The Skins window lets you adjust the weight of vertices relative to one or several bones of a character. This means you can use the Skins window to modify or correct poor weighting of a character.
Skins window A. Model List B. Bones list C. Vertex list D. Weights list E. Weighting Options pane
While you can set all weighting for a character within MotionBuilder, to obtain the best results, use a character that has weighting already applied by MotionBuilder-compatible 3D software.
To open the Skins window, select Window > Skins in the menu bar.
The Skins window consists of the following main areas:
The Model List contains the names of selected models in the Viewer window. You can select the models in this list for weighting.
Add and remove models in the Model List by Alt-dragging them to and from the Viewer window.
The Bones list contains the name of the selected model’s bones.
The bones are automatically included in the Bones list when you select a model name in the Model List. If you select several names, the Bones list displays the name of the bones of all the selected models.
Only the bones that influence the models in the Model List display in the Bones list.
The Vertex list contains the names the vertices for a selected bone. You can choose these vertices for weighting.
The Weights list lets you adjust the percentage of weight to apply to each selected vertex, with respect to its associated bone or bones.
You can use the following options in the Weights list:
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| Col (Color) | Defines the color of the vertices associated with the bone. MotionBuilder uses various colors to identify each set of vertices. See Changing Bone Colors. |
| Weight Slider | Determines the weight value of the selected vertex with respect to the associated bone. The weight value automatically updates in the corresponding Weight field. Sliders are only operational when at least one vertex is selected in the Vertex list. |
| Lock | Locks the weight value of the corresponding bone. Consequently, the weights of other selected bones adjust using the remaining percentage of unlocked weight values. For example, if a weight is locked at 20%, the other weights can only be edited for 80% of the total weight of the selected bones. |
| Weight | Determines the weight value of the selected vertex with respect to the associated bone. The weight value automatically updates in the corresponding weight slider. This field is operational only when one or more vertices are selected in the Vertex list. |
