Complex string effect

# 1 29-12-2003 , 06:29 PM

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Join Date: Aug 2003

Posts: 8

I have a cell phone model and I want to have a little charm or key chain like item hang from it.

So this is what I have:

1) Cell phone model
2) A little "plastic" charm
3) A string attatched to both

What I'd like it to do is when I move the cell phone the string swings around moving the attatched charm on the end of the string.

In my animation I'll need to do things like have the phone on a table or in a pocket, have a character pick it up and put it down. SO somehow that string and charm can't go through itself or said character.

I know this is really complex. I looked around at all sorts of tutorials and played around with my own ideas, but I'm just not knowledged enough in Maya Dynamics etc. I'm modeler mostly trying to learn animation.

Any help or advice would be great.

Thanks a lot.
-George

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# 2 29-12-2003 , 08:11 PM

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Location: Minnesota, USA

Posts: 3,709

Well, for the string, I would suggest converting the curve into a soft-body curve, add springs, ADD SPRINGS AGAIN to make it slightly more stiff, then extrude a circle around it to give it a sense of "thickness", etc..

Make the String "Geometry", the charm, AND the Phone a PASSIVE rigid body.

Select your string softy, and your charm, and Add gravity to taste, or simply attach them to an already created gravity field. (if you have one set up already.)

This way, the phone still acts as a "parent" chain-link, like it should, and as a passive rigid body, it should not allow inter-penitration (sp?) either.

Tweak the goal weights on the string to get that "elastic, or cotton-string" feeling of secondary motion.

You may have trouble when it comes to your character OR mainly whatever your phone, string or charm interacts with if they cannot be a passive rigid body.

The rigid body sims automaticly handle the anti-penitration for you, but if they run into something that is not, then they will just not see it at all, and they may just fly right through it.

For the character animation "picking-up" part, I would ask about that technique in the animation section.
(never tried that yet, hehe...)

You "may" just have to watch your charm a little bit, and key it at times when it may collide with something you don't want it to.

Good luck!

Israel "Izzy" Long
Motion and Title Design for Broadcast-Film-DS
izzylong.com

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# 3 30-12-2003 , 10:45 PM

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All right, I'll give that a shot and let you know.

Thanks a lot for the suggestion.

-George

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# 4 31-12-2003 , 12:44 AM

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Location: Minnesota, USA

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Cool

Israel "Izzy" Long
Motion and Title Design for Broadcast-Film-DS
izzylong.com

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# 5 31-12-2003 , 03:45 AM

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Posts: 8

Ha ha, ok I think I need to be treated more like a noob. user added image

I created a curve and made it soft.

Extruded a circle with the curve.

Selected the phone, charm and circle extrusion (ie string) and made them Passive Rigid bodies.

Parented the charm to the string and that to the phone.

Added gravity to the string and charm.

Nothing.

I then trided to move the phone around (set keys) and all the parts became detatched during playback. Nothin acted soft or anything.

SO I might need a little more step by step. hehe. Should I freeze and delete history at any point? And I think maybe I misunderstood how to actually attatch them together. As you see I parented them.

I hope I'm not being a total bother. Any more help would be great. I really wish I could understand the dynamics system in Maya since it's so powerful.

Thanks
-George

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# 6 31-12-2003 , 05:45 AM

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Location: Minnesota, USA

Posts: 3,709

Can you give me a day to try it out?

I'll get back to you after I try it user added image

Cool?

Israel "Izzy" Long
Motion and Title Design for Broadcast-Film-DS
izzylong.com

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# 7 31-12-2003 , 05:52 AM

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Join Date: Aug 2003

Posts: 8

Oh wow, I really appreciate that. A lot.

There is no rush at all. This is for a personal animated short I'm trying to work on. Modeling I can deal with. Animation I can learn but the effects are really new to me.

Only do anything when you have free time. user added image

Thank you so much again.
-George

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Complex string effect

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