lertola2
skeptic
I have been exploring the new deform nodes in Lightwave 2019 and I came up with a nice bend and twist rig. Its attached if any one wants to look.
The rig uses 3 control nulls. The base null (pyramid) controls the position and direction of the rig. You can move this and rotate it in any arbitrary direction. It does not need to line up with the world axis.
The tip null (ring) defines the range from the base null where the bend or twist will happen. The tip null should only be moved in its Z direction.
The control null (cube) controls the bending and twisting. Rotating this null controls the twist. Moving the control null away from the tip bends the object. Moving it 1 meter bends 90 degrees. So to bend something into a circle the control null should be moved exactly 4 meters away form the tip null. Once the control is moved the tip null can be rotated to change the direction of the bend. The control null should only be moved in its X and Y direction. If the control null is at X=0, Y=0 then the rig can be moved around without distorting the object. I have seen some glitches when moving the rig though. To fix this I have found that giving the control some tiny offset such as Y=1um makes the rig stable.
To use this rig on your object use load from scene to load the 3 nulls and the figure object. In the object properties for the figure select the two nodal displacements and right click to get the Copy command from the popup menu. Then right click in your object's properties to to get the Paste command.
-Joe
The rig uses 3 control nulls. The base null (pyramid) controls the position and direction of the rig. You can move this and rotate it in any arbitrary direction. It does not need to line up with the world axis.
The tip null (ring) defines the range from the base null where the bend or twist will happen. The tip null should only be moved in its Z direction.
The control null (cube) controls the bending and twisting. Rotating this null controls the twist. Moving the control null away from the tip bends the object. Moving it 1 meter bends 90 degrees. So to bend something into a circle the control null should be moved exactly 4 meters away form the tip null. Once the control is moved the tip null can be rotated to change the direction of the bend. The control null should only be moved in its X and Y direction. If the control null is at X=0, Y=0 then the rig can be moved around without distorting the object. I have seen some glitches when moving the rig though. To fix this I have found that giving the control some tiny offset such as Y=1um makes the rig stable.
To use this rig on your object use load from scene to load the 3 nulls and the figure object. In the object properties for the figure select the two nodal displacements and right click to get the Copy command from the popup menu. Then right click in your object's properties to to get the Paste command.
-Joe
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