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Other
ClydeSight Productions Bryce 5 Tutorials:
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Learn Bryce 5 modeling by building a robot model based on "Robby, the Robot™"*
See local media coverage of this tutorial!
| This tutorial is intended to teach Bryce 5 users basic modeling techniques by building a robot BASED on the character Robby the Robot™. The Bryce 5 model can be used for educational and personal use ONLY. Commercial use of the model will require a license from Turner Entertainment Co., A Time Warner Company. ClydeSight Productions does not condone or imply any use of this model that would be construed to violate their rights, nor does it use the model in any of its own commercial products. See Disclaimer |
Building
Robby's Power Coils Note: This is a highly detailed tutorial. I STRONGLY suggest that you print these pages (there will be a lot of printed pages!) and use the hardcopy as a guide while working. It's much easier than having both Bryce 5 and your browser open and then flipping between applications!
Robby's computer relays are powered by Krell power coils. There are five of them that connect to the relay valve seats. They also light up at times. We won't use Bryce 5 lights to illuminate them-- Bryce 5 lights don't have the shapes we need-- but we can make them from a material that appears to glow, giving the illusion of illumination. Our power coils won't be an EXACT duplicate of the original because I don't have the specs, but instead will look like them yet be easy to make in Bryce 5. We'll use a material we already created for Robby's Pilot Lamp and modify it for our power coils. This is a simple section to model as long as you have done the earlier sections and are familiar with the terms I use.
If you have saved and closed your model, open it now and go to the FRONT view. Select NONE and click on the SOLO button. You should have a blank workspace.
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Note: The quality of a material will affect rendering times. Glass materials tend to increase rendering times because of high reflection. But you can imitate glass by increasing the transparency and specularity of a simple material. It will still involve more rendering time, but not as much as a pure glass material. |
Step 1: Make the Power Coil Stem If you are in wireframe mode and can see your model, make sure you have not selected anything and click on the SOLO button in the VCR controls. This will hide all objects in your wireframe view. You should be in the FRONT view (press 4 on the keyboard) and your workspace should appear to be blank. Click on the Cylinder in the Create Palette to bring it into your work space. It will arrive in the correct orientation for our purposes. Click on the Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -10, Y = 126.72, Z =
-12.70 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the stem. It should look like glass. But a glass material increases rendering time. There's an easier way. With the object selected, go to the Materials Lab. Select the basic yellow color. Lighten the Diffuse color to remove some of the yellow: Set the RGB values to: R=255,G=255,B=175. Duplicate that color for the Ambient. In the Value and Optics sections set the Diffusion to 100, Ambience to 40, Specularity to 50 and Transparency to 40. Set all other values to zero (0). This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Step 2: Make a Power Coil DUPLICATE the power stem. Click on the duplicate's Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -10, Y = 128.60, Z =
-12.70 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. We want the coil to look like the Pilot Lamp Power Coil with some modifications. It's easy! Click out of SOLO mode to get to your full model. Select the Pilot Lamp Coil. It's a cone so you can easily find it in the cone section of the object selector at the bottom of the workspace. Or simply click on the Power Coils family and the object will be selected for you. Click on the M box to open the Materials Lab. Click on COPY under the nano preview and exit the Materials Lab by clicking on the X mark (so no changes will be made, but you do have the copy.) Shift-Select the power coil stem 1 and the power coil 1 from the cylinder section in the objects selector at the bottom of the workspace. Click on the SOLO button and you should have only these two objects in your workspace. Select the power coil 1 cylinder and go to the Materials Lab. Click PASTE under the nano preview and your copied material will be pasted into the Lab. We could leave it like this, but we want to make a few modifications. Click on the triangle on the lower right (your right) of the YellowBands6 material box. You'll get a pop-up list. Pick SINUSOIDAL. This is a special material space orientation that will give us the look we want. Click on the Edit button (top left- your left) of the YellowBands6 material box. The Edit Texture pop-up will appear. Set the Y value to 150%. Leave everything else as it is and click on the Check Mark to apply the Material Lab changes to your object. This is a duplicated object, so it inherited the "Power Coil" family. SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Note: you can copy and paste materials from one object to another quite easily in the Materials Lab. This saves a lot of time! |
Step 3: Make the
Power Arc
