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700 Chapter 14: Character Studio
You can also specify a freeform period in a footstep
animation, using Tr ack View - Dope Sheet. This
allows you to t ake advantage of footsteps and
dynamics for par t of an animation, then switch
to manu al keyframing during the freeform
period. This approach can be par ticularly useful
in animations where there is a m ix of animation
where the feet are on the ground and then off.
Examples of this type of animation include
running and diving, or walking and then sitting
down.
Keyframe adjustment tools allow you to find the
next or previous key for the selected biped body
part, use the Time spinner to slide a key back and
forth in time, change Tension Continuity and Bias
for a key, and to display trajectories.
You can place arms and legs into the
coordinate
space (page 3–1018)
ofanotherobjectorthe
world to simulate interaction with fixed or moving
objects. In Fr eeform mode, for example, putting
the character’s legs into
world space (p age 3–1130)
prevents them from sliding or moving when the
animator is keyframing the character’s center of
mass. Putting a character’s hand in the coordinate
spaceofaballallowsthehandtomovewherever
the ball moves.
Many tools in 3ds Max can be leveraged with
character studio. For example, the Select and
Link tool can be used to attach objects to the biped.
If a charac ter is to pick up and car ry an object
and then put it down , the Link controller c a n be
used to animate the duration of the attachment.
3ds Max bones can be used to animate character
subassemblies, like pistons, and to create extra
links for Physique.
Use the Motion Mixer to Mix Animations
Yo u c a n u s e t h e Motion mixer (page 2–581) to
combine motions on a biped. For example, y ou
could combine a walking motion with a cheering
motion, and cause the biped to walk while
cheering.
Use M otion Flow to Combine Animations
After you have created and modified various
animation sequences, and stored them in biped
motion files (BIP format), you can use
Motion
Flow mode (page 2–894)
.Thisfeatureallows
you to combine various motion files into longer
animations that can be quickly previewed and
edited. Motion Flow mode automatically places
the animations end-to-end, allowing you to mix
and match both freeform and footstep-driven
motion files. Transitions between successive
motions are automatically created for you, to
provide a first-pass blending between overlapping
frames of animation.
The Motion Flow transitions use
velocity
interpolation (page 3–1124)
to create seamless
transitions between clips. You can use the
Transition Editor (page 2–902) to modify a variety
of blending parameters, including transition start
frame, length, and angle between clips.
R efini ng Your Char acter
Great character anim ation is a result of many
refinements that tune the overall personalit y of
your character. You will find the need to refine
progressively both the skinning behavior and
the animation timing of your character studio
character. Biped and Physique make this iteration
pro cess straightfor ward by fully u sing the 3ds Max
modifier stack and undo methods.
In addition, Biped’s ability to map motions
between characters makes it easy to interchange
great animations with existing characters, and
tune their behaviors to achieve true integration of
motion with character motivation and personality.