This is a fairly silly question, but I'm looking around for something,
and I just can't seem to find anything that suites my needs ATM..

    I have a kicking idea for the animation round of the current IRTC
animation round, but I feel that I'm lacking in one major area.  A tool that
can support animations while using a system simular to Morays Inverse
Kinematics capabilities.  I'm almost tempted to write some perl scripts to
do something simular to this, which could take my scene file, parse out some
special escape characters, and spit out the object locations, then spawning
off pov to render, saving the output file so they can be assembled into the
animation.

    So basically, does anyone out there know of a tool that does something
simular?  I don't know that I'd have the time to actually write a fully
functional app to do this, and even if there is something that does part of
what I need to, it'd be better then starting from scratch.

Post a reply to this message

In article <3afffce6$1@news.povray.org>, tch### [at] ductapenet 
says...
>     This is a fairly silly question, but I'm looking around for something,
> and I just can't seem to find anything that suites my needs ATM..
> 
>     I have a kicking idea for the animation round of the current IRTC
> animation round, but I feel that I'm lacking in one major area.  A tool that
> can support animations while using a system simular to Morays Inverse
> Kinematics capabilities.  I'm almost tempted to write some perl scripts to
> do something simular to this, which could take my scene file, parse out some
> special escape characters, and spit out the object locations, then spawning
> off pov to render, saving the output file so they can be assembled into the
> animation.

You might try my raytracing freeware at 
http://www.crosswinds.net/~robertsc30/index.html. I might have 
something listed in there. This freeware is for Windows only 
though. 

-- 
http://www.crosswinds.net/~robertsc30/
Free HLP files for: Access 97 object reference. Plus lots of 
freeware, 500+ files. 

Help in the cure for leukemia by using Peer-to-peer computing. 
http://www.intel.com/cure

Post a reply to this message

Works for me..  Thats my primary platform at work..  8)

    The perl part tricked ya, didn't it?

"Chuck R." <chu### [at] netzeronet> wrote in message
news:MPG.1569dbe3962d8e80989684@news.povray.org...
> In article <3afffce6$1@news.povray.org>, tch### [at] ductapenet
> says...
> >     This is a fairly silly question, but I'm looking around for
something,
> > and I just can't seem to find anything that suites my needs ATM..
> >
> >     I have a kicking idea for the animation round of the current IRTC
> > animation round, but I feel that I'm lacking in one major area.  A tool
that
> > can support animations while using a system simular to Morays Inverse
> > Kinematics capabilities.  I'm almost tempted to write some perl scripts
to
> > do something simular to this, which could take my scene file, parse out
some
> > special escape characters, and spit out the object locations, then
spawning
> > off pov to render, saving the output file so they can be assembled into
the
> > animation.
>
> You might try my raytracing freeware at
> http://www.crosswinds.net/~robertsc30/index.html. I might have
> something listed in there. This freeware is for Windows only
> though.
>
> --
> http://www.crosswinds.net/~robertsc30/
> Free HLP files for: Access 97 object reference. Plus lots of
> freeware, 500+ files.
>
> Help in the cure for leukemia by using Peer-to-peer computing.
> http://www.intel.com/cure

Post a reply to this message

Povray wrote in message <3afffce6$1@news.povray.org>...
>    So basically, does anyone out there know of a tool that does something
>simular?  I don't know that I'd have the time to actually write a fully
>functional app to do this, and even if there is something that does part of
>what I need to, it'd be better then starting from scratch.
>

Here is a suggestion I've considered but haven't yet tried, so somebody correct
me if I'm wrong about this.

If you're not averse to meshes you can set up the following pipeline:

1. Use Anim8or to bone, and pose your mesh ( modeled in Anim8or or imported from
a .3ds or .obj file ).
2. Set your keyframes and rather quickly work out the timing in it's cycle
editor.
3. Export each of your keyframe poses as a separate file (.3ds or .obj; could be
quite a bit of disk space depending on mesh size and keyframe count)
4. Convert each to a PoV mesh with utility of your choice and run through Warp's
mesh compressor.
5. Use Chris Colefax's macros to render the animation; use the morphing
capabilities of the pcm hair macro, and the Autoclock macro with values
determined in Anim8or.

