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Setting Joint Precedence (HD Solver) 467

Moving telescopes with and without damping

Easing a Joint at Its Limits

An organic joint, or a worn mechanical joint,

moves freely in the middle of its range of motion

but moves less freely at the extremes of its range.

Use Ease to cause a joint to resist motion as it

approaches its From and To limits.

For example, your forearm might move freely in

themiddleofitsrangeofmotion,butitresists

movement when you try to squeeze it against

your upper arm or extend it all the wa y out. Ease

simulatesthiseffect.

Dampi ng Joint Action

As a joint corrodes, dries out, or is put under a

heavy load, it resists motion along its activ e axes.

Damping simulates the natural effect of joint

frict ion or inertia. Enter a value greater than zero

in the Damping field to apply resistance over a

joint’s full range of motion.

As damping increases a joint resists motion and

other joints are required to move more. A damping

valueof1.0meansthereisextremeresistanceand

ajointwillnotmoveonthataxis.

For example, a telescope with no damping at all

allows each cy linder to move to its maximum limit

before the next cylinder moves. If the cy linders

havedampingvaluesassigned,theneachcylinder

causes its parent to begin mov ing before it reaches

full extension.

Setting a Joint to S pr ing B ack

When a joint resists motion, it also has a tendency

to return toward its at-rest position. You simulate

this by setting Spring Back tension in the j oints. As

the joint m oves further from its rest position, an

increasingly larger force pulls the joint back, like

aspring.

When you set Spring Tension higher, the spring

pullsharderasthejointmovesfartherawayfrom

its rest position. Very high settings can turn the

joint into a lim it, because you c a n reach t he point

wherethespringistoostrongtoallowthejointto

move any farther.