Miarmy Assets File Types

• Rig File
• Animation File
• Action File
• Original Agent Test File (OA Files)
• Original Agent File (OA Files)

General Descriptions:

• Rig file: the initial character rig usually from users company custom tool, or build from 3rd party rigging system. This file will be used to create the Original Agent (OA) File and Action Files, finally this file can be remove from production
• Animation File: the initial character rig the save as above, and it contains keyframe or baked animation data, use this file to generate action node. 
• Action File: the action node exported form animation file
• OAT File: use this file to adjust, fine-tune and debug the agent perception and logic, action transition and interactive behaviors etc…
• OA file: exported from OAT file, a very clean and ready to use OA file (or sometimes we can call it one type of agent)

Rig File

Definition & Usage

• This file contains an initial character rig
• This rig should be the rest pose (or bind-pose), like T-pose or A-pose
• This rig can be any bone structure, no matter how many bones
• This rig can be controlled by all types of rigging system like IK, constrains, expression, etc… (It supports Advanced Skeleton, Human IK, TSM (The Setup Machine) etc, all setup rig)

Limitations:

• Single Bone Chain: each bone's parent should be a joint
• Aim to Z direction
• If not a must, please don't contain the "scale" on bones
• See more on Rig Requirements

(Optional) Limitations for Physics Simulation

• Each joint has length, another words, each joint have NOT to be overlapped to another bone

Optimizations

To simulate tens of thousands agents in scene, such as 10000+, we highly recommend to make sure the character rig light enough, delete fingers, or other unnecessary bones and geometries, shrink the texture map size ect.

• Best Joint Number: around than 30
• Best Geometry Sum Faces Number: around 5000
• Best Geometry Number: around 8
• Best Texture Map Size(resolution): 1K-2K

Suggested Naming convention

• <Agent Type Name>rig_crowd<version>.ma
• Example: Man_rig_crowd_01.ma

FAQ:

• If the character rig is not one bone chain, please try to build another bone chain and constrain it to the main bone chain. Reconstruct Bone Chain with Re-rig Tool
• Character with weapons (like sword or gun):
  • Please make the weapon a length (not a single point joint)
  • Please parent the weapon to the hand or the root bone
  • Character with weapon and Character without weapons are 2 different types of agent, they may have different bone structure and the animation should be 2 groups.

Animation File

Definition & Usage

• We can reference (better not import) the initial rig file into different files and all these files share the same rig.
• Give the animation to these files and turn them into a bunch of animation files (Notice: only one loop cycle needed if the animation is a loop animation)
• Finally, there will be one "rig" file, and a group of animation files associate with this rig file, and each animation file contains a piece of motion with the same rig.

Suggested Naming Convention:

• <Agent Type Name>anim<Animation Name>_<version>.ma
• Example: Man_anim_walk_01.ma
• Example: Man_anim_walkToStand_01.ma

Special Condition

Some animation file contain 2 types of agent such as 2 agents fighting or other interactively. It's OK, for example Man fight with Orc. You just need duplicate it to 2 files:

• Man_anim_fight01_01.ma
• Orc_anim_fight01_01.ma (the same as the previous Man file but belongs to the assets of Orc)
• And later we can export 2 action out.

Action File

Definition & Usage

• Generate Action node from animation file and exported the node out from animation file
• This file only contains one node which type is "McdAction" node
• This file should be always imported into the OAT (Original Agent Test) File

Suggested Naming Conventions:

• <Agent Type Name>action<Animation Name>_<version>.ma
• Example: Man_action_walk_01.ma
• Example: Man_action_walkToStand_01.ma
• Example: Woman_action_jot_02.ma

OAT Files

Definition & Usage

1. The file is generated from Rig file (rest or T pose)
2. The Geometry need to be transferred to the Original Agent File, and put into the Geometry_* folder
3. Important: please remove all Rig File contents and old geometries, if the rig is not associate with the OA
4. Please import all action files to OAT file and put them into Action_*. Also notice naming conventions
5. (Optional) build transition map in this file
6. Build some common logic in this file
7. Place and test simulation in this file and see is everything all right

Renaming Agent Type

The Original Agent must be rename to correct name, have to be unique in your later production

Suggested Naming Convention:

• <Agent Type Name>OAT<version>.ma
• Man_OAT_01.ma
• Woman_OAT_03.ma

OA File

Definition & Usage

This file is the asset for production

1. The file is exported from OAT file.
2. This file only contains the OA, without any other redundant nodes.
3. After exporting from OAT, open the OA and check if it contain trash nodes, clean them and save again

This file will be referenced into the production shots file

Suggested Naming Convention:

• <Agent Type Name>OA<version>.ma
• Man_OA_01.ma
• Woman_OA_03.ma