Transforming a Cycle in Place to Forward Moving Walk - Part 2

Introduction

• The tutorial covers a method for transforming a cycle into a forward-moving walk, especially in complex scenarios.
• Useful when dealing with:
  • Irregular walks
  • Varying accelerations
  • Non-linear paths

Method Overview

• Locators on Feet: Used to "stack" feet on the ground, allowing free movement of the main control without worrying about foot sliding.
• Key Idea: Constrain feet to independent locators to prevent them from sliding during movement.

Steps

1. Create and Set Up Locators

• Create Locators:
  • Use Create Locator tool.
  • Ensure locator visibility is turned on.
  • Use Selection Mask buttons for locator selectivity.
• Rename Locators: Optional, e.g., left and right foot.
• Position Locators:
  • Snap each locator to the respective foot control.

2. Constrain Locators to Feet

• Steps:
  • Select foot control, then locator, and apply parent constraint (all axes).
• Outcome:
  • Locators follow the motion of feet controls.

3. Baking and Deleting Constraints

• Bake Animation:
  • Apply keyframes to all frames in the graph editor.
• Delete Constraints:
  • Feet animation transferred to locators, freeing them from constraints.

4. Constrain Feet to Locators

• Inverse Process:
  • Select locator, then foot control, and apply parent constraint (all axes).
  • Repeat for each foot.
• Result:
  • Locators become new foot controls; unaffected by the main control.

5. Fixing Sliding Effect

• Key Deletion:
  • On timeline, find frames where foot touches ground and remains in contact.
  • Delete all keys between these frames, maintaining only the first and last.
• Ensure Flat Curve:
  • Verify the curve in the graph editor is linear between these keys.
• Transition Cleaning:
  • Smooth transitions when the foot leaves or approaches contact to avoid pops.

6. Finalizing

• Bake Feet Animation: Solidify movements.
• Delete Constraints and Locators: Feet regain subordination to main control.
• Result: Feet stick to the ground without sliding.

Conclusion

• Allows using any complex path for walks.
• The method simplifies control over complex animations.
• Teases a final tutorial to convert in-place cycles to progressive cycles.
• Encouragement to subscribe and support through likes and shares.