Houdini 22.0 Character KineFX

Connect Ports

Wires or unwires ports on an existing APEX rig from a table of connections.

Since 22.0

This component connects and disconnects ports on the nodes of an existing rig. Each entry in the connection table describes one source port and the target ports it drives. Use it to hook up components that were built separately, to re-parent parts of a rig, or to remove connections that an earlier component made.

Nodes are named with APEX path patterns rather than literal names, and those patterns are rewritten before they are resolved. This means one authored table can be replayed across every segment of a character and mirrored onto the opposite side, instead of being duplicated per limb.

Two rewrites are available, and they can be combined:

Note

Mirror and Segments work together. When both are used, segments that already match the To pattern are dropped from the loop, because mirroring generates them from their From counterparts. Without this, the right side would be built twice.

An entry whose node pattern or port name is empty is skipped rather than reported as an error, so a single table can be shared across segments that do not all contain the same nodes.

This component is a wrapper around the component::ConnectPorts subgraph.

Parameters

Settings

Segments

The tags identifying the segments to loop the connection table over, for example, *_arm. The tags are resolved with the find segments node. Write {segment} in a Source Node or Target Node pattern to substitute the name of the segment currently being built. When this parameter is empty, the table is applied once and the node patterns are used exactly as written.

Mirror

When turned on, applies every entry in the connection table twice: once exactly as authored, then again with the node names renamed from From to To. This lets you author the table for one side only.

From

When Mirror is turned on, this is the wildcard pattern matching the side the table is authored on, for example, L_*. The pattern is matched against the whole node name, so a bare L_ matches nothing.

To

When Mirror is turned on, this is the wildcard pattern the names are renamed to, for example, R_*.

Addconnections

The number of connections to make. Each entry describes one source port and the target ports it drives.

Source Node

The node whose output port drives the connection. This parameter accepts APEX path patterns, so you can specify tags in this field, for example, #fk. Only the first matching node is used. Leave this field empty for an entry that only disconnects a target.

Port

The name of the Source Node output port, for example, xform. Do not include the [out] qualifier.

Sub-Port

The alias to use when the source port is variadic, that is, when it holds a named list of sub-ports. Leave this field empty to wire the port itself.

Disconnect Source Port

When turned on, removes every connection on the source port and makes no new connection. The target side of the entry is ignored and its parameters are disabled.

Target Node

The node being driven. This parameter accepts APEX path patterns, so you can specify tags in this field, for example, #bind. Unlike Source Node, every matching node is wired, not just the first.

Port

The name of the Target Node input port, for example, parent. Do not include the [in] qualifier.

Sub-Port

The alias to use when the target port is variadic, for example, the per-driver alias on a set point transforms node. Leave this field empty to wire the port itself.

Disconnect Target Port

When turned on, removes every connection on the target ports and makes no new connection. The source side of the entry is ignored and its parameters are disabled.

See also

KineFX

Overview

Preparing character elements

Rigging with APEX graphs

  • APEX graph basics

    Introduction to the APEX graph evaluation framework.

  • APEX graph debugger

    Inspect the values of an APEX graph’s ports within the APEX network view.

  • APEX Script basics for graph building

    An overview of APEX Script, a code interface for building APEX graphs.

  • Graphs for numerical operations

    Example graphs of numerical operations like adding two values, fetching multiple results, and retrieving information from geometry.

  • Graphs for viewport animation

    Example graphs of animate state functionality like creating controls and constraints, and defining joint hierarchies.

  • Graphs for deforming geometry

    Example of a SOP network and APEX graph for deforming a 3-joint tube geometry.

  • Graph metadata

    Information added to graph nodes and ports.

  • APEX path pattern

    A set of rules that allow you to filter and select elements within graphs, skeletons, geometry, and the character folder structure.

  • APEX graph nodes

    APEX nodes provide operations for building up the functionality of APEX graphs, which are used in KineFX to create character rigs and perform other geometry manipulation.

  • APEX updates for H22

    New and updated APEX graph nodes for Houdini 22.

Building rig graphs with APEX Script

Rigging with rig components

Animating in the viewport

  • Animation workflow

    Example networks of adding characters, props, characters, and animation to a scene.

  • Animating in LOPs

    Rig and animate characters and props in the context of a USD stage.

  • Working in the animate state

    Select and manipulate controls, define transform limits for controls, and add skin controls to a character.

  • Animate state menus and HUDs

    Menus, HUDs, toolbars, and options in the animate state.

  • Animate state hotkeys

    Hotkeys available in the animate state.

  • Posing

    Pose characters in the animation scene by using locators, copying and pasting controls, and mirroring poses.

  • Motion paths

    Visualize the motion of controls as curves in 3D space.

  • Constraints

    Create relationships between controls in the animate state.

  • Dynamic motion

    Add physically-accurate projectile motion to your animation in the animate state.

  • Ragdoll

    Add a ragdoll simulation to your animation in the animate state.

  • Full body IK

    Apply full body inverse kinematics to pose the character using high-level targets rather than manipulating individual joints.

  • Secondary motion

    Add physically-accurate effects like lag/overshoot, jiggle, and spring to your animation in the animate state.

  • Control selection sets

    A tree view of controls, selections, and selection sets for the animate state. Allows management of control selection and visibility.

  • Motion mixer

    Combine and edit the animation clips of multiple characters in a timeline-based view.

  • Character picker

    Create a 2D layout with simple buttons for selecting character controls in an animation scene.

  • Animation catalog

    Save, manage, and apply animations and single-frame poses to an animation scene.

  • Animation layers

    Create multiple layers of animation without affecting the original animation.

  • Animation toolbar

    A customizable toolbar consisting of simple slider tools that quickly apply modifications to animation controls and curves.

  • Animation bookmarks

    Frame markers that help organize and identify the different parts of your animation.

Customizing the animate state

SOP-based animation

  • Physics-based motion

    Add physically-accurate motion to your animation using the Projectile Motion and Pendulum Motion SOPs.

  • Ragdoll simulations

    Add a ragdoll simulation to your animation using the Ragdoll Solver SOP.

Deformation

  • Blend shapes

    Create blend shapes using blend shape SOP nodes.

Animation retargeting

Pre-H20

Panes

  • Motion mixer

    A timeline-based view of the animation clips and motion effects of multiple characters.

  • Character picker

    Create a 2D layout with simple buttons to select character controls in an animation scene.

  • Rig tree view

    A hierarchical view of character components, including packed character folders, KineFX rigs, and Object node rigs.

  • Animation editor

    View and edit animated parameters and their transitions between keyframes.

  • Geometry spreadsheet

    Displays details about the geometry selected in the network editor.

Appendix