We need the torus object for this one. Stay in the FRONT view. Select the Torus from the Create Palette. It will come into the work space in the wrong orientation for our purposes. Click on the Attributes Box for the torus and change the Y rotation: Y = 90. Click the Check Mark to apply the change. Open the Attributes box again and perform a Set As Unity. Click the Check Mark to apply the change. Switch to the RIGHT view (press 3 on the keyboard) to make this next part easier to see. Edit the torus (you know how to do this!) and set the radius = 80. Click on the Torus Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -10, Y = 133.50, Z =
-9.47 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the power arc 1. Copy the material used for the power coil stem 1 and paste it into the materials for the power arc 1. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 4: Make the
Power Arc Intersect
We only want the top left corner of our torus (power arc 1) to show. We do this with a Boolean Intersection. Click on the Cube object in the Create Palette. Click on the Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -10, Y = 135.14, Z =
-11.37 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the power arc intersect 1. Copy the material used for the power arc 1 and paste it into the materials for the power arc intersect 1. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Note: This object is angled to align with the valve seat that it will "energize". You'll see that when we finish this section. |
Step 5: Make the
Power Connector
Click on the Sphere object in the Create Palette. Click on the Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -10, Y = 136.35, Z =
-10.90 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the power connector 1. Copy the material used for the power coil stem 1 and paste it into the materials for the power connector 1. Lower the transparency for this object in the Materials Lab to 10 so it will show up better when attached to the valve seat it will energize. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 6: Group the Power Coil 1 Switch back the the FRONT view. Shift-Select (or do a drag marquee select, but don't grab the camera!) the objects you created for the power coil (there are five of them.) A G will appear at the bottom of the icon column. Click on the G to GROUP the objects. Check the coordinates in the Attributes Box. They should match the following: Origin:
X = -10, Y = 128.60, Z =
-10.09 If your figures match mine (within .01) you can name your group. Name: power coil group 1. Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. This is a power coil group so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Bryce 5 is so powerful it allows you to change coordinate attributes for multiple objects at one time. However, use this feature cautiously or you'll get unexpected results. Also, if you pick multiple objects and re name them in the Attributes Box, that name will apply to all of them, making it hard to distinguish one from another! In our case, even though the power connectors belong to groups, we can still move them without ungrouping. You can re-position any object in a group while it is in the group. |
Step 7: Duplicate the Power Coil Group 1 Switch to the TOP view, it will make this step easier to see. There are four power coils aligned to the valves they energize and they are "staggered" to follow the curve of Robby's head shape. We'll create them by duplication and adjust two power connectors. Select
your group: power coil group 1 and DUPLICATE it. Select
your group: power coil group 2 and DUPLICATE it. Select
your group: power coil group 3 and DUPLICATE it. You now have four power coils all aligned properly to follow the curve of Robby's head, as you'll see later. We just have to adjust power connectors 2 and 3 because they moved with their groups and they need to be in line with the valve seats. Shift-Select power connector 2 and power connector 3. Click on the Attributes box to open the attributes that are common to both. Set the Z position: Z = -10.90 DO NOT NAME this selection. Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Step 8: Make the Center Power Coil Stem Switch to the FRONT view. (Press 4 on the keyboard) There is a center power coil that spans and powers two of the valve seats. We'll make that now. Select the Cylinder from the Create Palette. It will come into the work space in the wrong orientation for our purposes. Click on the Attributes Box for the cylinder and change the Z rotation: Z = 90. Click the Check Mark to apply the change. Open the Attributes box again and perform a Set As Unity. Click the Check Mark to apply the change. Select the cylinder and open its Attributes Box. Click
on the Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the center power stem. Copy the material used for the power coil stem 1 and paste it into the materials for the center power stem. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 9: Make the Center Power Coil DUPLICATE the center power stem. Open its Attributes Box. Click
on the Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the center power coil. Copy the material used for the power coil 1 and paste it into the materials for the center power coil. This inherited the "Power Coil" family from the Center Power Stem. SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 10: Make the
Center Power Arcs
We need the torus object for this one. Stay in the FRONT view. Select the Torus from the Create Palette. It will come into the work space in the correct orientation for our purposes. Edit the torus (you know how to do this!) and set the radius = 80. Click
