Programming and animation

MotionBuilder’s Actor, proc and cons.

MotionBuilder’s actor, is a handy tool, but it does not have a sufficient accuracy and precision for professional use. Let me explain its proc and cons.

To retarget the animation I started with these issues and achieved some success. At the moment this technology is as internal software of the Sevastopol mocap studio and is used in transfering process for a character animation.

Read the rest of this entry »

Plugins for MotionBuilder

I’ve done a small sorting of published plugins, the result is a table of plugins. You can see it, please visit – Plugins for MotionBuilder page

MotionBuilder 2011 and MoCap

I have tried the trial version of the MoBu 2011, it was interesting to see, what it represents in the new feature – mocap straight to the bones. It turned out that this is a normal device plug-in, which receives from the server location and rotation of the bones and write them in the appropriate channels of the bones. The difference from the same MotionBuilder 2010 that it became possible to record data in animation channel in the global coordinate system. A new method SetBufferType (bool bGlobal) allows you to switch between global and local record. By the way this innovation can be useful in the design constraints, not just devices.

It remains now to expect updates plug-ins for the transfer of the skeleton from the mocap software into MotionBuilder.

Another thing I noticed in the OR SDK, so that presence fbmath.h – mathematical functions. I wonder in which version of MoBu they appear, because I have written my own.

OpenGL 3.3 and OpenGL 4.0

The Khronos Group announced the release of the OpenGL® 4.0 specification. This is a significant update to the most widely adopted 2D and 3D graphics API, and includes the GLSL 4.00 update to the OpenGL Shading language allowing developers to access the latest generation of GPU acceleration. Here is a specification - http://www.opengl.org/registry/

Watch the video now

Read the rest of this entry »

Autodesk software releases

Autodesk presented a new set of products for this year. I would like to highlight some of them, particularly in MotionBuilder, Maya, 3dsMax …

Read the rest of this entry »

Real powerfull alternative to the desktop

When working with the desktop want more: more tools to the organization, more dynamics, effects. Any additional utilites like stickers, assistants and others are beginning to clog the taskbar, and eventually get rid of them … they lack the lightness. And finally caught me truly worthy contender to replace the desktop – Bump top. I have installed him and he was free to fit into the work. Not even have to get used to how it was with all sorts of variations on the theme of “3D desktop”. One of those products that are made with taste and made beautiful and qualitatively.

Official website of the Bump top

How MoCap Works on Brad’s FIE Blog

Recently I have found an interesting blog with the analysis of technologies, materials and algorithms for optical motion capture. In particular site you’ll find interesting articles on the reconstruction of 3D position of the point of a set of 2D image from cameras; information about the markers and reflective ability, as well as review of the most popular solutions for tracking points and calculate trajectories of markers.

Blog is here.

Evaluation thread in a shader plugin

* Image taken from the documentation of the Autodesk MotionBuilder 7.5

When I was writing a plugin shader for a webcam, I have faced with such a contradiction: on the one hand is necessary to process each frame of a web camera with no impact on the overall performance of the MoBu scene, and with another – rule for creating plug-ins for MoBu says: Any extra threads or processes running parallel to MotionBuilder might seriously slow down performance or even prevent MotionBuilder from running at all. 

Read the rest of this entry »

Happy New Year!

I would like to bring some results, especially since the blog turned one year recently.

Quite a lot of different kinds of material were put up on the blog, in particular the whole project has turned editor user interface, which was exhibited with the source code on Google Code. The most significant events of course were associated with the opening of the animation studio and the completion of the first version of online 3D engine for games and multimedia.

Posted Votes:

1) Voting “Which version of Mobu you use”

2010 – 13 votes

2009 – 9 votes

7.5 – 7 votes

6,7 – 1 vote

The odds turned in the direction of the latest version of Mobu, ie happens quite quickly implement updates from Autodesk.

2) Translation of article Tool programming. Over 10 votes and 1 against. While it low value, trying to get an interpreter free of charge to the service of the quality translation. So we will wait for the next year.

Well farewell speech. I wish you success and of course, that what you are doing it on your heart and brought a return and self-realization. Well being and prosperity in the new year!

P.S. if you have any comments and suggestions for blog for the next year, you are welcome!

Unreal Engine 3 is now FOR FREE!

Yes, dear developers are not immobilized, and for many developers I believe It’s a real big gift – here

UE3 is now for free, and I hope that this will be not a harm, but rather enhance the quality of games.