Motion Paths: How to Control Banking?

Zig Zag

I'm trying to use a motion path to animate an object. There's the Alignment & Banking option in the settings. I understand the Not Aligned and Aligned options. However, I don't understand Align & Bank, or more specifically what causes an object to bank along a motion path and how I can control it?

So when I make an object follow a motion path, and I use the "Align" option, sometimes the object rotates around its axis when it approaches or leaves a point of the motion path. How can I avoid or control this rotation when tracing the motion path? Is there a trick?

Thanks

DUDU

Have you ever seen this tutorial ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2LlMcAOqK8

Edit: I think that you must decrease the value “Align & bank”…

evilproducer

You can also keyframe the banking if it's rough. That' what I do. I just use align and manually bank it.

Zig Zag

Hi DUDU,

DUDU_00001 said:

Have you ever seen this tutorial ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2LlMcAOqK8

Edit: I think that you must decrease the value “Align & bank”…

Yep, I saw that tutorial before. There's nothing about banking in there...

Zig Zag

evilproducer said:

You can also keyframe the banking if it's rough. That' what I do. I just use align and manually bank it.

That's also my conclusion. I thought there was a way to control/modify the banking via the motion path or Graph Editor. The banking is related to the motion point handles but it's not clear how these handles exactly interact with banking. There's a logic in there but it still eludes me.

3DAGE

Banking is effected by the handles on the path,. (TCB) (Tension, Continuity, Bias) as far as I remember.

You can also key-frame your animation, then convert that to Motion path,. and vice versa

Zig Zag

Hi 3DAGE,

3DAGE said:

Banking is effected by the handles on the path,. (TCB) (Tension, Continuity, Bias) as far as I remember.

You can also key-frame your animation, then convert that to Motion path,. and vice versa

thanks, nice to know :-)

Eric3ddd

That't a reason why I often use target helpers (or other invisible object) between the object and the motion. This allows you to separate the parameters. For example, have the target helper follow the path and use Point At modifier to orient the object.

WendyLuvsCatz

I only ever had success with motion paths if a
my object parented to something else following it

evilproducer

Just to clarify my experience. I could align my object while following the motion path and have it look smooth, but having the object bank (even limiting the amount of banking) would create a little jerk or sudden change in the banking when it hit the point where the path changed direction no matter how I adjusted handles. I found if I had the object aligned only, I could still manually adjust the banking (and create keyframes) without having to convert the path to keyframes.

DUDU

evilproducer said:

Just to clarify my experience. I could align my object while following the motion path and have it look smooth, but having the object bank (even limiting the amount of banking) would create a little jerk or sudden change in the banking when it hit the point where the path changed direction no matter how I adjusted handles. I found if I had the object aligned only, I could still manually adjust the banking (and create keyframes) without having to convert the path to keyframes.

All depends on the attitude which one wants to give to the object…
A character who walks or a car on a road, do not react in the same way as a boat on water for example.
But your solution is the good one, it's sure !