on the Torus Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the center power arc 1. Copy the material used for the center power stem and paste it into the materials for the center power arc 1. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). DUPLICATE the center power arc 1. Open
the Attributes Box and change the X position and name
for the duplicate: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. You now have two power arcs. SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 11: Make the
Center Power Arc Intersects
Select the Cube from the Create Palette. Click on the Cube Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -5.10, Y = 134.45, Z
= -10.25 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the center power arc intersect 1. Copy the material used for the center power arc 1 and paste it into the materials for the center power arc intersect 1. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). DUPLICATE the center power arc intersect 1. Open
the Attributes Box and change the X position and name
for the duplicate: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. You now have two power arc intersects. SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Step 12: Make the
Center Power Coil Connectors
Select the Sphere object from the Create Palette. Click on the Sphere Attributes Box and set the following coordinates: Position:
X = -6, Y = 136.35, Z = -10.25 Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. Assign a material to the center power connector 1. Copy the material used for any other power connector and paste it into center power connector 1. This is a power coil object so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK DUPLICATE the center power connector 1. Open
the Attributes Box and change the X position and name
for the duplicate: Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. You now have two power arc connectors. SAVE YOUR WORK |
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Note: a difference in Bryce 5 of .01 is so slight that it will not seriously affect anything in your model. Often, manually setting the origin point for a group is difficult to get "right on", but the slight difference of .01 is acceptable with no ill effects for your model. |
Step 13: Group
the Center Power Coil Parts
Select the center power coil parts: stem, coil, 2 arcs, 2 intersects and 2 connectors. (8 parts). You will see a G in the icon column. Click on the G to GROUP the objects. Check the coordinates in the Attributes Box. They should match the following: Open the Attributes box for the group. Turn ON "Show Origin Handle". Manually move the origin handle to the center of the power stem/power coil. We need this relocation for rotation purposes. Open
the Attributes Box and check the coordinates: If your figures match mine within .01 you can name your group. Name: center power coil group. Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. This is a power coil group so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Note: a difference in Bryce 5 of .01 is so slight that it will not seriously affect anything in your model. Often, manually setting the origin point for a group is difficult to get "right on", but the slight difference of .01 is acceptable with no ill effects for your model. |
Step 14: Rotate
the Center Power Coil Group
If you were to look at your power coils from the TOP view, you'd see that the center power coil is actually under where the valve seats are located. So it has to rotate slightly to make the proper connection. This is how it was done in the original Robby, so I follow the design here as best Bryce 5 can. Switch to the RIGHT view to see things better (press 3 on the keyboard). Select the center power coil group. Check the coordinates in the Attributes Box. Set the X rotation = -11. Click the Check Mark to apply the change. Open
the Attributes box again and check the coordinates. They
should match the following: If your figures match mine within .01 then everything is set. Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Step 15: Group the Power Coils Switch back the the FRONT view. Use the Group Selector (from the object selector palette) to shift select all the GROUPS you created for the power coils (there are five of them.) You should have no stray objects in your scene as everything was assigned to one group or another. A G will appear at the bottom of the icon column. Click on the G to GROUP the objects. Check
the coordinates in the Attributes Box. They should match
the following: If your figures match mine (within .01) you can name your group. Name: all power coils group. Click on the Check Mark to apply the changes. This is a power coil group so assign it to your "Power Coil" family (purple). SAVE YOUR WORK! |
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Step 16: Render your work! If you render your work while in SOLO mode, the power coils group should look like the image on the left (your left). If you exit SOLO mode and render your model, it should look like the image below. (I only rendered Robby's skull for these images).
SAVE YOUR WORK! |
Congratulations! You have completed Robby's computer components and made his complete "face". As you have learned, Bryce 5 can be made to do some very complex shapes thanks to the power of Boolean intersection and its wonderful Materials Lab! Robby is very near completion!
We'll move on now to Robby's scanners. These look like "eyes" on the side of his head, but they are actually a scanning system complete with blasters and neutralizers! Who knew?
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Tutorial copyright - © ClydeSight Productions - 2004
