Simple 4 bone 3D head turn part2

DK · Post by DK » Sun May 20, 2007 5:45 am

Is it possible to download a trial version to find out which version of AS supports scripts or not? Can someone clarify this for us?

D.K

DK · Post by DK » Sun May 20, 2007 7:38 am

I just downloaded the AS demo. I tried the lion head with Verns script and the good news is that it seemed to work ok but there is no scripts menu at all available in AS Standard.

D.K

Mikdog · Post by **Mikdog** » Sun May 20, 2007 9:18 am

thanx heyvern

Genete · Post by **Genete** » Sun May 20, 2007 9:34 am

According to the manual scripting is not allowed. But is a good new AS Standard can read and play the PRO anme files.

capricorn33 · Post by **capricorn33** » Sun May 20, 2007 9:54 am

heyvern wrote: .../ ONE FREAKING BONE! /.../

The really really cool part is... /.../ you can increase or decrease the scale amount for each side for a better "3D" simulation. /.../ offset the children of these bones so they "translate" at different values... /.../ could be applied to ANY movement of a bone... rotation, translation. /.../ a bone that moves in opposite directions on either side. /.../ I also want to write a "general" script so you guys could play with it.

If you are interested in this and have any ideas for naming the bones or a better idea to identify bones for all these features in one script let me know.

Sing halleluja! Yes I'm interested! This sounds really cool!

(I just hope it won't be to hard to use for me to grasp)

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Sun May 20, 2007 7:27 pm

tried the lion head with Verns script and the good news is that it seemed to work ok

So in the layer properties is the check box for adding a layer script available?

I just hope it won't be to hard to use for me to grasp

Well... the beauty of scripting is that you don't have to understand them to use them. Only the people writing them have to understand what they do.

All the tools in AS are scripts.

Before I bought Moho I didn't even know ONE TINY LITTLE BIT of the lua programming language. I'M NOT EVEN A "REAL" PROGRAMMER. I just play one on TV.

I know some Javascript which is similar. That's why I have trouble with the math. Programmers KNOW math.

I will try to keep it simple to setup. Basically I am going with my original idea:

If you want a bone to flip its scale just name it with a .s (DOT S) at the end. If you want it to flip its rotation just add .r at the end.

I will include a sample file.

It's funny. Once again most of the effort of writing the script is finding all those bones with special names and keeping track of them. The actual flipping is easy.

This one script should cover everything I need for my rig.

-vern

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Mon May 21, 2007 1:25 am

It isn't finished but it works. I have to add translation flipping (x and y) and some other things.

This is the first draft of my "Flipper" script:

viewtopic.php?t=7842

It's pretty straight forward. Read the instructions carefully and if you have any problems or suggestions let me know.

-vern

DK · Post by DK » Mon May 21, 2007 6:29 am

Two bones now control everything in the head.

I have'nt had much time to spare on the model for the past couple days but I have re-rigged the head bones and re-ordered the layers as per Caps lion. Now the nose turns automatically along with the rest of the face/head. It required a new type of bone rig to give the nose that off centre axis but this rig works like a dream!!!! If you look carefully at the nose you will see that its axis is slightly off centred so that it moves horizontally to match the face as it turns.

http://www.wienertoonz.com/headnosedemo.swf

I have also created an ear. The ear was the damned hardest shape I have ever had to make!!!

http://www.wienertoonz.com/earfinal.swf

It is not yet connected to the head as it will need a rig similar to the nose which I have not yet constructed. When I am done and happy I will post the anme files.

EDIT:
Vern - yes script embedding is available.

Cheers
D.K

capricorn33 · Post by **capricorn33** » Mon May 21, 2007 6:47 am

That ear looks really convincing, DK!

heyvern: can't wait to start experimenting with these flipbones!

DK · Post by DK » Tue May 22, 2007 8:03 am

After a LOT of thought and countless experiments I have done a complete re-think and developed a brand new approach to the 2.5 human head rotation technique. While the scale rotate method I developed in this thread is very handy for 3/4 rotations, I beleive it cannot be used to achieve a complete 180 degree rotation of the head without serious vector distortions.

The good news is the new method is even simpler than the first and allows you to easily create perfect character profiles!

I will be starting a new thread for this soon!

D.K

Genete · Post by **Genete** » Tue May 22, 2007 8:47 am

Yeah! a character profile is would be easy to achieve if you carefully study the front and side profiles and prepare one to achieve the other.
But remember: divide the image into shapes that should be hidden alternatively by others when the head is turning. Also, most accurate is your profile more bones you need... Remember also that the conversion of the profile form front view to straigthforward a side view is not a linear or smooth translation. So it cannot be achieved 100% realistically with only two keyframes (unless you use my springy mechanisms or some of heyvern's scripts to convert a rotation into a translation

).
And finally, if you make a very accurate profile you will go to a "one point one bone" what is the thing that I (and supouse you) want to avoid.

In my honest opinion the best way is:

1) Divide the head into parts that have different behavior. Ears, eyes, mouth, nose (left and right), head back (left and right) head front (left and right)
2) Link those parts to some funny "translate - rotate" bones (springy, moved by scripts, or scale-moved)
3) Distort the divided part using any of the following techniques (or a combination of them: point motion, scripted bones motion, springy bones motion or scale-turn bones)
4) Hide properly the shapes behind its correspondin ones at the correct moment. Heyvern says that it could be automatic done by scripting. That's true for those shapes that are immediately put below when its opossite is put avobe. But in some situations you dont have a "ABC" "CBA" shape ordering. Sometimes you have "ABCDE" "CBADE" and "ABEDC" ordering that I don't know (by now) how a general script can do that (for sure you'll do it heyvern!!)

I think the best results comes from a combination of springy for the rotation and scaled bones and point motion for the distortion.

Best
Genete

DK · Post by DK » Sat Jun 09, 2007 6:26 am

Holy Cow! I just saw how many hits this thread has had!!! Just thought I should post my ear for anyone wanting to play with attaching it to the head and got the shock of my life.

http://www.wienertoonz.com/earfinal.swf

http://www.wienertoonz.com/earfinal.anme

Cheers
D.K

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Sat Jun 09, 2007 7:38 am

Good lord man!

That ear setup is brilliant. My ear... is so complex. Can I use your ear?

I will stick this ear on the current head and upload it.

Funny... usually you say "Stick it in your ear!" instead of "Stick your ear on it!"

-vern

Genete · Post by **Genete** » Sat Jun 09, 2007 7:38 am

Hi DK!
What a good combination of point binding! It was very smart to bind some points to a translated bone and others to a scaled bone.

Very well done!

Keep it up!
-G

heyvern · Post by **heyvern** » Sat Jun 09, 2007 7:42 am

DK make sure you check out my new bone selection tool. It has a scrolling list for the bones. You can find it in my sticky thread in Scripts.

I have been using it "full time" now with out any problems. I have delegated the original bone selection tool to the "other" section just in case I need it for something.

My next tool is multiple bone translation!!! Woohooo!. With all these bones in these rigs it's very annoying you can't translate more than one at a time.

-vern