Help with path animation...
 

Hi there,
I have a spring type object in my scene and i have to animate a bal rolling down it. How can create a curve to take the exact same shape as the spring to work as the path?

Thanks for the help! Ari

:banghead:

The easiest way would be to create a nurbs spring, duplicate a surface curve, delete that curve's history and use it. Did you create that spring object using curves? extrude surface perhaps?

Nope, it was created using the premade spring option in 3ds max, then i imported it into maya.

I couldn;t figure out how to make a spring in maya.

ah, ok. Check out my tornado tutorial. I've got a video in the VIP section and also a free text version at my site (link in sig). I go over how to create a spring shaped curve. From there you should be able to take it.

Hope that helps. :)

Ari: Another finn here? (if so, nice :))
Welcome aboard anyway :)

How about this?;

One can simply make a nurbs-curve by klicking the numerous vertices on the spring-objects of yours.

It's not done in ten seconds, but it cannot take forever etither.

If the curve need modification;
1) Make a locator aligned to the center of the spring.
2) Set pivot point of the curve to the locator and scale the X and Y axis.
3) Leave the Z axix alone. Simply move the whole curve a little down or a little up if this is needed.

Just some thoughts.

Hi there mtmckinley

I followed your tornado tutorial, but there is a problem..

Once i extrude my curve into the spring like shape, it becomes an extruded surface, which i cannot use as a motion path.
How can i use this shape as a simple curve?

I appreciate the help.

once you have that shape, select an isoparm, Edit Curves > Duplicate Surface Curve. It will duplicate the isoparm to create a spiraling curve. Select the curve, delete it's history. You can then delete your surface and you are left with the curve to use as a motion path.

Hope that made sense. :)

Gotcha!!
Thanks!

Just download Goomoo Utilities from Highend3d. Its a script with a lot of cool primitives in it. Including spiral and spiral along curve.

http://www.highend3d.com/maya/

its the 25th line down -
(10-30-02: Updated Goomoo Utilities v0.6 in ( Maya > Scripts ))

Thank you everyone for your help!

Mayebe this would work?
 

I'm no maya master, but why couldn't you just make a cv curve and make that your motion path. Using side and top views it couldn't be too hard. i actually found animating with motion paths to be the easiest thing for me in Maya and i've only been working with Maya for about 6 months.

Yeah, that could work too. We're just giving him options that would create a generated spiral curve is all. :)

BTW, Goomoo Utilities rocks!

I've used it since v0, and it just keeps getting better.

My fav function is: Extrude face along curve.

Simple and easy.