Working with Poses and AnimationSaving and Loading Poses and AnimationClip/Pose ManagerSaving and loading Poses and Animation using Right Click Menus

3ds Max CAT provides tools for working with motion data, including importing, mapping, retargeting and editing. You can save individual animation layers and even whole layer stacks for reuse, including on other characters.

You can save and load poses and animation from any body part using quad menus. Right click on a arm, leg, finger, tail, or any bone in 3ds Max CAT, and save out pose or motion data in one click.

How motion is scaled to fit your rig

When you save motion or pose data from a CATRig, the CATUnits value is included with the file. When reloading, the CATUnits value from the saved file is compared with the CATUnits value of the rig onto which you are loading the data. The difference between the two CATUnits values is used to scale the data.

For example, if you saved an animation from CATRig A with a CATUnits setting of 2.0, and you load that animation onto CATRig B, which has a CATUnits setting of 4.0, then the data is scaled by a factor of 4.0/2.0, or 2.0. So the data will be made twice as big to fit your new rig.

This means that it is important to use CATUnits correctly. With the example rigs, we try to make sure the CATParent fits underneath the feet of your character. As long as all your rigs have CATParents which are the same relative size with respect to the CATRig, then the data will be scaled correctly.

TipWhen building rigs of different sizes, it is easier to build one rig and then resize it using CATUnits before adjusting preportions. This way, you are more likely to get correctly scaled CATUnits values when transferring animation between your rigs.

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