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Figure 8.14 shows the completed fence.

FIGURE 8.14

Tom Sawyer would be pleased to see this white picket fence, created easily with the Array dialog box.

Circular arrays

You can use the Array dialog box for creating more than just linear arrays. All transformations are done relative to a center point. You can change the center point about which transformations are performed using the Use Selection Center button on the main toolbar. The three flyout options are Use Pivot Point Center, Use Selection Center, and Use Transform Coordinate Center.

Cross-Reference

For more about how these settings affect transformations, see Chapter 7, “Transforming Objects, Pivoting, Aligning, and Snapping.” •

Tutorial: Building a Ferris wheel

Ferris wheels, like most of the rides at the fair, entertain by going around and around, with the riders seated in chairs spaced around the Ferris wheel's central point. The Array dialog box can also create objects around a central point.

In this example, you use the Rotate transformation along with the Use Transform Coordinate Center button to create a circular array.

To create a circular array, follow these steps:

1. Open the Ferris wheel.max file from the Chap 08 directory on the CD.

This file has the Front viewport maximized to show the profile of the Ferris wheel.

2. Click the Use Pivot Point Center button on the main toolbar, and drag down to the last icon, which is the Use Transform Coordinate Center button.

The Use Transform Coordinate Center button becomes active. This button causes all transformations to take place about the axis in the center of the screen.

3. Select the light blue chair object, and open the Array dialog box by choosing Tools⇒Array or by clicking the Array button on the Extras toolbar. Before entering any values into the Array dialog box, click the Reset All Parameters button.

4. Between the Incremental and Totals sections are the labels Move, Rotate, and Scale. Click the arrow button to the right of the Rotate label. Set the Z column value of the Rotate row to 360 degrees, and make sure that the Re-Orient option is disabled.

A value of 360 degrees defines one complete revolution. Disabling the Re-Orient option keeps each chair object from gradually turning upside down.

5. In the Array Dimensions section, set the 1D spinner Count value to 8 and click OK to create the array.

6. Next select the green strut, and open the Array dialog box again with the Tools⇒Array command. Select the Re-Orient option, and leave the rest of the settings as they are. Click OK to create the array.

Figure 8.15 shows the resulting Ferris wheel. You can click the Min/Max toggle in the lower-right corner to view all four viewports again.

Working with a ring array

You can find the Ring Array system by opening the Create panel and selecting the Systems category. Clicking the Ring Array button opens a Parameters rollout. In this rollout are parameters for the ring's Radius, Amplitude, Cycles, Phase, and the Number of elements to include.

You create the actual array by clicking and dragging in one of the viewports. Initially, all elements are simple box objects surrounding a green dummy object.

The Amplitude, Cycles, and Phase values define the sinusoidal nature of the circle. The Amplitude is the maximum distance that you can position the objects from the horizontal plane. If the Amplitude is set to 0, then all objects lie in the same horizontal plane. The Cycles value is the number of waves that occur around the entire circle. The Phase determines which position along the circle starts in the up position.

FIGURE 8.15

A circular array created by rotating objects about the Transform Coordinate Center

Tutorial: Using Ring Array to create a carousel

Continuing with the theme park attractions motif, this example creates a carousel. The horse model comes from Poser but was simplified using the MultiRes modifier.

To use a Ring Array system to create a carousel, follow these steps: