User Manual

XY Path
Unlike a Polyline path, the XY path modifier uses separate splines in the Spline Editor to
calculate position along the X-axis and along the Y-axis.
To animate a coordinate control using an XY path modifier:
 Right-click on the center coordinate control in the viewer or the Center X/ Y parameter
in the Inspector, and then choose Modify With > XY Path from the contextual menu.
Adding the XY Path modifier to a Center parameter in the Inspector.
At first glance, XY paths work like Polyline paths. To create the path once the modifier is
applied, position the playhead and drag the onscreen control where you want it. Position the
playhead again and move the onscreen control to its new position. The difference is that the
control points are only there for spatial positioning. There is no Displacement parameter for
controlling temporal positioning.
XY path modifier controls in the
Modifiers tab of the Inspector.
Instead of dragging in the viewer, you can use the controls in the Modifiers tab to create a
motion path, while using the object’s original Inspector controls as an offset to this motion path.
You can use the XYZ parameters to position the object, the Center X/Y parameters to position
the entire path, the Size and Angle to scale and rotate the path, and the Heading Offset control
to adjust the orientation.
Chapter – 62 Animating with Motion Paths 1253