LipService/LBrush Deformer Node

The LipService/LBrush plug-in creates a deformer node called LBrush. This defomer handles modification of your object when you are sculpting, animates your object, and stores your sculpting data and phoneme targets.
The LBrush node can be connected only to polygonal objects for now and does not allow multiple inputs (you should select a single poly object node before creating the LBrush deformer)

You can create LBrush deformer using 2 approaches:
1) Activate any of LBrush Tools using the button on LBrush Shelf. Tool will be activated and its properties will be exposed the LBrush node will be created and connected at once.
2) >OR< Press the 'NEW' button of LBrush Shelf

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An LBrush Deformer will be created. You can see it in Hypergraph and see the correspondent Tab in Attribute Editor.

LBrush Node Attributes

1) Animation Layers

2) Phoneme Targets

2) Performance Groups

Phoneme Targets

If LBrush Node was just connected you will see the neutral state in all the swatches correspondent to object's unmodified shape.

Using the Targets

Three main operations can be performed witch each phoneme target:

1) Create Target. Load the sculpted object from work area to swatch using the ' > ' button.

You can sculpt the object using some of the LBrush Sculpt or Paint tools and then save to any swatch by hitting the '>' to the right of the swatch.

The exception is the NEUTRAL swatch. The evaluation of any other target's shape is dependent on how geometry was loaded to this swatch. When you press NEUTRAL's ' > ' you will be prompted to make a decision:

If you want to make the nose of your character bigger, for example, there is no need to change all the phoneme targets. Just load load the NEUTRAL to work area '<', make it's nose bigger, save it back to neutral '>' and chose 'Yes' in 'Offset All Targets' dialog. However, if you really just wanted to change the neutral object without affecting any other objects hit 'no'.

2) Edit A Target. Load the target from swatch to work area using the ' < ' button.

So you can easy modify your phoneme targets of create new ones taking the existing as the base. You're working on a copy of the target, not the target itself - so when you want to store it back in the target, you must hit '>'.

Note: ' < ' buttons  can be used only if LBrush Tools are active.

3) Animate. Create animation keys for any of phoneme targets

Click the phoneme swatch picture area itself - the keyframe will be created for this target at current time. All that you need to do is to create keys in right places of timeline - LBrush hits the target, so you don't need to over model.

Note: Animation is not evaluated if LBrush Tools are active. When you create phoneme key a LBrush Tool is active, it will be de-activated when you click the target. You will be able to preview/play your animation.

Using the Sound

Load the sound in the normal way for Maya :

• Load the sound file  (Maya Menu / File / Import...)

• Set the playback speed to 'Real-time (24fps)' so Maya will be able to play the sound (Maya Prefereces / Settings / Timeline / Playaback Speed)

• Right click the Timeline then select in 'Sound' submenu the name of your sound file

Use LBrush step forward/backward buttons (LBrush shelf) or the alt+',' and alt+'.' on the Timeline . The difference with standard Maya's 'step forward' is that ours will play a frame of sound when you frame-forward.

Key Operations

Move, Copy, Paste key operations are supported on Timeline  and in Animation Dope Sheet editor as well.

Multilayer Animation

You can also create multi-layer animation. By default there is only one 'Phonemes Master Track' but you can add more tracks that will work additively- different animation layers can be created for different parts of the face.

There are 3 simple tools for operating with animation layers/tracks:

	Append new Animation Layer to the list.
	Delete selected Animation Layer.
	Rename selected Animation Layer. The dialog will pop up with prompt to enter new name.

Animation keys are added to the active Animation Layer. To activate some Layer just select in the list. So if you want to add keys to certain Animation Layer make sure it is selected in the list then navigate the Timeline and click the Phoneme Targets you want to create keys for.

Animation is evaluated only for enabled Animation Layers. Double click the certain Layer in the list to enable or disable it. The state of the Animation Layer is expressed via ON/OFF labels.

Phoneme Target Operations

LBrush node always has 18 Standard Phoneme Targets.  Extra Targets can be added by this tool, these will be appended to the end of rollout with standard names EXT_1, EXT_2 ...

2) Delete Target Tool

You can delete Extra Targets using this too. Standard ones can not be deleted. To delete some target : Press the Delete Target tool button. Click the swatch of extra target you want to delete.

3) Rename Target Tool

You can rename any of Phoneme Targets (Standard of Extra), to do it: Press the Rename Target tool button. Click the swatch of the target you want to rename. Enter new name in dialog will pop up.

4) Render Target Swatches Tool

Re-renders all the swatches using current viewport camera settings.

5) Import Target Tool

You can import some some polygonal object that exists in your scene as Phoneme Target. Import is performed in three steps: Press the Import Target tool button. Click the swatch you want to import the geometry  to (swatch will be highlighted with green) Click the poly object you want to import Note: you can only import objects with the same topology as the object your LBrush Node is connected to.

6) Import Target From Outliner Tool

You can import some polygonal objects via the Outliner Window: Press the Import Target From Outliner tool button. Click the swatch you want to import the geometry to (swatch will be highlighted with green and outliner window will be opened) Select the object from Outliner window.

7) Export Target Tool

Any of Phoneme Targets can be exported to scene as polygonal object: Press the Export Target tool button Click the swatch you want to export. Note: there is a similar tool button on LBrush Shelf - Export Sculpt it exports the current sculpt (what you see in viewport) as polygonal object.

Performance Groups

Two performance groups are created within LBrush Node. Additional ones can be created or deleted using the Performance Group Tools.

Creating/Editing

Each of the Groups contains four Targets. The general creation workflow with these targets is the same as with regular ones on the Phoneme Targets rollout. The sculpting from work area can be loaded to any of them using ' > ' button and can be load back to work area using ' < ' button. The main difference that animation keys are not created by clicking the swatches.

Animation

To preview the animation you can create with some Performance Groups do the next steps:

• Press the button above Performance Group 'Group00' for example (four swatches of this group will be highlighted with green). The Group Blend Mode will be activated and group you will test will be highlighted with green.

• Move you mouse somewhere near the center of viewport, and perform some up/down, left/right gestures without releasing the left mouse button (you will see how four targets of Performance Group will blend with current sculpt due to mouse location). Neutral is in the middle, and the four targets are mapped to the corresponding corners of the viewport.

• To cancel Group Blend Mode press the Group button again or activate the LBrush Tools or the Maya Standard Selection tool.

To create animation key sequence for some Performance Group:

Toggle press the Group button as described in section above. And then press the 'Record' button

The swatches of the group recording performed will be highlighted with red. And recording will be started after four seconds count down. Check the checkbox 'Eval Tracks when Recording' to see the phoneme tracks along with your Performance Groups when they are recorded. Note: the groups that have some animation recorded will have " * " mark.

Performance Group Operations

Use 'Del Keys' button to delete all the keyframes for specific Group.

Also there Tools to manage the Performance Groups:

1) Add Group Tool.

Append new Performance Group to rollout

2) Delete Group Tool.

Groups can be deleted in two steps: Press the Delete Group button. Press the named button of the Group you want to delete ( for example 'Group01' button)

3) Rename Group Tool.

To rename a Performance Group: Press the 'Rename Groups' button Press the named button of Group you want to rename. Enter the new name in the feild

4) Render All Group Swatches.

Re-renders all the group swatches using current viewport camera settings.