ok i have tried everything

[Oddgit]

i am trying to set up a mechanical arm and in the eblow joint i want to have a tube in the space beterrn the upper arm and lower arm where the elbow would be, but i cant figure out how to make an object flex like that.
here is a link to the base pose...
http://homepage.mac.com/oddgit/base_pose.jpg

and here is what happens when i move that arm....
http://homepage.mac.com/oddgit/bend.jpg

thats not cool. i want the ends of the tube to stay where they are at and just have the tube bend around a bit not move like that.

any ideas? this is my first attempt at animation, i used to just focus on modeling.

here is what the whole object looks like
http://homepage.mac.com/oddgit/arm.jpg

[toby]

the first 2 links are dead...

[Oddgit]

ok those links work now

[toby]

maybe weight-map the tube from one end to the other - so the bones don't deform it all the waydown the chain

[SplineGod]

You could use bones with weight maps.
You could use just bones but with limited range turned on.
You could use sockmonkey with weightmaps.
You could use FI_Bezier bend (a free plugin).

[Oddgit]

i am trying to teach my self weightmaps, because i have never used them before, as for the all bones with restraints, that is what i have going, and it is working none too well.:(

[toby]

a straight weight map for a tube should be very easy, are you refering to the manual?

[Matt]

this is handy because I have a pretty similar job coming up, and I've never used IK / bones in anger either!

[Oddgit]

heheh i forgot about that big thing :)
i had inside lightwave 7 out and tons of tutorials, manual hahah. thats why i bought LightWave in the frist place :)

>with manual in hand, i begin my quest for making a flexable tube<

damn this thing is big...


with any luck my next post will be in thw WIP forum