Animating Sliding Doors

# 1 25-12-2012 , 04:44 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2012

Posts: 13

Hello Everyone,

I have a relatively simple problem(I think) but could not find any help through google searches. so I went in seek of the best maya forum I could find and here we are.

I was hoping that some one would be able to help me find the right direction on how to set up a rig to animate some sliding doors opening. (the doors would open like almost any grocery store (there are two doors that open from the middle out to the sides.

My best asni art attempt ;D
] || [ < closed
]| |[ < open

here is what I have tried to do my self.

originally my thought was to have the doors parented to there own controlers and I would have a master controller that would have a custom attribute set to it. when when the custom attribute is at its min value the doors would be closed and when the attribute is at its max values the doors would be open.

I used the connection editor to edit the Master Controller>OpenDoors to connect to the Door controler.x value
the set up worked perfectly for the right door it would open from its min start to its max open

but when I tried to set up the left door it would overlap the right door and move in line with it.

I figured out that this is because all the values are the same.

to make a long story short I went in a google search to make the left door move in a -connection value but no real luck. (it took me through the graph editor connecting a multi/divide utility to the connection so the connection went from the Master controller> multi/divide > left door)

now I will say that I could have used the utility wrong but it still seemed like it was off a bit.

so after about an hour and a half of searching and trying some different rigging set ups
Here I am asking for some help.

I also know that I could set each door up with there helpers and animate them individually but I thought why make multiple key frames on two different door sections when I should be able to do it through one master controller.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you may give me.

~Oasis

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# 2 25-12-2012 , 09:51 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2012

Posts: 13

So I went back and checked the other forum again that made the connection editor go in the minus direction.

it was correct and fixed my issue (where I went wrong was in step 8. I connected to input.X again instead of output.x)

(sorry for linking another forum sight I just want to be through)

How do i make a negative connection in the CONNECTION EDITOR?
https://forums.cgsociety.org/archive/.../t-140735.html

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# 3 25-12-2012 , 10:34 AM

SM Tea Boy
Join Date: Apr 2002

Location: Prague

Posts: 3,228

glad you got it sorted and there is no problem here with linking in cgsociety if you find an answer there i'm sure there are other people that will find the information useful

Happy holidays

From a readers' Q and A column in TV GUIDE: "If we get involved in a nuclear war, would the electromagnetic pulses from exploding bombs damage my videotapes?"

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# 4 25-12-2012 , 02:48 PM

Lead Modeler - Framestore
Join Date: Feb 2003

Location: UK

Posts: 6,287

We did have a set driven key tute a while ago with a sliding door Mike did, is it still on here??

J

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# 5 31-12-2012 , 02:16 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2006

Location: Bulgaria, Vidin

Posts: 1,310

I'll make a tutorial and post it tomorrow. It can easily be done with Set Driven keys.

Here you go.
Sorry for the bad voice, i use the laptop microphone...

Sliding Doors with Set Driven Keys - YouTube

Art Director
www.sevenbullsgames.com

Last edited by ColdWave; 31-12-2012 at 10:09 AM.

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# 6 06-01-2013 , 08:43 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2012

Posts: 13

hey thanks for the tutorial. set driven keys seems to be useful. I liked how you were able to set your own max value to the key and the movement on the door was in dependent from that value.

when I used the connection editor the door moved on a 1:1 value ratio for the translate value for the door.
(Ie. my door needed to move five units left or right to be fully open. so for the connection editor I needed to set the attribute to 5. If I set it to 4 or 6 as an example the door would either not open far enough or to much.)

I will also make a quick tutorial on how i did it and show some of the vast ways you can accomplish the same tasks ;D

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