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Point Cache to Keyframe

  • Thread starter Thread starter Aviasim
  • Start date Start date
A

Aviasim

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Hi,

I created a windsock and animated it using 3ds physics (Wind and Cloth)

When I collapse the animation to get the keyframes, it turns my model into an editable mesh and upon export - the animation is completely wiped. What I also find strange is that the keyframes are grey.
If I try to convert to editable poly, the animation gets wiped.

I heard I could use Point Cache to record an animation and then apply it to my Editable Poly object (windsock) - which worked, but again left me with no keyframes I could edit - and in MCX preview = no animation.

I have done the obvious - applied ambient animation from KF0 to KF100 - set the (FSX) material to be a skinned mesh and checked "Export Skin" and "Export Animation".

I can get the model to show either way - just no animations.
 
2019-10-07 14_36_43-Skype.png
 
Hi.

As far as I know, you need a skin modifier to animate vertices. The skin modifier needs bones, which then affect the vertices.
Therefore, the question arises, whether there are bones in your windsock?

bones_skin_mesh.jpg
 
I didn't use bones since I was told by a respectable member of the community that FSX supports vertex animations..he must've forgot to say "with bones".
Which is very annoying as I had a very nice animation using physics.

More on "How to convert point cache to keyframe animation" - in short, we can't, especially not for FS - there are some plugins out there, a lot of them payware that claim to convert cached animations to keyframe animations - I didn't try as the comments were contradicting.

I were forced to settle for a very "dumbed" down animation with the bones.. so my windsock has gone from awesome to "...yeah".
 
Maybe it helps you to know that the Noise modifier can also be used to create good windsock animations ...

noise_rotation_motion_panel.jpg



If you apply the noise modifier to the bones and set appropriate parameters, then of course this is not quite as nice as with the Cloth modifier and with the physical elements (wind, gravity etc). But after all, this method saves a lot of work and time, as when creating the windsock animation using the keyframe method.
 
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