Page 899 - Kitab3DsMax

Chapter 34: Using Animation Layers, Modifiers, and Complex Controllers
For the Keyboard control, the Keyboard Input Device rollout appears, as shown in Figure 34.20. The
Assign button lets you select a keyboard key to track. The other settings control the Envelope Graph, which
defines how quickly key presses are tracked.
The Motion Capture dialog box defines only which device controls which values. The actual capturing of
data is accomplished using the Motion Capture utility. Selecting the Motion Capture utility in the Utility
panel displays the Motion Capture rollout. This rollout includes buttons to Start, Stop, and Test the data-
capturing process.
FIGURE 34.20
The Keyboard Input Device rollout lets you select which key press is captured.

Before you can use the Start, Stop, and Test buttons, you need to select the tracks to capture from the
Tracks list. The Record Range section lets you set the Preroll, In, and Out values, which are the frame num-
bers to include. You also can set the number of Samples Per Frame. The Reduce Keys option removes any
unnecessary keys, if enabled.
Tutorial: Drawing with a pencil with the Motion Capture controller
Some motions, such as drawing with a pencil, are natural motions for our hands, but they become very dif-
ficult when you’re trying to animate using keyframes. This tutorial uses the Motion Capture controller and
utility to animate the natural motion of drawing with a pencil.

To animate a pencil drawing on paper, follow these steps:
1. Open the Drawing with a pencil.max file from the Chap 34 directory on the DVD.
This file has a pencil object positioned on a piece of paper.
2. Select the pencil object, open the Motion panel, and select the Position track for the pencil object.
Then click the Assign Controller button, and double-click the Position Motion Capture selection.
The Motion Capture dialog box opens.
3. Click the X Position button, and double-click the Mouse Input Device selection. Then click the Y
Position button, and double-click the Mouse Input Device selection again. In the Mouse Input
Device rollout, select the Vertical option. This sets the X Position to the Horizontal Mouse move-
ment and the Y Position to the Vertical Mouse movement. Close the Motion Capture dialog box.

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