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NLA-Strips now have a new setting: Scale.
It determines how much the action-range is scaled for each repeat, instead of the scaling being implicitly determined based on repeats + strip-length.
One of the instant benefits of this, is that when increasing the number of repeats, the strip length increases by the right amount. Thus, increasing the number of repeats retains a constant speed.
Hopefully we can prevent weirdly scaled actions this way. (i.e. 0.00001 frames long action * 10000 or so)
Todo:
- Transform code needs to be able to set the scale setting (it doesn't yet)
- Add a new option to "apply scaling", to fix up problems with old files that have really bad scaling. Situations when this is needed could get indicated in the interface too... (red background for "Scale" field?)
This is just a little time-saver for NLA-workflow. With the 'Auto-Blending' option
turned on in the Transform Properties (NKEY) for an ActionStrip, that strip's blendin/blendout values are determined based on the number of frames that the previous and/or next actionstrip(s) on overlap over the start and end of it.
It is turned on by default for new actionstrips added using the Shift-N hotkey.
Caveats:
* Only the actionstrips immediately on either side of the strip being evaluated, will
have any effect
* A strip that is longer-than, and extends over the sides of the strip being evaluated,
will have no effect
Additional Notes:
* Blendin/Blendout have been renamed In/Out in UI for brevity
* Button layout in NLA Transform Properties has changed slightly again, but hopefully that shouldn't be too much of an issue.
Commit of patch #5385, to make forward cycling more
user-controllable. Previously it only worked on one axis,
which was auto-detected from movement. This allows forward
cycling to work in more situations, such as stair
stepping.
- FORWARD CYCLING & MATCHING
Up to no now, adding multiple actions in NLA with walkcycles required to
animate them standing still, as if walking on a conveyor belt. The stride
option then makes the object itself move forward, trying to keep the foot
stuck on the floor (with poor results!).
This option now allows to make walk cycles moving forward. By
indicating a reference Offset Bone, the NLA system will use that bone to
detect the correct offset for the Armature Pose to make it seamlessly going
forward.
Best of all, this option works as for cyclic Action Strips as well as for
individual Action Strips. Note that for individual strips, you have to set
the strip on "Hold". (Might become automatic detected later).
Here's an example edit image for NLA:
http://www.blender.org/bf/nla_match-cycle.jpg
And the animation for it:
http://download.blender.org/demo/test/2.43/0001_0150_match.avi
Blender file:
http://download.blender.org/demo/test/2.43/mancandy_matching.blend
Using this kind of cycling works pretty straightforward, and is a lot
easier to setup than Stride Bones.
To be further tested:
- Blending cycles
- matching rotation for the bones as well.
- ACTION MODIFIERS (motion deformors)
The above option was actually required for this feature. Typically walk
cycles are constructed with certain Bones to be the handles, controlling
for example the torso or feet.
An Action Modifier allows you to use a Curve Path to deform the motion of
these controlling bones. This uses the existing Curve Deformation option.
Modifiers can be added per Action Strip, each controlling a channel (bone)
by choice, and even allows to layer multiple modifiers on top of each other
(several paths deforming motion). This option is using the dependency graph,
so editing the Curve will give realtime changes in the Armature.
The previous walkcycle, controlled by two curves:
http://download.blender.org/demo/test/2.43/0001_0150_deform.avi
Blender file:
http://download.blender.org/demo/test/2.43/mancandy_actiondeform.blend
Action Modifiers can be added in the NLA Properties Panel. Per Modifier you
have to indicate the channel and a Curve Object. You can copy modifiers from
one strip to another using CTRL+C (only copies to active Object strips).
Setting up a correct Curve Path has to be carefully done:
- Use SHIFT+A "Curve Path" in top view, or ensure the path is not rotated.
- make sure the center point of the Curve Object is at the center of the
Armature (or above)
- move the first point of the curve to the center point as well.
- check if the path starts from this first point, you can change it using
(in Curve EditMode) the option Wkey -> "Switch Direction"
- Make sure alignment uses the correct axis; if the Armature walks into
the negative Y direction, you have to set in Object Buttons, "Anim settings"
Panel, the correct Track option. (Note; option will probably move to the
Modifier later).
This is a good reason to make such paths automatic (on a command). Is on the
todo list.
Also note this:
- the Curve Path extends in beginning and ending, that's (for now) the default,
and allows to use multiple paths. Make sure paths begin and end horizontal.
- Moving the Curve in Object Mode will change the "mapping" (as if the landscape
a character walks over moves). Moving the Curve in Edit Mode will change the
actual position of the deformation.
- Speed (Ipos) on paths is not supported yet, will be done.
- The Curve "Stretch" deform option doesn't work.
- Modifiers are executed *after* all actions in NLA are evaluated, there's no
support yet for blending multiple strips with Modifiers.
- This doesn't work yet for time-mapping...
This commit is mostly for review by character animators... some details or
working methods might change.
This feature can also be used for other modifiers, such as noise (Perlin) or
the mythical "Oomph" (frequency control) and of course Python.
Special thanks to Bassam & Matt for research & design help. Have fun!
For some ancient reason, the stride option only worked on a single strip,
and extended always. This made it nearly impossible to integrate it well
with other actions in NLA.
This commit changes it as follows;
- As any strip, the striding-strip also stops at the end of a strip
- This allows to put multiple different actions on a single path, and if
all of these have the striding option set, the actions will each do their
own individual stride.
- To match the different actions, a new "Action Offset" button was added
in the NLA Panel, which allows to internally cycle the action.
- Of course, blend-in and blend-out works nicely too.
