Parenting, Rigging and Constraining

mmorris

Is there a way to parent a figures hands (both hands) to an object in animation.

I need to have a figure hold onto a large object and in another scenario onto a cable and pull over the cable. The animations blocks tend to move the hands side - to side so it looks unnatural.

Ideally, I'd like to have the figure hold and item with both hands and have the position of the prop locked into the position of the hands. There is an example of doing this with a phone, but not with a large object using both hands.

Do I need to parent to null objects, use animate contraints or somehow rig my object similar for instance to gloves (but dependent upon both hands).

Can anyone help or offer some basic training?

Thanks

mmorris

Is there a way to parent a figures hands (both hands) to an object.

I need to have a figure hold onto a large object and in another scenario onto a cable and pull over the cable. The animations blocks tend to move the hands side - to side so it looks unnatural.

Ideally, I’d like to have the figure hold onto an item with both hands and have the position of the prop locked into the position of the hands. There is an example of doing this with a phone, but not with a large object using both hands.

Do I need to parent to null objects, use animate contraints or somehow rig my object similar for instance to gloves (but dependent upon both hands).

Can anyone help or offer some basic training?

Update - the closest, best solution I have so far uses a animate2 position constraint with each hand as a source and the prop as the target. Unortunately, the hands move around during animation making it look like they are sliding around the object. I have modified the splines to minimize this effect. However, it would be great if there was a way to lock the hands into position relative to the object. My begining and ending blocks are correct - its the automatic animate2 algorithm that adjusts the positions - I assume smoothing or something of that nature to help the animate look natural - unfortunately for me, in this case, it achieve the opposite.

Thanks

mjc1016

mmorris said:

Is there a way to parent a figures hands (both hands) to an object.

I need to have a figure hold onto a large object and in another scenario onto a cable and pull over the cable. The animations blocks tend to move the hands side - to side so it looks unnatural.

Ideally, I’d like to have the figure hold onto an item with both hands and have the position of the prop locked into the position of the hands. There is an example of doing this with a phone, but not with a large object using both hands.

Do I need to parent to null objects, use animate contraints or somehow rig my object similar for instance to gloves (but dependent upon both hands).

Can anyone help or offer some basic training?

Update - the closest, best solution I have so far uses a animate2 position constraint with each hand as a source and the prop as the target. Unortunately, the hands move around during animation making it look like they are sliding around the object. I have modified the splines to minimize this effect. However, it would be great if there was a way to lock the hands into position relative to the object. My begining and ending blocks are correct - its the automatic animate2 algorithm that adjusts the positions - I assume smoothing or something of that nature to help the animate look natural - unfortunately for me, in this case, it achieve the opposite.

Thanks

Here's a script that may be of some use...

https://sites.google.com/site/mcasualsdazscripts2/mcjholdo

Richard Haseltine

Merged duplicate threads.

Ivy

mmorris said:

Is there a way to parent a figures hands (both hands) to an object.

I need to have a figure hold onto a large object and in another scenario onto a cable and pull over the cable. The animations blocks tend to move the hands side - to side so it looks unnatural.

Ideally, I’d like to have the figure hold onto an item with both hands and have the position of the prop locked into the position of the hands. There is an example of doing this with a phone, but not with a large object using both hands.

Do I need to parent to null objects, use animate contraints or somehow rig my object similar for instance to gloves (but dependent upon both hands).

Can anyone help or offer some basic training?

Update - the closest, best solution I have so far uses a animate2 position constraint with each hand as a source and the prop as the target. Unortunately, the hands move around during animation making it look like they are sliding around the object. I have modified the splines to minimize this effect. However, it would be great if there was a way to lock the hands into position relative to the object. My begining and ending blocks are correct - its the automatic animate2 algorithm that adjusts the positions - I assume smoothing or something of that nature to help the animate look natural - unfortunately for me, in this case, it achieve the opposite.

Thanks

I don' t think you can parent a single object to both hands of a character. I have never been able to do it successfully but you can parent one hand and move the second hand along as the object moves so it appears it is parented as well. I do this in some of my animations suchs as when a character is driving and i need her hands on the steering wheel to move along as the steering wheel turns. or when a character is shooting a rifle and is using both hands firing it.

Just in case , If you don;t know how to parent a object its pretty simple. you can parent an object to your character by right clicking on the object to be parented and scroll down the list to >change parent and from the list in the box that pops up you can choose what you want to parent the oblect too. then click accept and voila your parented

I hope it helps Good luck :)