FBX file translator

The Autodesk^® FBX^® translator plug-in allows Autodesk^® Maya^® to read and write the latest version of FBX files. FBX allows all types of data to be packaged into one file format that can be used by most of today's 3D authoring software. With FBX, you don't have to worry about which supported software application the data came from, or how you are going to convert it. FBX acts as an interchange hub between most 3D software, regardless of software vendor or computer platform.

This lets you exchange complex data between Maya, Autodesk^® MotionBuilder^®, Autodesk^® 3ds Max^®, and Autodesk^® Mudbox^® while preserving the data’s overall behavior, making it easier to integrate all these products into a single pipeline. For example, with FBX you can exchange animation data and character rigs between Maya and MotionBuilder, or point data between Maya and new versions of MotionBuilder and 3ds Max.

The FBX plug-in is installed automatically with Maya, and is loaded by default on startup. If you have previously unloaded this plug-in, you can load it by doing the following:

Select Window > Settings/Preferences > Plug-in Manager.
Click the Load button for fbxmaya.mll.

Note

Development of the FBX plug-in is an ongoing process in order to provide you with seamless interoperability between all FBX-supporting products. The support for Maya functions and features is ever-growing and improving.

You should therefore check for the latest version of the FBX plug-in from the Autodesk website (www.autodesk.com/fbx) or by clicking the Check for web updates button in the FBX Importer or Exporter windows. The Maya FBX Plug-in is available for free download.

FBX plug-in documentation

For more information on the version of FBX installed with Maya, select Help > Autodesk FBX Help from Maya’s main menu.

Importing into or exporting from Maya to FBX

In the Autodesk FBX Help, refer to sections Exporting from Maya to an FBX file and Importing FBX files into Maya for instructions on how to import or export .fbx files into or from Maya.

Limitations of FBX

When importing files into and exporting files from Maya, limitations may apply. Visit the Autodesk FBX Help for the most updated list of limitations, as well as the list of new functionalities that are supported in the latest version.

FBX Mel Scripting Commands

The following is a list of FBX Mel commands. For more detail on what these commands do, see the Maya FBX plug-in documentation.

FBXExport -f

FBXExportAnimationOnly -v

FBXExportApplyConstantKeyReducer -v

FBXExportAxisConversionMethod

Add FBX_Root node

FBXExportBakeComplexAnimation -v

FBXExportBakeComplexEnd -v

FBXExportBakeComplexStart -v

FBXExportBakeComplexStep -v

FBXExportCacheFile –v

FBXExportCameras -v

FBXExportCharacter -v

FBXExportColladaFrameRate

FBXExportColladaSingleMatrix

FBXExportColladaTriangulate

FBXExportConstraints -v

FBXExportConvert2Tif –v

FBXExportDxfTriangulate

FBXExportDxfDeformation

FBXExportEdgeSmoothing –v

FBXExportEmbeddedTextures -v

FBXExportFileVersion

FBXExportHardEdges -v

FBXExportInAscii -v

FBXExportLights -v

FBXExportQuaternion -v

FBXExportQuickSelectSetAsCache –q

FBXExportQuickSelectSetAsCache –v

FBXExportScaleFactor

FBXExportShapes -v

FBXExportSkins -v

FBXExportUpAxis

FBXImport -f [filename] -t

FBXImportAxisConversionEnable –v

FBXImportCacheFile –v

FBXImportCameras -v

FBXImportCharacter -v

FBXImportConstraints -v

FBXImportConvertDeformingNullsToJoint -v

FBXImportDxfWeldVertice

FBXImportDxfReferenceNode

FBXImportDxfObjectDerivation

FBXImportEdgeSmoothing –v

FBXImportFillTimeline

FBXImportHardEdges -v

FBXImportLights -v

FBXImportMergeBackNullPivots -v

FBXImportMergeAnimationLayers -v

FBXImportMode -v

FBXImportOverrideNormalsLock -v

FBXImportProtectDrivenKeys -v

FBXImportQuaternion -v

FBXImportResamplingRateSource -v

FBXImportScaleFactorEnable

FBXImportScaleFactor

FBXImportSetMayaFrameRate -v

FBXImportSetLockedAttribute -v

FBXImportShapes -v

FBXImportSkins -v

FBXImportUpAxis

FBXConvertUnitString

FBXGetTakeComment

FBXGetTakeCount

FBXGetTakeIndex

FBXGetTakeLocalTimeSpan

FBXGetTakeName

FBXGetTakeReferenceTimeSpan

FBXLoadExportPresetFile -f

FBXLoadImportPresetFile -f

FBXRead -f

FBXResetImport

FBXResetExport

FBXResamplingRate -v