Using Skeletal Bones

Panel-Components-Bones.png (1663 bytes)

Click SkeletonIcon.gif (139 bytes) to show the Bones panel. Or select the Component Tab Button-Construction-Component.png (1131 bytes) to show all component sub-panels.

Skeletal bones are used to create easily positionable models of humans and animals. A shape can be attached to bones as a "skin". When a bone is moved, the skin is deformed to match the new position and orientation of the bone.

To add a bone to your scene, click on the bone's icon and drag it on to your Scene.

There are three types of bones:

Skeleton1.gif (1037 bytes) Standard

This type of bone has a range of effect that is shaped like a cylinder.

This the primary bone type. It is the most appropriate for building skeletons of Humans or Animals that occur in nature.

 
Skeleton.gif (1059 bytes) Rounded Cylindrical (Available with 3DCrafter Pro)

This type of bone has a range of effect this is shaped like a cylinder with rounded ends. It is uncommonly used, but can be useful when multiple bones join at a single point.

 
Skeleton2.gif (1011 bytes) Spherical Bone (Available with 3DCrafter Pro)

A Spherical Bone is not like any bone in a human or animal. It is a convenient shape that can be used to deform skins.

It is typically used to simulate a muscle, such as deforming a skin in order to lift an eyebrow.

A Spherical Bones range of effect is equal to the size of the bone itself.

Once you have created the skeleton for the shape you are modeling, you can attach the shape to the bones as a skin. Before attaching a skin to a bone, you should position the shape that is to become the skin so that its bones are embedded in their desired position. Once you have positioned the shape, you should move the shape within the Scene Hierarchy to the group that contains the root bone. Every skeleton must have a root bone within a group with the skin.

Once you have this correct hierarchy, you will need to:

bulletenable each bone by right-clicking on it and choosing Enable. When you enable a bone, it's colour is changed from white to green.
bulletchange the properties for each bone so that it covers the correct area of the skin. This can be done by clicking on the bone and then selecting the Component Properties tab on the Properties and Information window.