Simcenter 3D Solutions Creating Animation Cameras in Simcenter 3D Motion

Many dynamics models, such as vehicles, can require fixed or dynamic camera perspectives in order to best view the animation results. The default animation settings are static and do not provide this. This can be accomplished by creating an Animation Camera element to a Solution's animation. 

Solution

To begin, open a Simcenter 3D Motion model that already contains results and select the Animation Camera button from the Analysis tab.  This will open the Animation Camera dialog box.

In the Animation Camera dialog box, first select the projection mode. Choosing Parallel will set the CAD objects to appear in their defined size, regardless to their proximity to the camera. This will resemble how the model normally looks in the work window. Choosing Perspective will scale the apparent size of the objects such that objects further from the camera will appear smaller. 

The initial position and movement method must then be specified for the camera's target and the camera itself. The target will be the location that the camera is pointed at, while the camera is where the viewer is location. A straight line will be created by connecting the two points specified by the initial positions which will define the camera orientation, magnification, and proximity. The movement method will determine how these values change over the course of the animation. 

The initial position of the target or camera can be set through manually entered coordinates or from geometric features. The Associate to Geometry option will use the CAD features to define the initial position. If the geometry is changed, the initial position will change accordingly. If Associate to Geometry is not used, the location and orientation will be specified with the definition of a CSYS. The options Move Origin with Camera and Move Origin with Target will allow the users to maintain the same relative distance between the camera and target when moving the initial position of the other point. This is useful when the camera magnification is correct, but the location needs to be adjusted. 

The movement of the camera and target can be linked to any motion body using the Select Motion Body option for the Target Movement or Camera Movement. If neither the target nor camera is linked to a motion body, then the camera will not move during the animation. If the target is linked to a motion body, the camera will remain in the same location, but will rotate in order to follow the moving target location. The opposite would be true for a moving camera and stationary target. This can be used to create tracking camera, for example, by using the same motion body to describe the motion of both the camera and target. If both are linked to the chassis or a vehicle, then the camera will track and follow the vehicle as if it was attached offset from the chassis.

The Magnification, Lens, Custom Zoom, and Clipping fields will all alter how much is seen from the camera's perspective. Lens and Custom Zoom will replace Magnification when switching from Parallel to Perspective projection. These will adjust the perceived size of the objects. The Clipping section will define a cutoff of what will be shown in the field of view of the camera. This can remove objects from the background or clip through objects in the foreground. The camera preview window in the upper right corner of the work window will be crucial in setting these parameters. 

Once the camera element is complete, hit the OK button. The camera must then be added to the active animation for the current solution. To do this, right click on the active animation in the Animation submenu of the Solution View. Choose Add to Animation from the right click menu.

Select the camera element once the Add to Animation dialog is open. The camera element will now appear as a subcomponent to the active animation. Simply play the animation and the camera will automatically be applied to the work window at every timestep. 

Notes