If you use Maya for animation, you can check the physicality of objects flying through the air for accuracy by using a special rig. With Cody Childress’ Gravity Ball Rig, you can check the physics of your animation the same way WETA Digital does, with a simple ball rig that you are able to keyframe.
This is a rig that controls the exact mathematical calculation of gravity on a ball
The Gravity Ball Rig controls the ball through exact mathematical calculations of the force of gravity on a ball, without the calculation of air resistance. This can be a helpful tool to import into your scene as reference.
By default the he Gravity Ball Rig’s ball diameter is set to 1 foot. You can use the rig’s “unit scale attribute” to adjust it to the scale of your scene. This way you can adjust for your object’s mass in the animation.
The Gravity Ball Rig “zenith attribute” allows you to control when the gravity ball is at it’s zenith with a little expression on the animation clip. Gravity is calculated to .0001 of a foot.
For More information on the Gravity Ball Rig, and a download, check Cody’s page here: Gravity Ball for Maya.
