLocation = 1f; // Cap at 1 before pausing
                StartCoroutine(PauseShine()); // Start the pause coroutine
            }

            // Update material property
            instanceMaterial.SetFloat("_ShineLocation", shineLocation);
        }
    }

    IEnumerator PauseShine()
    {
        isPaused = true; // Stop animation
        yield return new WaitForSeconds(shinePauseDuration); // Wait for half a second
        shineLocation = 0f; // Reset shine location
        isPaused = false; // Resume animation
    }

    void OnDestroy()
    {
        // Cleanup to prevent memory leaks
        if (instanceMaterial != null)
        {
            Destroy(instanceMaterial);
        }
    }
}