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Hierarchy Panel Commands 469

You can also view joint lim its in the viewport by

pressing and holding the mouse button on the

From or To label of a limit field. The object will

move or rotate to the limit value until y ou release

the mouse button.

Limiting R otational Joints

Limits for a rotational joint define how far the

object can rotate about its parent’s axes. The

values in the From and To fields represent the

rotation angle about the active axis measured from

0 degrees on the parent object.

For example, an elbow joint rotates the forearm

with respect to the upper arm. In the figure the

limits on X axis rotation are from 0 to 135 degrees.

The Y, Z axes are inactive because an elbow joint

rotates about a single axis.

Limi ting Sl idi ng Joints

Limits for a sliding joint define how far a joint

can move along its parent’s axes. The values in

the From and To fields represent a distance for

movement along the active axis measured from

the pivot point of the parent to the pivot point of

the selected object.

For example, a sliding joint on a piston moves the

piston in and out of the cylinder. In the figure,

the limits on Z axis movement are f rom 10 to 9 0.

This prevents the piston from hitting the bottom

or moving past the end of the cylinder.

Limiting Path and S ur face Joints

Limitsforpathandsurfacejointsdefinehowfar

along the path or surface an object can move.

ThevaluesintheFromandTofieldsrepresenta

percentage of the total distance measured along

the path or sur face.

For example, a path joint for a house key moves the

key along a key ring. Setting the limits on the path

joint at 5% to 95% prevents the key from traveling

along the ring where the fob is attached.