Morph Targets

Overview

Morph Targets in Unreal Engine 3 are applied in an additive manner. That means that if you have one Morph Target for "smile" where only vertices around the mouth are modified, and another for "raise eyebrow" which only affects vertices around the eyes, applying both of these would cause both the smile and eyebrow movements to appear. This allows you to create a wide range of facial poses, for example, by combining multiple targets together. Beyond processing and memory constraints, there is no limit to the number of morph targets which can be active on a skeletal mesh at any given time.

Morph Targets and skeletal animation can work together. Morph Targets are applied to the skeletal mesh before the bone transformations are applied. Morph Targets should be authored based on the reference pose mesh of the mesh, and then on import the vertices are compared against the base mesh, and only those that differ are stored. This reduces the memory cost when working with morph targets that modify only a subset of the base mesh's vertices.

Exporting and Importing Morph Targets

See the Exporting Morph Targets using FBX page for information on how to export morph targets using FBX.

See the Importing Morph Targets using FBX page for information on how to import morph targets using FBX.

If your skeletal mesh has more than one LOD level then you will need to also import morph targets for each of those LODs. This is done with the 'Import MorphTarget LOD' option from the File menu. Just as the LOD 0 morph targets have to be generated from the LOD 0 mesh of the base skeletal mesh, each new morph target LOD level has to be generated from the same LOD of the base skeletal mesh in order for the vertices to match up properly. Note that if you have more than one LOD for your base mesh but no morph target LODs for them then when the mesh drops to the lower LOD no morph targets will be applied.

Morph Target Animations

In the AnimTree, you can now use that animation in AnimNodeSequence and it will blend by normalizing morph target weights by node weight.

Previewing Morph Targets

Renaming Morph Targets

Deleting Morph Targets

Updating Morph Targets

Controlling Morph Targets

Adding Morph Targets To An AnimTree

To be able to blend multiple Morph Targets together at a time, you use an AnimTree. In the AnimTree Editor , you will see an input to the root "Animations" node labeled Morph. This is for connecting various type of Morph Node to. There are 2 main types of Morph Node:

• Morph Pose - This is a static Morph Target from a MorphTargetSet.
• Morph Weight - This is a node used to control the "strength" that it's child nodes are applied with. This type of node has a slider on it that allows you to modify the weight in the editor, and see the results.

Before you start adding Morph Nodes to the AnimTree, you first need to add the MorphTargetSets you want to use in the preview. Select the root Animations node, expand the PreviewMorphSets array and add them in there. When you place a Morph Pose node in the AnimTree, you tell it the Morph Target name to use. It will then search the MorphTargetSets you have specified to find it. In the actual game, the MorphSets array in the SkeletalMeshComponent is used instead.

Blending Morph Targets works differently than blending skeletal animations together. This is because they combine additively, instead of the result being an interpolation between various inputs. This means that you can connect multiple morph targets to the input of a node for example.

See the AnimTree Editor User Guide for more information about AnimTrees.

Using Morph Targets in Matinee

1. Make an AnimTree with MorphPoses going through MorphNodeWeight into the Morph track.
2. Give the MorphNodeWeight a NodeName, this is the name you will use to drive it in Matinee.
3. To see the morphs in the AnimTree Viewer, select the AnimTree, and set the PreviewSkelMesh, and PreviewMorphSets.
4. Add your skeletal mesh to the world with the right click add actor/add SkeletalMeshMAT, this allows it to use the Animtree.
5. Select the mesh, and in its properties go to SkeletalMeshactpr/SkeletalMeshComponent/SkeletalMeshComponent, and set the AnimTreeTemplate and MorphSets to the one you created.
6. Create a Matinee, and add a NewSkeletalMeshGroup for you mesh, and right click on it and add a Morph Weight. Select it and in the properties add the NodeName of the MorphNodeWeight in the AnimTree to the MorphNodeName section. Now you can add key frames, and animate it like any matinee track. You can have multiple MorphWeight tracks at the same time, and blend them together. To animate a sequence of morphs, you have to turn one off as you are turning the other one on.

See the Matinee User Guide for more information about AnimTrees.

Using Morph Targets in Unrealscript

var MorphNodeWeight WeightNode;

simulated event PostInitAnimTree(SkeletalMeshComponent SkelComp)
{
  Super.PostInitAnimTree(SkelComp);

  if (SkelComp == Mesh)
  {
    WeightNode = MorphNodeWeight(Mesh.FindMorphNode('MyNode'));
    if(WeightNode != None)
    {
      WeightNode.SetNodeWeight(NewWeight);
    }
  }
}

Remember to clear all Morph node object references when destroying the actor.

simulated function Destroyed()
{
  Super.Destroyed();

  WeightNode = None;
}

Morph Target Node Reference

Morph Node Weight

Properties

• Node Name - Name of the node, which allows Unrealscript to find this morph node.

Unrealscript functions

• SetNodeWeight(float NewWeight) - Sets the weight of the node.
  • NewWeight - New weight to set.

Morph Node Weight By Bone Angle

Properties

• Base Bone Name - Base bone name.
• Base Bone Axis - Axis to use on Base Bone, X, Y or Z.
• Invert Base Bone Axis - If true, then the base bone axis is inverted.
• Angle Bone Name - Angle bone name.
• Angle Bone Axis - Axis to use on Angle Bone, X, Y or Z.
• Invert Angle Bone Axis - If true, then the angle bone axis is inverted.
• Control Material Parameter - If true, then this morph node also controls a material parameter.
• Material Slot Id - Material slot on the Skeletal Mesh to control.
• Scalar Parameter Name - Material scalar parameter name to control.
• Weight Array - Array of weights to use at different angles.
  • Angle - Angle to apply this weight.
  • Weight - Weight to apply.

Morph Node Weight By Bone Rotation

Properties

• Base Bone Name - Base bone name.
• Base Bone Axis - Axis to use on Base Bone, X, Y or Z.
• Invert Base Bone Axis - If true, then the base bone axis is inverted.
• Weight Array - Array of weights to use at different angles.
  • Angle - Angle to apply this weight.
  • Weight - Weight to apply.
• Control Material Parameter - If true, then this morph node also controls a material parameter.
• Material Slot Id - Material slot on the Skeletal Mesh to control.
• Scalar Parameter Name - Material scalar parameter name to control.

Morph Node Multi Pose

Properties

• Morph Names - Names of the morph targets to apply.
• Weights - Weights for each of the morph targets to apply.
• Node Name - Name of the node, which allows Unrealscript to find this morph node.

Unrealscript functions

• AddMorphTarget(Name MorphTargetName, optional float InWeight = 1.0f) - Add the MorphTarget to use for this MorphNodeMultiPose by name. Will find it in the owning SkeletalMeshComponent MorphSets array using FindMorphTarget. Returns true if the morph target has been added.
  • MorphTargetName - Name of the morph target to add.
  • InWeight - Weight to set this morph target.
• RemoveMorphTarget(Name MorphTargetName) - Remove the MorphTarget from using for this MorphNodeMultiPose by name.
  • MorphTargetName - Name of the morph target to remove.
• UpdateMorphTarget(MorphTarget Target, float InWeight) - Update weight of the morph target.
  • Target - Morph target to modify the weight of.
  • InWeight - New weight to set this morph target.

Morph Node Pose

Properties

• Morph Name - Name of the morph target to apply.
• Weight - Total weight to apply.
• Node Name - Name of the node, which allows Unrealscript to find this morph node.

Unrealscript functions

• SetMorphTarget(Name MorphTargetName) - Sets the morph target.
  • MorphTargetName - Name of the morph target to set.