Here's a quick AVI test with 2 actions. There's some slipping of the feet
between actions still, because of the stridebone blending. I might look
at that later, for now you can correct it with a simple Ipo on Armature too
http://www.blender.org/bf/0007_0151.avi
-> Any Group Duplicate now can get local timing and local NLA override. This
enables to control the entire animation system of the Group.
Two methods for this have been implemented.
1) The quick way: just give the duplicator a "Startframe" offset.
2) Advanced: in the NLA Editor you can add ActionStrips to the duplicator
to override NLA/action of any Grouped Object.
For "Group NLA" to work, an ActionStrip needs to know which Object in a
group it controls. On adding a strip, the code checks if an Action was
already used by an Object in the Group, and assigns it automatic to that
Object.
You can also set this in the Nkey "Properties" panel for the strip.
Change in NLA: the SHIFT+A "Add strip" command now always adds strips to
the active Object. (It used to check where mouse was). This allows to add
NLA strips to Objects that didn't have actions/nla yet.
Important note: In Blender, duplicates are fully procedural and generated
on the fly for each redraw. This means that redraw speed equals to stepping
through frames, when using animated Duplicated Groups.
-> Recoded entire duplicator system
The old method was antique and clumsy, using globals and full temporal
copies of Object. The new system is nicer in control, faster, and since it
doesn't use temporal object copies anymore, it works better with Derived
Mesh and DisplayList and rendering.
By centralizing the code for duplicating, more options can be easier added.
Features to note:
- Duplicates now draw selected/unselected based on its Duplicator setting.
- Same goes for the drawtype (wire, solid, selection outline, etc)
- Duplicated Groups can be normally selected too
Bonus goodie: SHIFT+A (Toolbox) now has entry "Add group" too, with a
listing of all groups, allowing to add Group instances immediate.
-> Library System
- SHIFT+F4 data browse now shows the entire path for linked data
- Outliner draws Library Icons to denote linked data
- Outliner operation added: "Make Local" for library data.
- Outliner now also draws Groups in regular view, allowing to unlink too.
-> Fixes
- depsgraph missed signal update for bone-parented Objects
- on reading file, the entire database was tagged to "recalc" fully,
causing unnecessary slowdown on reading.
Might have missed stuff... :)
1) Stride Bone
For walkcycles, you could already set an NLA strip to cycle over a path
based on a preset distance value. This cycling happens based on a linear
interpolation, with constant speed.
Not all cycles have a constant speed however, like hopping or jumping.
To ensure a perfect slipping-less foot contact, you now can set a Bone
in an Armature to define the stride. This "Stride Bone" then becomes a
sort-of ruler, a conveyor belt, on which the character walks. When using
the NLA "Use Path" option, it then tries to keep the Stride Bone entirely
motionless on the path, by cancelling out its motion (for the entire
Armature). This means that the animation keys for a Stride Bone have to be
exactly negative of the desired path. Only, at choice, the X,Y or Z Ipo
curve is used for this stride.
Examples:
http://www.blender.org/bf/0001_0040.avi
The top armature shows the actual Action, the bottom armature has been
parented to a Path, using the Stride Bone feature.
http://www.blender.org/bf/0001_0080.avi
Here the Stride Bone has a number of children, creating a ruler to be
used as reference while animating.
Test .blend:
http://www.blender.org/bf/motionblender1.blend
Notes:
- Note that action keys for Bones work local, based on the Bone's
orientation as set in EditMode. Therefore, an Y translation always
goes in the Bone's direction.
- To be able to get a "solvable" stride, the animation curve has
to be inverse evaluated, using a Newton Raphson root solver. That
means you can only create stride curves that keep moving forward, and
cannot return halfway.
- Set the Stride Bone in the Editing Buttons, Bone Panel. You can set
change the name or set the axis in the NLA Window, Strip Properties Panel.
- Files in this commit will move to the blender.org release section.
2) Armature Ghosting
In EditButtons, Armature Panel, you can set an armature to draw ghosts.
The number value denotes the amount of frames that have to be drawn extra
(for the active action!) around the current frame.
Ghosts only evaluate its own Pose, executing it's Actions, Constraints and
IK. No external dependencies are re-evaluated for it.
3) NLA/Action time control
If you click in the NLA window on the action (linked to Object), it makes
sure the Timing as drawn in the Action editor is not corrected for NLA.
If you also set the Object to "Action", this timing will be executed on the
Object as well (not NLA time).
(It's a bit confusing... will make a good doc & maybe review UI!)
-> Locked Strip length
When changing time of the animation curves in an Action, the strips in NLA
just remained the same length, causing very confusing situations.
By setting the strips to Locked (Nkey NLA window), it always updates the
strip length to make sure all keys are included, and not more. From now on
(not on old files) this is the default strip method.
-> ALT+C clear size
This menu has 2 options, the first clears the size, the 2nd remaps the
action (only when you didnt use the new Lock feature).
Both options are in the Pulldown menu too
-> Key drawing
The weird beveled button in Action/NLA didn't accurately show what time it
was actually on. I've replaced it with an Icon now, diamond shaped, in a
design derived from the TimeLine markers.
- switched almost all uiDefBut(..., TOG|BIT|..) to use UiDefButBit and the
name of the actual bit define instead of just a magic constant, this makes
searching the code much nicer. most of the credit here goes to LetterRip
who did almost all of the conversions, I mostly just checked them over.
(adding)
#ifdef HAVE_CONFIG_H
#include <config.h>
#endif
also the Makefile.in's were from previous patch adding
the system depend stuff to configure.ac
Kent
--
mein@cs.umn.edu
Campbell Barton
Joshua Leung
Nathan Letwory
Chris Want
Joseph Eagar
Ton Roosendaal
Daniel Dunbar
Kent Mein
Hans Lambermont
