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Maya Tutorial: Object Dissolving Guide

This Maya tutorial shows how to dissolve an object using a lattice and soft body simulation over 9 steps: 1) Create an object to dissolve, 2) Make a lattice and set it as a soft body, 3) Create a floor plane, 4) Assign gravity to the lattice, 5) Make the lattice and floor collide, 6) Display particle shapes, 7) Expand the lattice to access particles, 8) Add attributes to control expansion and size, 9) Add an expression to the particles to control dissolution based on the new attributes.

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173 views5 pages

Maya Tutorial: Object Dissolving Guide

This Maya tutorial shows how to dissolve an object using a lattice and soft body simulation over 9 steps: 1) Create an object to dissolve, 2) Make a lattice and set it as a soft body, 3) Create a floor plane, 4) Assign gravity to the lattice, 5) Make the lattice and floor collide, 6) Display particle shapes, 7) Expand the lattice to access particles, 8) Add attributes to control expansion and size, 9) Add an expression to the particles to control dissolution based on the new attributes.

Uploaded by

pw12f338c
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Maya tutorial: Dissolving an object

STEP 1:

You can use any object or make a curve of any shape and revolve it. We used the goblet from our
goblet modelling tutorial.

STEP 2:

Select the object you want to melt and create the lattice. Animation mode>Deform>Create
Lattice>option box. you will want the lattice with 6;6;6 divisions
STEP 3:

Select ffd1Lattice go in the Dynamics mode and choose Soft/Rigid Bodies>Create Soft Body

STEP 4:

Create the primitive polygon plane and set the subdivisions up to 10;10. Place it right under the object
(goblet). Make sure the lattice is not penetrating the plane. That will be the floor.
STEP 5:

Select ffd1Lattice and assign the gravity to it. Dynamics mode>Fields>Gravity

STEP 6:

Now set up the collisions between the lattice and the floor. Select ffd1Lattice then the plane, and in
Dynamics mode choose Particles>Make Collide

STEP 7:

In the outliner window select Display>Shapes. This will enable the shapes of particles to be selected
through the outliner.
STEP 8:

Once you have turned the shapes on you can notice in the outliner next to the ffd1Lattice there is a
plus icon. Click on it and it will expand the subobjects. Select ffd1LatticeParticleShape and add two
new attributes. To do that go Modify>Add Attribute... Tick Data Type - Float; Attribute Type - Scalar.
Name the attribute "expanse". Add one more attribute with the same set up and name it "size". (Make
sure you will name them properly because in the script which I will show you in the next step you will
call these attributes in the script.)
STEP 9:

Now we will add a small expression so as to use these attributes to control the expanse and size of the
object. Select ffd1LatticeParticleShape and open the Expression editor. You will find it under
Window>Animation Editors>Expression Editor. Put the following script into the Expression box.

Expression:

vector $dissolve = ffd1LatticeParticleShape.worldPosition;

float $expanse = ffd1LatticeParticleShape.expanse;

float $size = ffd1LatticeParticleShape.size;

if ($dissolve.y < $size) ffd1LatticeParticleShape.velocity = unit

(ffd1LatticeParticleShape.worldPosition -<<0,0,0>>)*$expanse

Hit the Create button.

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