This kind of problem also occurs in SI. If the parent has a rotation the children objects gimbal axis can get really messed up. I'm having this problem myself in Softimage now with a character skeleton that who knows why has her hip bone rotated (client's data) and doesn't have a rig, so some of the skirt bones Im adding are impossible to animate. I can workaround with controllers and constraints though and I only need to do some test animations so no big deal. A Neutral Pose could work too but I can't modify the bones. In Maya you could do the same, although only joints have a Neutral Pose kind of thing, extra controllers and constraints should work.
Martin Sent from my iPhone > On Sep 12, 2017, at 0:01, Morten Bartholdy <[email protected]> wrote: > > Thanks guys - there is plenty to investigate here :) > > //MB > > > >> Den 11. september 2017 klokken 16:50 skrev "Ponthieux, Joseph G. >> (LARC-E1A)[LITES II]" <[email protected]>: >> >> >> Here is another example which is probably closer to what you really want. >> I'm making that assumption of course with no knowledge of your scene. (BTW, >> ignore the cone2 and pipe2, they are left behind as a result of my editing >> the MEL. >> >> There are some details in the original MEL which are left out or cryptic. >> This is an attempt to explain that. >> >> What you can't easily see in the MEL that I am doing at several steps, is >> that when the Pipe and Cone are resting as children to locator2 I am >> executing Freeze Transformations then Reset Transformations on both the Pipe >> and Cone after all repositioning is final. This effectively zeroes them out >> in relation to their parent. This works if everything is aligned properly in >> original construction. >> >> The MEL command below that represents that freezing action on the transforms >> is "makeIdentity". I use Freeze then Reset because Freeze zeroes out the >> pivots, Reset zeroes out the transforms sending the transform "center" back >> to "world zero". The actual MEL commands are : >> >> FreezeTransformations; >> ResetTransformations; >> >> They are normally executed from Modify. They can be seen in MEL if you set >> the script editor to Echo All Commands. It may not look like Reset is doing >> anything if you have not moved the object away from world center. Reset's >> action will only be evident if you move the object to something of non-zero >> translation. Generally its just habit after 20 years, I always execute >> Freeze then Reset as a default part of the process. If the object wasn't >> moved, it wont hurt it. >> >> >> A synopsis of the process is as follows: >> >> Create, rotate and move the pipe. Preferably at world center and its length >> aligned with z axis. >> Create, rotate, and move the cone (analog for a bullet I guess). Also at >> world center and also aligned with z axis for z translation in relation to >> the pipe. >> Parent both under a locator. Also at World center. Do not move or change its >> position or orientation. >> Execute Freeze/Reset on both Pipe and Cone. >> Move & rotate the locator at will. Cone should follow the pipe and be >> keyable as translation only in the z axis to follow the pipe. >> >> >> Here is the MEL to demonstrate. >> >> >> >> file -f -new; >> CreatePolygonCone; >> polyCone -r 1 -h 2 -sx 20 -sy 1 -sz 0 -ax 0 1 0 -rcp 0 -cuv 3 -ch 1; >> setAttr "pCone1.rotateX" -90; >> CreatePolygonPipe; >> polyPipe -r 1 -h 2 -t 0.5 -sa 20 -sh 1 -sc 0 -ax 0 1 0 -cuv 1 -rcp 0 -ch 1; >> setAttr "pPipe1.rotateX" -90; >> select -cl ; >> spaceLocator -p 0 0 0; >> spaceLocator -p 0 0 0; >> select -r locator1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> select -r locator2 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> parent locator2 locator1 ; >> parent pPipe1 locator2 ; >> select -r pCone1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> parent pCone1 locator2 ; >> select -r locator2 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> select -r pPipe1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> makeIdentity -apply true -t 1 -r 1 -s 1 -n 0 -pn 1; >> select -r pCone1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> makeIdentity -apply true -t 1 -r 1 -s 1 -n 0 -pn 1; >> select -r pPipe1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> setAttr "pPipe1.scaleZ" 10; >> select -addFirst polyPipe1 ; >> setAttr "polyPipe1.thickness" .1; >> makeIdentity -apply true -t 1 -r 1 -s 1 -n 0 -pn 1; >> select -r locator1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> rotate -r -os -fo 32.234531 0 0 ; >> rotate -r -os -fo 0 33.615086 0 ; >> select -r pCone1 ; >> selectKey -clear ; >> if( `getAttr -k "pCone1.tz"`||`getAttr -channelBox "pCone1.tz"` )setKeyframe >> "pCone1.tz"; >> currentTime 30 ; >> move -r -ls -wd 0 0 -37.704086 ; >> if( `getAttr -k "pCone1.tz"`||`getAttr -channelBox "pCone1.tz"` )setKeyframe >> "pCone1.tz"; >> >> >> >> >> Joey >> >> >> >> >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [email