Biped Helper

7 votes
Version: 
3.2
Date Updated: 
10/13/2023
Author Name: 
Lorne Brooks

Biped Helper is a support interface designed to be used in conjunction with the main Biped panel.

It is intended to provide both quick access to existing Biped panel tools, as well as functionality that is not supported by the Biped panel.

 

See online guide in links section. 

 

Features include:

  • Limited parts selection with IK limb pivot settings
  • Display options
  • Time range (for all range-based operations)
  • Adding and removing keys
  • TCB continuity settings
  • Limb space settings (Body/Object)
  • Load and save animation clips
  • Layers management and IK constraints retargeting
  • Pose or Posture copy/paste
  • Limb mirroring
  • Finger and spine alignment
  • Pose referencing (via snapshot meshes)
  • Biped or prop alignment and baking tools

 

 

IK Pivots Selection...

 

Latest Updates:

Version 3.2;

  • Fixed a crash when attempting to paste a copied posture with an existing empty CopyPosture collection.
  • Move the Keys section to its own separate rollout.
  • Added a Time Range section which applies to all functions that operate across the time range.
  • Key All Parts and Key Selected Parts can now add new keys across the time range by holding either shift or control.
  • Added a new method to delete keys across the time range for either selected parts, or all parts if shift or control are held.
  • Added a new method to delete in-between keys across the time range based a step size set by a spinner. Keys that exist between each step will be removed.
  • Added ability to paste a copied posture across the time range for each frame when holding shift or control.
  • Added additional options for pasting a posture on the Biped root (COM).
  • Added a new method to Posture Grabber for straightening fingers with finger selection.
  • Added left and right hand select all fingers buttons.
  • Added prop alignment and baking to a target object to the Baking rollout.
  • Added new methods to Layers rollout for adding, deleting, collapsing and renaming Biped layers.
  • Added support for tail bones when setting or deleting keys.
  • Added selection of props if available.
  • Added checks for invalid biped to all UI functions.
  • Mirroring limb postures now includes fingers and toes.
  • Script now handles finding Biped objects with modifiers in the stack.
  • Various UI and layout adjustments.

 

Additional Info: 

The script can be found in category “LB Tools”.

The script creates its own macro to be placed as a toolbar icon or a keyboard shortcut added.

Installation:

Drag the MZP file into your Max viewport.

Files will be copied to...

C:\Users\<userName>\AppData\Local\Autodesk\3dsMax\<maxVersion>\ENU\scripts\startup

and...

C:\Users\<userName>\AppData\Local\Autodesk\3dsMax\<maxVersion>\ENU\usericons

Version Requirement: 
3dsmax 2020-2024
AttachmentSize
old_3-1_lbtools_biped_helper.mzp19.36 KB
lbtools_biped_helper.mzp22.9 KB

Comments

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jgk1981's picture

seamless loop

if possible can you add a feature to make seamless loop on first and last keys of the biped? is one of the things that is missing on the biped.

jgk1981's picture

On the little i tested the

On the little i tested the new version is working great. Align to match was did exactly what i wanted. You are a life savior. talking about hours of work saved with this neat feature. thanks for your amazing work.

lbrooks's picture

Re: Animated align

I've kept the previous method I did and renamed it Align To Offset. I also created a new method called Align To Match, which might do what you want. It will re-animate all the root keys on the current Biped to match a target object's motion, which could be another Biped root - as well as preserve the limb IK settings.

Let me know if that works for you.

Cheers.

Lorne Brooks

jgk1981's picture

Thank you for the update. It

Thank you for the update. It works but for some reason only partially. I tried to do the alignment from your script to the biped central node but it aligned it only on some of the frames and not on all. For example i wanted to bake the motion from an forward biped to the in place biped that is having the same motion but it aligned it only in some of the frames and not to all the keys. I tried to use the script on a normal mesh that had the same motion on it and did the same thing. On both attempts i did the result was like bungee motion instead. I tried it that on different versions of max and all gave the same result. But the fact that it keeps the Ik limps behave normal is an amazing feature.
Looking forward for your fix on this issue :)
Thanks

lbrooks's picture

Re: Animated align

I've added a new rollout with a button to align animate to a picked object. It will only re-animate keys that already exist on the root and not bake all frames. It also keeps the existing limb IK settings.

Lorne Brooks

jgk1981's picture

Animated align

Hello i was wondering if is possible to have a new feature on this biped helper.
Many times i found my self the need to animate align the biped to another object(mostly the base node), but that needs a lot of cleaning after and is not always working correctly. So i was thinking if there is a chance to have an animated align, only on keyframes of the object we wanna have it instead of manual align that takes lot of time specially when there is a scene with lots of frames. Thank you in advance.

jgk1981's picture

Perfect! Thank you :)

Perfect!
Thank you :)

lbrooks's picture

Re: Amazing work once again

I've added the Snap & Set Key button and separate UI for retargeting. They should function the same as the biped panel.

Lorne Brooks

jgk1981's picture

Amazing work once again. a

Amazing work once again.
a little add on on this will be the ability to have the Snap & Setkey and the Retarget Arm and legs with the Ik check and "update" in one mini floating panel just like you did on the Hands and feet.
Once again thanks for you awesome work.

lbrooks's picture

Re: Is possible to add a button

I've added a new rollout called Quick Layers to enable layer navigation as well as toggling the active layers.

Lorne Brooks

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