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762 Chapter 14: Character Studio
Foot rotates off pivot at end of toe at frame 19.
Here is another planted key with a pivot at the end
ofthetoe;thefootrotatesaboutthetipofthetoe.
Free Key allows foot to travel off the g round at frame 20.
Here, Click Set Free Key to set a free key, the
foot is off of the ground.
The cycle is repeated to create a walk or r un c ycle
in a freeform animation. The pivot points are
selected by turning on Select Pivot on the IK Key
Info rollout, selecting a pivot in the viewports,
turning off Select Pivot and then rotating the foot
in the viewports.
When Join To Prev is turned on, as it is with
all planted footstep keys, the foot pivots at the
previous key’s pivot point. If you find that the foot
is not rotating around the visible pivot, remember
that it is using the previous key’s pivot. In such a
case, you must set two consecutive keys with the
pivotatthesamelocation:thenthefootwillrotate
around the displayed pivot.
If you adhere to these rules in creating
footsteps in a freeform animation, then you can
useConvertintheBipedrollouttoeasilychange
from a freeform animation to a footstep animation.
Note that IK constraints in a footstep animation
are applied exactly the same way as in a freeform
animation. If you examine a footstep animation,
you will notice that the foot IK constraints follow
the same rules as for a freeform animation.
Footsteps are simply gizmos that define a foot’s
coordinate system. A foot can slide and move
relative to the footstep. Also, if y ou delete or add a
key in a footstep animation, the footstep duration
is changed.
Sett ing K eys for Feet and Ha nds
You can animate biped’s body par ts as you do
other 3ds Max objects: by setting keys for postures
at keyframes.
character studio provides three different ways to
set keys at the current f r ame:
•
Pose the biped body part, and
then click one of the set key buttons in the Key
Info rollout.
•
Turn on the Auto Key button, and
then pose the biped part. You can transform
the parts using transform tools, or you can
copy and paste poses and postures to keyf rame
the biped.
• Right-clickthetimesliderandusetheCreate
Keydialogtocreatekeysforselectedbiped
parts.