View the newest PolyTrans-for-Maya online Windows help file by clicking here (.chm format).
Due to Windows security you may need to do this to view the .chm file: (1) download the .chm help file to your machine, (2) right click on the file in Windows Explorer and choose
"Properties", (3) click the "Unblock" button.
Which entities are imported into Maya? Click here.
Which entities are exported from Maya? Click here.
Animation conversion is one of the hardest tasks to complete in a converter. This is because most 3d software packages use completly different animation mathematical foundations to represent their data. For example, 3DS MAX uses quaternions (angular math on the surface of a sphere) to represent rotations, whereas Maya and Lightwave use Euler angles (three X, Y and Z explicit rotations). PolyTrans overcomes all of these incompatibilities via keyframe resampling and reduction.
The following are the animation channels converted from other software
packages into Maya, via the PolyTrans core animation conversion engine.
Imported Maya Object Animation Channels
Scale as explicit X,Y, Z animation channels
Euler rotations as explicit X,Y, Z animation channels. Proper conversion from angle/axis and quaternion rotations are made to Euler angles via keyframe resampling and reduction.
Translation as explicit X,Y, Z animation channels
Object pivot points
Imported Maya Camera Animation Channels
Translation as explicit X,Y, Z animation channels
Orientation as explicit X,Y, Z Euler rotation animation channels. Proper conversion from angle/axis, quaternion rotations and look-from/look-at/look-up camera notation are made to Euler angles via keyframe resampling and reduction.
Focal length animation channel. Maya animates the focal length while other programs animate the field-of-view. A special resampler was written to convert field-of-view into the inverse focal length animation.