mcjAutoLimb2015 - A Kind of IK System - G3 and G8 Workability Confirmed

Blood-PawWerewolf

mCasual said:

maybe i broke Gen2 compatibility when i introduced Gen3 compatibility 

but nah, i recently used it on Aiko5 ... she's Genesis 2 i think

i never really ascertained if my Gen2 figures were automatically converted to Gen3 when i installed Gen3 and/or Daz Studio 4.9

so lets verify this

--

-1 load a Genesis 2 figure

My DAZ 3D Library\People\Genesis 2 Female

she doesnt have Aiko5 morphs, just Victoria 6

- 2 - i select her index finger [3]

3 - i start mcjAutoLimb2015

4 - i exit mcjAutoLimb2015 

this created a target node at the location of her index finger[3]

and a 'pole vector' which indicates how the arm is twisted

- 5 - i move the target node near A3's face

- 6 - i select the target node, followed by the index finger[3] node

- 7 - i use mcjAutoLimb2015 for the current frame

it works !

then using null nodes positioned on the "palm" of their finger tips as the 'targeters' you can do precision posing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DominicTesla said:

I'm trying to use this with a Gen 2 figure, but I can't seem to get it to work at all. Does this only work for Gen3? Should I be using an older version for Gen 2 figures?

 

aiko 5 is a genesis 1 figure. aiko 6 is genesis 2.

Ruphuss

thank you for explanation casual

if i lock the side rotation of the thigh/shin

will it be overwritten ?

FrankTheTank

Thanks for the followup testing, I'll give it another shot. Unfortunately, I can't work on my computer right now because its rendering for the next 12 hours. But i'll try again tomorrow.

mCasual

only the shin's 'bend' control gets tweaked by the script, the twist and side side are free to do what they want

in most cases, the script will not be prevented from achieving it's goal ( the proper leg-length ) due to this 

 

for the thigh, if the side-side control is locked, the script wont be able to "point" the leg at the target

 

when the figure ( ex: Aiko3 ) has a buttock joint, you can animate it to help the script reach its target

 

 

Ruphuss said:

thank you for explanation casual

if i lock the side rotation of the thigh/shin

will it be overwritten ?

 

takezo_3001

Why daz abandoned it's IK is infuriating, thanks for your D|S augments!

fabian_2897766

Hi McCasual,

I'm totally new to daz studio, actually i come from Poser and wanted to give a try to daz for animating humanoids.

I was nearly abandoning it watching how poor was the rig and the fact there was no real IK system.

I just found this post, downloaded your script install it (I'm on mac) but i can't really figure how it works :-/ I really want to make something similar to your animation.

http://orig10.deviantart.net/c3e8/f/2015/332/f/5/mcjautolimb2015_a_sort_of_ik_system_for_daz_studio_by_mcasual-d9ia7vw.gif

Could you please explain me a step by step guide to make it ?

I load genesis 3, select the toe, apply your script, it seems a target goal is created but then if i move the hip or the pelvis of the character the toe does not stay at the right place. Am I doing something wrong ? I tried with the bone tool and the simple translate tool. No luck.

This sounds as the only alternative to start animating things right here in daz, so i better need to understand how it works :-) Thx in advance!

++

 

mCasual

Reposting a long answer i gave someone

------------

Hello

This animation

was one of the test animations i made for the release of mcjAutolimb2015, which was the first version to support Genesis3

note that you increase chances of success by using older Poser figures  ( ex: victoria 3, 4 )

On the forum thread for AutoLimb2015 i answered some questions and gave a step by step example

http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/66717/mcjautolimb2015-a-kind-of-ik-system-now-genesis-3-compatible/p1

The official release page for mcjAutolimb 2015 is the manual

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts6/mcjautolimb2015

it's my web site, it's a very safe web site, i dont think there's many ads and pop ups if at all for visitors.

