Baking Transform Animations in Props with iClone

If you want to export a prop with animations to other 3D tools through 3DXchange, then you need to bake the animations first into the prop so that when you load the prop into 3DXchange, the animations will be loaded as well.

Creating Animations

  1. Build a structure in iClone.
  2. Attach the parts together (skip this step if you only want to create a model with single component and animations).
  3. Make sure the Root node is at the origin of the world (0,0,0).
  4. Set Transform keys to create animations for the moving parts of the structure.

    Note:

    You can also create animations using the Physics tools.

Merge Down the Structure

  1. Select the root node of the structure in the Scene Manager (in this case, the Building).
  2. Go to the Set > Prop > Modify panel. In the Transform section, click the Reset Transform button.
  3. In the Attach section of the Modify panel, click the Merge button.

    Note:

    If the animation is simulated using Physics, then you must open the Object Physics Settings panel (Shortcut: Shift + F9), deactivate the Active Physics box. This step turns the structure into a common prop.

Baking Animation to the Structure using the Collect Clip Function

After the structure is turned into an ordinary prop, you may then use the Collect Clip feature in iClone to bake the animation into the custom structure.

  1. Select the structure. Open the Timeline (Shortcut: F3).
  2. Open the Collect Clip and the Animation tracks of the new structure.
  3. Drag on the Collect Clip track to determine the range of the animation you want to bake into the structure.
  4. Right click within the range and select Add Motion to Library.
  5. The Add to Perform panel will display. Type in the name of the animation and then click OK to Bake the animation into the structure.
  6. Right click on the custom structure and then select the Remove All Animations command from the right-click menu.
  7. Click the Add button to add the prop into the Custom Library. The prop can then be loaded into 3DXchange with animations embedded.