How do I link a cat rig to a moving object?

[markus]

How do I go about linking a cat rig to a moving object? I have some animated characters and I want them to move along in a bout that is animated.

I tried linking the Layer transform gizmo to the root node of the boat, but that didn't work. The layer transform gizmo just stays in place.

I googled it and found a thread, but it is from 2010, so I was hoping for a new or better solution by now (7 years has passed). 

https://forums.autodesk.com/t5/3ds-max-animation-and-rigging/linking-a-cat-rig-to-an-object/td-p/418...

I tried to use postion constraint and orientation constraint like the thread above suggestet, but it was kind of difficult due to offseting happening (my layer transform gizmo already has transforms on it. Is there any detailed tutorials or documentation for how to handle a situation like this? I couldn't figure out what I am doing wrong.

[markus]

I have started over, trying to link a cat rig to a moving object.My previous attempt failed because of transforms already present on the gizmo and I could'nt figure out how to fix it.

By deleting my existing animation and creating a new blank absoulte later with Layer transform gizmo at 0,0,0 and the object I want to use as parent to 0,0,0 and zeroing out all transforms I succeded in "linking" it to a parent' However I had some issues with lag and blinking in the viewport while trying to add an object to the constraint list.

I would like to know how I can achive this without deleting my current animation and starting from scratch!

[Anonymous]

I'm not an animator...or CAT expert...just read various posts by other ppl and recorded the video...so save your flaming arrows...

[markus]

Thanks for the Video Vusta. I believe the method you presented is the right one, however when I try to do the same on my character that is allready posed I get some strange offset that I don't understand. I made a new shorter video to describe it. (Sorry for the long recordings where I fumbled around before!)

I

It's not critical for my current project, since I have already reworked it by deleting the anim layers, creating the setup in 0,0,0 world space, and then re-posed the character, but I am a bit curios as to how I could have fixed this if I get the same issue in the future. Using "keep initial offset" under the position constaint only makes the problem worse.

[Anonymous]

yeah as i'm not an expert, i reckon the only way to be sure is have the CAT rig at Origin, the Dummy at Origin, make necessary connections, THEN start any animations required...so that there's no initial offset whatsoever...but that may not be possible with an already animated character/Dummy.

[markus]

Yeah, but something is very strange in this particular file. One thing is the offset that happened, but anohter thing is that I get a lot of "lagging" when I try to add at position constrain target. The screen starts to flicker and the cursor goes into spinning mode for a long time before I am able to press anything. I'm not sure if that is a bug in max or what is going on....

I am not going to spend any more time on this problem, since i have already worked around it, but if a rep from Autodesk want's to have a look at the file and try to debug it I could send them a copy.

[Anonymous]

i think in the CAT Layer Transform, there's a checkbox for Display Ghost...(something like that, the name escapes me) untick it...see if that helps

[markus]

No, it is not that, bugt thanks! I already turned of the ghost, since it also causes a lot of lagging when on.

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @markus,

I'd love to get a look at the file and I'm happy to try to let you know what is happening.  There's so many things that can happen in rig files that I really do need to get my hands on one to solve them most of the time.  If you're willing to upload it, that's great!

I have set up a private folder for you if you'd like to upload your files there. You should get an email about it shortly, and if you don't see it please check your SPAM folder. These files are private and will not be shared with anyone but yourself and the support staff. Please let me know if you have any questions. Please use at least an 8 character password or the Box account may not work properly.

Best Regards,

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Hello @markus,

I wanted to follow up here, did you get the Box invite?  I'm happy to look into the problem and log any issues if needed.  Also, out of curiosity and so we can mark a solution here, what was your workaround?  Thanks for the information.

Best Regards,

[markus]

Thanks for the box invite. I'll check it out when I'm back from easter vacation. This is not an urgent issue for me but I would like to know why it happens and what can be done to fix it in the future, because I like working with CAT.

--
Best regards

Markus Schille
(Message is sent from my phone).

[Alfred.DeFlaminis]

Thanks very much and happy Easter @markus!

Best Regards,

[tylergibbons.art]

I think I came across an even better way to link CAT characters to moving objects in scenes. I'm still testing it out in production, but so far it seems to be working very well.

On the same layer as your animation (if you have an any on an Abs layer), select your CAT Parent object, and change the PRS:Position/Rotation/Scale controller to a "CatGizmoTransform" controller, and then immediately change that to a "CatHDPivotTrans" controller. It might flip your parent object on its side, but this seems to allow you to directly link your character's pelvis and IK goals to the parent object without wrecking the animation. Then you can link the CAT Parent to anything, including a dummy object which can have any animation constraints like path constraints, look-at, animated Link constraints, anything!

It also lets you link to objects that are not aligned with your character's origin. I had to link my character to a floating ball and have it carry him by the hands all over the scene, and it worked great!