Also see previous versions of the script which may have less features, but are similar

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts3/mcjautolimb2014

http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/43130/mcjautolimb-2014-an-ik-system-for-animators-now-with-poles-for-ds-1-2-3-4

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts/mcjautolimb

There's a tutorial here for a swingset animation

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts3/swing-animation-tutorial

There's a tutorial here for cycling

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts5/tutorial-pedaling-with-mcjautolimb2014

-----

Generally speaking, as is explained in the manual, this is not a "Live" IK system like poser.

if you select a figure's left foot and run the script

the script creates a target node and a 'pole' 

the only thing you can accomplish now it so get mcjAutoLimb to calculate the left leg pose

that will keep the position of the foot in space fixed for the duration of the timeline's play-range or animation range

if you select a figure's left foot and run the script and immediately exit the script

you could animate the position of the target node

then if you select the target node, followed by the foot and run the script

what you can accomplish is to get mcjAutoLimb to calculate the left leg pose

that will make the foot follow the the position of the target node for the duration of the timeline's play-range or animation range

Usually, there's a second phase where you use mcjKeepOrient or mcjHoldOn to  take care of the foot orientation

So this is different from IK, but i find it more practical for my way of animating

if you read the links i posted above you'll improve chances of obtaining millimeter-precise animations

( ex: in the case of Genesis3 mostly, turning limits Off of the thigh or shouldr joints can make a big difference, also, unparenting the 'poles' can solve issues

-------

Note that Daz studio does have a type of IK system called pins 

 

mCasual

 

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts9/autolimb-tutorial-genesis-pushups

 

EightiesIsEnough

mcasual does a pretty good job with regards to scripts. They can be quite useful for my animation projects.

The AutoLimb script is very promising to me with regards to certain 1950s dance animations I asked about in another thread in the Product Suggestions forum quite some time ago.

EightiesIsEnough

I am wondering if there is a script that can allow for the raising of the heels with the toes planted firmly to the surface and legs straight, and if there isn't, maybe that's something that can be considered for development.

mCasual

mcjautolimb2015 does include the ability to set the toes as the object that must not move

in conjunction with mcjKeepOrient

JonSea31 said:

I am wondering if there is a script that can allow for the raising of the heels with the toes planted firmly to the surface and legs straight, and if there isn't, maybe that's something that can be considered for development.

 

Psyckosama

Can this work with Genesis 8?

mCasual

yes it does i'll post a 30 frames gif showing the result

Psyckosama said:

Can this work with Genesis 8?

rames44

Psyckosama said:

Can this work with Genesis 8?

Works perfectly with G8 - I’m using it extensively. 

mCasual

Genesis 8 test done today

 

 

mCasual

Update Update Update

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts6/mcjautolimb2015

1

i added a button that does what mcjKeepOrient does

meaning, you select a foot, run mcjAutoLimb2015 v110619 

and the location and the orientation of the foot will be maintained

for more complex tasks you will still need to use the standalone mcjHoldOn script

2

I added a button to graciously unparent the pole-node

because i never seem to be able to figure how to unparent it without having it lose its orientation

 

Silver Dolphin

Nice update, very useful. Thank you for your hard work.

Ivy

Thank you Jacques for the update , you rock  :)

johranshadi

Thank you so much! You go above and beyond each time. I am starting to believe that Daz is never going to come up with a working full IK system. Without your scripts, I would've probably given up using Daz a long time ago. Having the autolimb and orient in the same tab surely saves a lot of time. I also like that you can undo all the frames the script creates with a single click. Keep up the good work

juanluis_tr

Is there any explanatory video to use this tool?

mCasual

juanluis_tr said:

Is there any explanatory video to use this tool?

there's a tutorials section in the index, one of them shows how to use it for bicycling animation and i think another one for swingsets

yagakisan

Hello,

I'm trying to use this script but I can't figure out how to do it properly...
I have two figures, the first has her left hand on the shoulder of the second (Right Collar), what I need is to keep her hand on the shoulder while the second figure moves his torso back (and consequently she also moves her torso forward).

Sorry but I don't understand how to do it!
I select the (G8M) RightCollar, then hold CTRL to select the "targeter" (G8F) LeftHand, I run the script with the default settings (all the 30 frames) and press Do It; The left arm changes the pose pointing at the G8M hip level.
So I tried creating a Null Node, parented to the RightCollar and moved in the same position, but nothing changes.

Another question, I didn't understand if I need to run the script at the first frame, BEFORE completing all the other keyframes of my animation, or at the end (but I don't get if then I should anyway pose my characters hands...).

Please help me, it would save me a lot of time!

Thanks

johranshadi

yagakisan said:

Hello,

I'm trying to use this script but I can't figure out how to do it properly...
I have two figures, the first has her left hand on the shoulder of the second (Right Collar), what I need is to keep her hand on the shoulder while the second figure moves his torso back (and consequently she also moves her torso forward).

