Path : PositionController

Constructor

path ...

Properties

<path>.allowUpsideDown  Boolean  default: false     -- alias: Allow_Upside_Down

Turn on to avoid the situation in which an object flips when going around a vertically oriented path.

<path>.axis             Integer  default: 0

axis = 0 - X; 1 - Y; 2 - Z

<path>.axisFlip         Boolean  default: false     -- alias: Axis_Flip

Flips the direction of the object on the path 180 degrees.

<path>.bank             Boolean  default: false

Allows the object to bank (roll) as it negotiates the curves of the spline.

<path>.bankAmount       Float    default: 0.5       -- animatable, alias: Bank_Amount

The amount of the banking to one side or the other, depending on whether the value is positive or negative.

<path>.constantVel      Boolean  default: false     -- alias: Constant_Velocity

Provides a constant velocity along the path. When off, the velocity of the object along the path varies depending on the distance between the vertices on the path.

<path>.follow           Boolean default: false

Aligns the object to the trajectory as it follows the contour.

<path>.loop         Boolean  default: false    --  boolean

When turned on, the path controlled object will loop back to the start point of the path, after the end point is reached.

<path>.path             Node     default: undefinedùnode; Path_Constraint

The spline in the scene that you want the selected object to follow.

<path>.pathlist         Array    default: #() --  node array; SubAnim

The object will follow the resultant path which is the weighted average of the paths in this array. The weight for each path is found in the corresponding entry in <path>.weightlist.

<path>.percent          Float default: 0.0       -- animatable, percentage

The percent that the object is positioned along the path.

<path>.relative         Boolean  default: false     --  booleanExample

When turned on, the path controlled object will maintain the position offset between its initial position and the start point of the path.

<path>.smoothness       Float    default: 0.5       -- animatable

Controls how rapidly the roll angle changes as the object moves through bends in the trajectory. Smaller values will make the object more responsive to subtle changes in the curve, while larger values smooth out jerking. The default value is a good value for general damping along the curve. Values below 2 tend to make the action jerky, but values around 3 can be very useful for simulating a certain degree of realistic instability.

<path>.weightlist       Array    default: #()    --  float array; Weight; SubAnim

Array containing weights corresponding to entries in the <path>.pathlist array. The object will follow the resultant path which is the weighted average of the selected paths.

The following script shows an example of assigning and animating a path controller.

Example:

thePath=circle radius:50                   -- create shape node for path

theObj=cone radius1:6 radius2:0 height:15  -- create object to travel on path

theObj.pos.controller=path follow:true     -- assign path controller to object

PosCont=theObj.pos.controller              -- grab the path controller

PosCont.path=thePath                       -- set path to shape node

PosCont.axis=2                             -- point local Z axis along path

animate on                                 -- create keys atà

(  

at time 30 PosCont.percent=25 -- frame 30 - 25% along path

at time 100 PosCont.percent=95 -- frame 100 - 95% along path

)

See also