How to Make Treads in Maya
Maya, a comprehensive 3D graphic design package from Autodesk, enables designers and animators to create realistic shapes and images and integrate them into timed animations. The breadth of options available in Maya can make the program somewhat difficult for beginners, yet the program includes a number of simple tricks you can use to greatly simplify creative tasks. In the case of designing wheel or tank treads, for example, you can use the program's animation path and copying tools to easily create the object and set it in motion.
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Instructions
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Select the CV Curve Tool and draw the path for your treads, either circular in the case of a wheel or rectangular for tank or machinery treads. Snap the last point in your curve to the first point with the Point Snap Tool. You can create any shape as your path as long as the path is closed and the last point is snapped to the first.
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Select the path, right click and select Edit Curves and then Close Curve.
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Design a single tread. Your tread can be as simple as a three-dimensional rectangle or can have a small indent in the center to model a moving machine part. You can even select the Cube shape from the pre-set polygon options (polygon primitives) under the Create menu and edit its attributes to the right measurements for a quick solution.
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Select the polygon you just made, right click on the tread and select duplicate. Make as many copies of the tread as you think you will need to go all the way around your curve. You can always delete a few if you don't need them.
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Select one of the treads and the path and click on the Animate menu option on the top tool-bar. Under Animate, select Paths, Attach to Paths and then Options. A dialog box will appear with options.
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Set the Time/Range in the first line of the menu options to Start/End by clicking on the toggle button next to the option. Set your Start Time to 0.0 and your End Time to 400.0. Click on "Attach."
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Select a second tread and your path and repeat the process from the first tread by going to the Animate menu and selecting Attach to Paths and then Options. Set the Time/Range to Start/End and set your Start Time to 5.0 and your End Time to 405.0. Play your animation from the playback options in the Animate menu and verify that the distance between the two treads is appropriate. You can reduce or increase the difference depending on the movement you want to achieve and the size of your treads. Simply increase or decrease the Start Time and End Time figures to determine how close or far the second tread follows behind the first.
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Select your third tread and the curve and select Options under the Animate Menu as you did before. Set the Time/Range to Start/End and set your Start and End Times to increase by the same amount as they did between your first and second treads. If 5.0 was the appropriate distance between treads, for example, set the Start Time to 10.0 and your End Time to 410.0. Click on "Attach."
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Repeat for as many treads as it takes to fill up your curve, making sure that each is the same appropriate distance behind the previous tread.
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Tips & Warnings
If your treads are not going around the path as you wanted them to, select the tread and press "CTRL" and "A." An Attribute Editor menu will appear where you can select the Motion Path tab and change the World Up Type, Front Axis and Up Axis options to change the direction or style of rotation. Play around with these options with your first tread until you are satisfied with the movement and apply the attributes to the other treads.
If you want to loop the animation so that the treads make more than one rotation around the curve, select a tread and your curve and click on the Curves drop-down menu in the top tool-bar. Go to Pre-Infinity and select Cycle. With the tread and curve still selected, go to the same menu, go to Post-Infinity and select Cylcle. Repeat the process for each of your treads.
If you need to move your treads, select the path and all of the treads and group them. Duplicate the group and move that unit. Moving the original could cause some of the treads to fall out of place.
Maya is a RAM-intensive program that could cause your computer to freeze or stop responding. Save your work often to avoid any loss in the event of an unexpected shut down.
References
- Photo Credit Hemera Technologies/PhotoObjects.net/Getty Images