I think this would work because as long as your not adding to or taking away
from the geometry of the mesh, it should morph ok. One caveat; last time I
checked Anim8or didn't support IK but it is supposedly in the works.

Hope that helps.

----------------------------------------
Batronyx ^"^
bat### [at] cadronhsacom
http://www.batronyx.com
Bhuddist monk to hotdog vendor:
     "Make me one with everything."
----------------------------------------

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"Batronyx" wrote:
> 4. Convert each to a PoV mesh with utility of your
> choice and run through Warp's mesh compressor.
> 5. Use Chris Colefax's macros to render the animation;
> use the morphing capabilities of the pcm hair macro, and
> the Autoclock macro with values determined in Anim8or.

I think it can only morph linearly between the keyframes, and that wouldn't
look too good. Worth to try out though.

Rune
--
\ Include files, tutorials, 3D images, raytracing jokes,
/ The POV Desktop Theme, and The POV-Ray Logo Contest can
\ all be found at http://rsj.mobilixnet.dk (updated May 10)
/ Also visit http://www.povrayusers.org

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Rune wrote in message <3b029e63@news.povray.org>...
>"Batronyx" wrote:
>> 4. Convert each to a PoV mesh with utility of your
>> choice and run through Warp's mesh compressor.
>> 5. Use Chris Colefax's macros to render the animation;
>> use the morphing capabilities of the pcm hair macro, and
>> the Autoclock macro with values determined in Anim8or.
>
>I think it can only morph linearly between the keyframes, and that wouldn't
>look too good. Worth to try out though.
>

It's not really a major problem, just something to be aware of. Funny looking
transitions will simply need more keyframe poses inserted between them. AFAIK
most 'morphing' algorithms 'are' linear. At least that is the case in the few
other packages I've tried and in the few snippets of morphing code I've seen.

Post a reply to this message

"Batronyx" wrote:
> Rune wrote:
> > I think it can only morph linearly between the keyframes,
> > and that wouldn't look too good. Worth to try out though.
>
> It's not really a major problem, just something to be aware
> of. Funny looking transitions will simply need more
> keyframe poses inserted between them.

Many more. I think It'll be a lot of work.

> AFAIK most 'morphing' algorithms 'are' linear. At least
> that is the case in the few other packages I've tried and
> in the few snippets of morphing code I've seen.

Those kinds of morphing are not meant to be used to interpolate between
keyframes. :)

Keyframe interpolation usually use smooth splines I think.

Rune
--
\ Include files, tutorials, 3D images, raytracing jokes,
/ The POV Desktop Theme, and The POV-Ray Logo Contest can
\ all be found at http://rsj.mobilixnet.dk (updated May 10)
/ Also visit http://www.povrayusers.org

Post a reply to this message

Why not try the animation plugin for Moray?  You get IK like Moray +
animation...

Xander

Povray wrote:
> 
>     This is a fairly silly question, but I'm looking around for something,
> and I just can't seem to find anything that suites my needs ATM..
> 
>     I have a kicking idea for the animation round of the current IRTC
> animation round, but I feel that I'm lacking in one major area.  A tool that
> can support animations while using a system simular to Morays Inverse
> Kinematics capabilities.  I'm almost tempted to write some perl scripts to
> do something simular to this, which could take my scene file, parse out some
> special escape characters, and spit out the object locations, then spawning
> off pov to render, saving the output file so they can be assembled into the
> animation.
> 
>     So basically, does anyone out there know of a tool that does something
> simular?  I don't know that I'd have the time to actually write a fully
> functional app to do this, and even if there is something that does part of
> what I need to, it'd be better then starting from scratch.

Post a reply to this message