Houdini 22.0 Character KineFX

Root

Creates a hierarchy of root controls for a character.

Since 21.0

This component creates a hierarchy of root controls for a character, allowing you to position the character in the animation scene.

The image below shows a hierarchy of three root controls, where the C_main control is the parent of C_layout, which is the parent of C_scene. In the viewport, the menu provides configuration options for the root component. See the gear menu for descriptions of the different types of interaction elements.

Example hierarchy of root controls

The example in this file demonstrates how to use the root rig component to add root controls for the Electra test geometry.

RootComponent

Parameters

Name

The name to add to the nodes created by this component.

Driven

Driven

The TransformObject node to drive with the root control. Set this to the root of the skeleton. This parameter accepts APEX path patterns, so you can specify tags in this field, for example, #root_driven.

Hide Driven

When turned on, hides the driven joint in the viewport.

Driver

Use Config Control

When turned off, hides the menu in the viewport.

Root Names

The number of root controls. Each control in the list is the parent of the control below it. Add another root control by clicking beside Rootnames.

Root Name

The name of the root control. Set Root Name to a unique root control name.

Promote T

When turned on, promotes the translate component of the root control.

Promote R

When turned on, promotes the rotate component of the root control.

Promote S

When turned on, promotes the scale component of the root control.

LOD

Specifies the level of detail setting for the root control.

Select the menu for the root component and click on the visibility icons to toggle the visibility of the root controls set to LOD values Primary (LOD1), Secondary (LOD2), and Tertiary (LOD3).

Tags

Tags

The tags to add to the root control TransformObject nodes created by this component.

Shape

The APEX Configure Controls SOP provides more options for changing the look of the controls.

Shape

The shape of the controls. It can be set to any of the built-in APEX control shapes.

Color

The color of the control shapes. To inherit the shape color from the skeleton, set this value to (0, 0, 0).

Rotate

The rotation of the control shapes.

Scale

The scale of the control shapes. To inherit the shape scale from the skeleton, set this value to (0, 0, 0).

Builder

The parameters in this section are used for the Autorig Builder.

Root Name Pattern

The names of the root controls.

Number of Roots

The number of root controls.

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