Kinematic Animation
Kinematic animation is a computer graphics technique used to animate characters or objects by directly manipulating their positions, orientations, and joint angles over time, without simulating physical forces like gravity or collisions. It involves defining keyframes or motion paths to control movement, often using forward kinematics (FK) or inverse kinematics (IK) to calculate joint configurations. This approach is fundamental in 3D animation, robotics, and game development for creating precise, artist-driven motions.
Developers should learn kinematic animation when working on projects requiring controlled, predictable character animations, such as in video games, simulations, or interactive applications where real-time performance is critical. It is essential for implementing character rigging, procedural animation, and motion planning in robotics, as it allows for direct artistic control and efficient computation compared to physics-based methods. Use cases include animating humanoid characters, robotic arms, or any articulated system where movement paths need to be predefined or interactively manipulated.