protected] >> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Ponthieux, >> Joseph G. (LARC-E1A)[LITES II] >> Sent: Monday, September 11, 2017 9:52 AM >> To: [email protected] >> Subject: RE: Maya - what were they thinking 2 - transforms >> >> More than likely this has something to do with the way your hierarchy is >> organized. There is no reason why you can't do this. The key to making this >> work is that the gun cannot have had its pivot or transforms modified in >> relation to the child. The object as child to the gun must be zero-centric >> to it. In other words, the gun must be the "world" coordinates for the gun. >> Does that make sense? >> >> Run the MEL commands below in your script editor in an empty scene. See >> specifically the angle of locator2 and the keyframed z translation of >> pCone1. Move locator1 around at will, and you can change the orientation of >> locator2 if you desire, but the cone's motion is always maintained on Z axis >> relative everything it is parented to. And it is only animated explicitly on >> Z. See the Graph editor for pCone1. Is this similar to what you are trying >> to accomplish? >> >> >> >> >> file -f -new; >> spaceLocator -p 0 0 0; >> updateRenderOverride; >> spaceLocator -p 0 0 0; >> CreatePolygonCone; >> polyCone -r 1 -h 2 -sx 20 -sy 1 -sz 0 -ax 0 1 0 -rcp 0 -cuv 3 -ch 1; parent >> pCone1 locator2 ; select -r locator2 ; selectKey -clear ; parent locator2 >> locator1 ; select -r locator2 ; selectKey -clear ; rotate -r -os -fo >> 9.453111 0 0 ; setAttr "locator2.rotateX" 45; select -r pCone1 ; selectKey >> -clear ; if( `getAttr -k "pCone1.tz"`||`getAttr -channelBox "pCone1.tz"` >> )setKeyframe "pCone1.tz"; currentTime 30 ; move -r -ls -wd 0 0 -8.127347 ; >> if( `getAttr -k "pCone1.tz"`||`getAttr -channelBox "pCone1.tz"` )setKeyframe >> "pCone1.tz"; currentTime 22 ; selectKey -clear ; currentTime 15 ; select -r >> locator2 ; selectKey -clear ; select -r locator2 pCone1 ; selectKey -clear ; >> select -r pCone1 ; selectKey -clear ; >> >> >> >> >> >> Joey Ponthieux >> __________________________________________________ >> Opinions stated here-in are strictly those of the author and do not >> represent the opinions of NASA or any other party. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [email protected] >> [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Morten >> Bartholdy >> Sent: Monday, September 11, 2017 6:17 AM >> To: Userlist, Softimage <[email protected]> >> Subject: Maya - what were they thinking 2 - transforms >> >> So I understand (to some degree) that there are fundamental differences >> between the way transformations are handled in Maya vs Soft, but I just ran >> into something which on the surface looks simple, but is quite mindboggling. >> Hopefully it is just a case of Mayas way of hiding useful stuff in some >> obscure submenu or relationship editor, but here goes: >> >> I am doing some very simple keyframe animation in Maya (one of the few >> things that does not drive me entirely crazy) and am animating a thingy >> which is parented to a gun which is pointed in a particular direction. I >> just want it to fly of on its local z-axis so I select it, set Transform >> Tool Settings, Axis Orientation to Object, key frame translate out along >> z-axis and keyframe. Now I want to edit the function curves to make sure it >> accelerates as desired, open the graph editor and see graph representation >> of its motion is in world space, ie. it is not only animated on the z-axis, >> but also on x and Y. Obviously editing these curves manually will easily >> lead to having the object not flying in a straight line... >> >> In this case I could draw a curve to use as motion path, but is is more >> cumbersome (like so many things in Maya) and for many reasons I would really >> prefer to be able to switch between World space and Object space in the >> Graph Editor. Our resident Maya artist has looked for similar functionality >> many times through different Maya versions, so far without luck, so she can >> not offer relief from this specific lack of brainpower on the part of the >> Maya devs. >> >> Can Maya knowledgeable people here confirm this fundamental lack of >> functionality or perhaps tell where I find it, or barring that, offer advice >> regarding how to achieve something similar? >> >> Thanks (sigh) >> >> Morten >> ------ >> Softimage Mailing List. >> To unsubscribe, send a mail to [email protected] with >> "unsubscribe" in the subject, and reply to confirm. >> >> ------ >> Softimage Mailing List. >> To unsubscribe, send a mail to [email protected] with >> "unsubscribe" in the subject, and reply to confirm. >> >> ------ >> Softimage Mailing List. >> To unsubscribe, send a mail to [email protected] with >> "unsubscribe" in the subject, and reply to confirm. > ------ > Softimage Mailing List. > To unsubscribe, send a mail to [email protected] with > "unsubscribe" in the subject, and reply to confirm. ------ Softimage Mailing List. 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