Connected Joints and Hierarchy

[macaroniKazoo]

the connection is purely a visual thing to keep people coming from other packages comfortable. putting joints in a heirarchy is almost exactly the same as putting normal transforms in a heirarchy, the fact that the "bone" gets drawn is purely a visual indicator of parenting.

[brentorama]

Hey ho, do what the cool kids do and use the Group, Center Pivot, Parent Constraint technique that's sweeping the nation.

Take joint child, group to itself and center pivot, Select the parent joint, shift select the Group and apply parent contraint. Repeat until insane.

[Drublic]

Thanks! I figured as much.

Every so often I get a feeling. As soon as I think "oh I'm sure everything is fine" I immediately get this doubt as to whether one of the hamsters that work in my computer got tired or something and it is setting the whole thing askew.

Also,

Hey ho, do what the cool kids do and use the Group, Center Pivot, Parent Constraint technique that's sweeping the nation.

Take joint child, group to itself and center pivot, Select the parent joint, shift select the Group and apply parent contraint. Repeat until insane.

Is there a practical use to this, or is just a way to avoid seeing linked joints? (and cluttering up your outliner something awful.)

[brentorama]

I never found myself wanting for linked joints without the visible connections, I mean what does it bother that cant be solved by turning off joints in the panel menu... but then again I don't know the particulars of your project do I?

Practical use? Im sure youll think of something.

[jumper3d]

Why don't you create box's, parent the moveable joints to them and then hide joints...

[macaroniKazoo]

better yet, parent shape nodes to the joints, and voila. now your joints look just like normal pieces of geometry...

[jumper3d]

OR...forget my last reply, we're over looking the obvious...

open the connection editor, connect the box's translate (that you create and want to use) to the end joint or the ikHandle...then you can hide joints, then you will only see the boxes at the ends of the apendages and use then to annimate. I've just quickly applied this to a rig, put a 2/3 transparency shader to the cubes, and it works nice.

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