Sorry but I don't understand how to do it!
I select the (G8M) RightCollar, then hold CTRL to select the "targeter" (G8F) LeftHand, I run the script with the default settings (all the 30 frames) and press Do It; The left arm changes the pose pointing at the G8M hip level.
So I tried creating a Null Node, parented to the RightCollar and moved in the same position, but nothing changes.

Another question, I didn't understand if I need to run the script at the first frame, BEFORE completing all the other keyframes of my animation, or at the end (but I don't get if then I should anyway pose my characters hands...).

Please help me, it would save me a lot of time!

Thanks

You need to select the null first and then the hand that you want to keep in place. Selecting them in that order is important. Don't select anything else and make sure that the null is patented to the right collar. Run the script at the beginning of the frame. Most of the times this works immediately, but sometimes you'd also need to set or remove joints limits depending on the direction of the movement.

Robinson

This is for hands and feet.  It would be nice if you could use other parts of the limbs, shin, forearm, for example, i.e. that's the one you want to stabilise (adjusting thigh and/or upper arm and shoulder). 

Still, very useful regardless.

mCasual

i also wrote mcjoptimalposea

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts7/mcjoptimalposea

joint by joint it tries to make, for example the shin reach the position of something else, for example a null node

so if you use mcjMakeTarget and create a target (null node) at frame 0 of an animation

then mcjoptimalposea can help you keep the shin at its initial location

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts/mcjmaketarget

there's also mcjKeepOrient which can make the shin orientation in space remain constant,

but that's a special tricky case since the shin is not supposed to have the side-side joint used

for the head and thighs and shldrs mcjKeepOrient works fine

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts/mcjkeeporient

unrelated animation, well it's related because i used mcjAutoLimb2015 and mcjMakeTarget and mcjCycleFilter mainly

 

Robinson said:

This is for hands and feet.  It would be nice if you could use other parts of the limbs, shin, forearm, for example, i.e. that's the one you want to stabilise (adjusting thigh and/or upper arm and shoulder). 

Still, very useful regardless.

 

Robinson

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

I'm going to give mcjoptimalposea a go (btw, I don't mind a little shin side-to-side, although it does make my eyes water).

Robinson

Honestly mC, I don't understand the instructions.  I think that script was made for someone with a brain.

minnow3d

I have no trouble with any scripts so far except mjcHoldOn. 

in the tutorial, do I use it by it self or do I use mcjMakeTarget-mcjAutoLimb first and then mjcHoldOn?

Also, should the whole arm move or just the hands on Aiko3? I have gotten it to work somewhat but the Aiko 4 moves but only the hands move on Aiko 3.

Other than that all other scripts have made me stop using poser almost all together.

mCasual

mcjHodlOn simply maintains the orientation of the hand ... relative to what's being held

lets say you want Amy's right hand to hold-on William's left shoulder

at frame zero, you position Amy's right hand so that it grabs William's left shoulder

you select Amy's right hand ( the joint is near her wrist ) and you use mcjMakeTarget to make a null node at the position of her hand (wrist )

then, you select the null node , which has a name like rhand_target click the keyframe button because it's sometimes needed for the next step

then you parent that target node to William's shoulder

so, from frame 0 to 30 as William moves, the target for Amy's hand will follow the shoulder

then you select the target node, followed by Amy's hand, and use mcjAutolimb

this takes care of the hand position 

but chances are the orientation of the hand is now all wrong

so, at frame 0 ( where she has the perfect grip )

you select Amy's Hand followed by William's shoulder ( in that order while pressing the CTRL button on a PC )

and use mchHoldOn to fix the hand orientation for frames 1 to 30

 

just now i did this but for a pumpkin instead of a shoulder, i had to make 1 target node for each hand and use mcjAutolimb and mcjHoldOn twice

 

minnow3d said:

I have no trouble with any scripts so far except mjcHoldOn. 

in the tutorial, do I use it by it self or do I use mcjMakeTarget-mcjAutoLimb first and then mjcHoldOn?

Also, should the whole arm move or just the hands on Aiko3? I have gotten it to work somewhat but the Aiko 4 moves but only the hands move on Aiko 3.

Other than that all other scripts have made me stop using poser almost all together.

 

minnow3d

mCasual said:

 

 

mCasual said: