Simple animations, frame by frame
There are many efficient ways to make animations from CAD models, such as those created in the SolidWorks Motion module. However, simple animations, created frame by frame, are still very useful because of their flexibility to be edited with graphics and text, manipulate their timing and transitions, etc. This tutorial provides some tips for creating animated giffs in PHOTOSCAPE from images taken from the SolidWorks screen.
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Step 1: Prepare the model for capturing images
Suppose we have any model, in this example it is a small set whose movement we want to illustrate through an animation.
In order to capture images that allow us to create a good quality animation, without jumps in movement, we sometimes choose to create a named view that ensures the maintenance of the point of view and perspective throughout the entire sequence of movement of the mechanism:
Once this custom view is created, we can use the SolidWorks screenshot button and get images like the following:
It is also possible to use the perspective when creating the custom view:
and get more realistic images of the model and its movements:
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Step 2: save images and create an animated gif
After each capture, the image remains in the Windows clipboard and can be pasted, for example in PAINTBRUSH, and saved, taking care not to make any cuts or other changes that alter the model's point of view.
With these images saved in a folder, it is possible to use applications such as PHOTOSCAPE to create an animation with them in which we can set the exposure time of each image and its type of transition to the next image, among other basic issues, to achieve, for example, a simple two-frame animation like the one shown at the end of this step.
This PHOTOSCAPE interface corresponds to a fairly old version (v3.5) but is still useful for creating simple animations:
The application has different modules for viewing files, individual and batch editing, creating pages by compiling several images, etc. One of these modules is the animated gif creation module, which has a bar from which you can drag the images you want to use:
In this case we drag only two images that will make up the "script" of the animation. In each of them we can decide the exposure time and some possible transitions to move on to the next image:
The exposure time can be set individually or for an entire group of images:
Transitions can also be applied to one or more images simultaneously:
The play and stop buttons allow us to preview the animation once it is compiled. When using the "save" option, a warning usually appears indicating that the size of the images, and therefore the size of the animated gif, could be large, giving the option to reduce them in the bar on the right that defines the "canvas size":
If you continue with the current size to save the animation, a file browser will appear to define the destination folder and name, after which the success of the save and the resulting file size will be indicated:
For this simple example in which we only use two images, without changing the exposure time or adding transitions, the result is as simple as the following:
It is clear that we have used very short exposure times and that the behavior of the mechanism is not really clear with this animation, but we will fix this shortly.
What we are trying to observe at this point seems like a detail, but it is important to obtain quality animations. Observe the lower right end of the mechanism, which is a plate that should not change shape between one image and another. It is notable that it "seems to bend" despite being a rigid and static component. This is simply due to the (slight in this case) change in zoom and perspective that is generated almost imperceptibly in SolidWorks when we move from the initial image (closed mechanism) to the next image (open mechanism).
This causes an adjustment of the zoom and perspective that generates this unwanted (and unreal) movement that we will try to avoid by making a more careful treatment of the images generated and captured from SolidWorks.
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Step 3: It is best to create a camera
To avoid such defects resulting from small changes in zoom and perspective, every time the model's "enclosure box" changes (when deploying a mechanism, for example) it is best to create a camera that will allow you to easily manipulate all the parameters of the lens and camera position, distance, angular width, and even the output image format (1:1 to 16:9):
From a camera view it will be possible to capture images without any distortion or change during the movement of the mechanism, even when it goes beyond the limits of the camera itself:
The dark grey edges are outside the camera boundaries, and the useful part of the image has the proportions defined in that camera (in this case, for example, the proportions are 16:9):
If the job warrants it, it is possible to carefully edit the images to remove these edges and end up with completely clean images. This will be seen in a future tutorial, along with other possible changes such as adding text, image modifiers (shading, boxes, etc.) that can be done punctually (image by image) and in other cases in groups (especially a set of images).
And from these images the created gif animation will be much more realistic (provided that the exposure times and any transitions are correctly decided).
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Step 4: links
This tutorial comes from:
Low Leakage Cryogenic Disconnects for Fuel Transfer and Long-Term Storage
and continues in:
