Dupliverting Armatures?

Support Animation and Rigging
#1

Hi again,

I would like to duplicate a simple armature onto faces or vertexes of another object.

I have created a test cube and an an armature with two bones, it is using vertex groups deforms. I have added the cube and the armature in the top view and leave them at 0,0,0.

Attempting to duplicate it (1):

  • The armature becomes the parent to the cube
  • Add an an armature modifier to the cube
  • Pose the armature in pose mode
  • Create a grid at 0,0,0
  • The grid becomes the parent to the armature
  • Turn on dupliverts or duplifaces for the grid.

Attempting to duplicate it (2):

  • Add an an armature modifier to the cube
  • Pose the armature in pose mode
  • Create a grid at 0,0,0
  • The grid becomes the parent to the cube
  • Turn on dupliverts or duplifaces for the grid.

What happens: The duplicates look fine in the 3D window but in the render the deform of the cube by the armature gets more and more extreme as the instances are further from the center of the grid. It is as if the pose is being interpreted relative to the grid now.

Here is a screenshot:

I would really love to get some help on this one as I have been trying this test off and on again in spare moments for about three weeks! :confused:

Attachments

TestDuplicatingArmatures.JPG1024×768 164 KB

#2

There is either a bug or the duplivert function isn’t implemented to support armature deformations properly (I couldn’t even get it to do what you did in the preview window using the second method) … in renders anyway …

Not sure what you are trying to do but you can use the array modifier to do the same thing visually . Just use two of them, set one to offset along the X and the other along the Y if you want to limit them to a plane .

I have noticed that all the dupli functions sometimes don’t pass down some secondary animations like you’d expect it to … with the exception of the particle system …

#3

Dupliverted Armatures not rendering properly is a known problem and was reported to the bugtracker back around 2.40.

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#4

OK, thanks for both replies! I basically want a slightly modified grid of animated elements. The elements are quite simple. I can probably use shape keys instead…

I tried this:

  • Create a group with an object and an armature
  • Create a plane with four vertexes
  • Turn on dupligroup for the plane - you only get one copy.
  • Apply an array modifier to the plane - plane is arrayed but not the groups.

Dupligroups rendered correctly but I seem to have to insert those one at a time. I need a few hundred. I guess I can make dupligroups of dupligroups… is this my only option?

#5

Shape keys seem to render OK when used with dupliverts. I will have to see if I can get them to work for my small animation.