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Course CGP203
Computer Animation Programming

Duration: 5 Days

Intended Audience

This course is targeted at programmers who will be developing animation software. Attendees are expected to be experienced C/C++ programmers and to be familiar with one or more of OpenGL, DirectX, Java3D

• programmers and developers needing to understand the data structures and algorithms underlying various aspects of animation software
• graphics artists with considerable programming skills who wish to go beyond the functionality offered by current animation tools
• simulator and simulation systems developers

The course assumes a good knowledge of C/C++ programming as well as a sound knowledge of the principles of computational geometry and computer graphics. During the course attendees will have access to a large collection of books and technical papers.

Course Overview

The course deals with the following areas of computer animation programming

• the computational geometry underlying computer animation
• interpolation techniques
• camera control
• kinematic modeling
• modeling of hard and deformable objects
• handling large numbers of interacting objects
• modeling of natural objects such as plants, water, gases
• anatomical aspects and constraints when modeling humans and animals
• basics of motion capture

Course Contents

Overview of Graphics, Maths and Computational Geometry

• Spaces and transformations
• Orientation
• Overview of OpenGL and GLUT

Basic animation techniques and interpolation

• interpolation
• constraining motion to follow a curve
• quaternions and the interpolation of rotations
• path following
• key frame systems
• animation scripting
• object deformation and morphing
• 3D shape interpolation

Overviews of more complex animation techniques

• hierarchical kinematic modeling
• implementation of automatic camera control
• rigid body simulation
• animation of hard and soft entities
• controlling collections of objects
• implicit surfaces
• realistic collision simulation

Modeling Natural Phenomena

• Plants
• liquids and gases
• waves and vibrations

Articulated figures - animal, human and cartoon

• reaching and grasping
• walking and running
• facial animation
• layered modeling approaches to human figure animation
• cloth and clothing modeling
• motion capture