Learning about skeletal animation
In 3D skeletal animation, several key concepts form the foundation of how characters move and deform realistically. These concepts include bones, skeletons, and skin. Let’s look at them in depth here before we move on to the more practical aspects of skeletal animation:
- Bone is a transformable object that acts as the primary control structure for character movement. Bones are not visible in the final rendered model but are essential in defining the movement of specific parts of a character, such as the head, arms, legs, etc. Each bone controls a portion of the character’s mesh, and they are often arranged in a hierarchical manner. When a bone moves, it influences the mesh linked to it.
- Skeleton is the complete system of interconnected bones that defines the overall structure of a 3D model. Each bone in the skeleton is connected in a parent-child relationship, where movement in one bone affects the bones connected to...