Makehuman
- Go to the start bar and launch Makehuman
- Use the program to customize a human figure
- When finished, click: files > export > and select Blender exchange (mhx) format
- Enter a file name and click the export button
Blender
- Go to the start bar and launch Blender
- Right click on the startup cube and delete
- Go to file > user preferences > addons > and under import/export, click to activate Makehuman imports, then close user preferences
- Go to file > import > mhx > and locate the file you exported from Makehuman (On my machine, exported files go to documents > makehuman > export) Select your file > click the import MHX button at the top right
- After you’ve done this, your figure should be loaded
- The controls in Blender are much different than in Rhino. Here are the most important controls:
- Orbit with middle mouse button
- Pan with middle mouse button and shift
- Zoom by rolling middle mouse button
- Select with right mouse button
- Zoom selected by pressing the . button on the numberpad
- 5 toggles orthographic viewing mode
- 1,2,3,4,6,7,8,9 will show front, right, top views, etc.
- To pose:
- Right click on a pose handle
- Once a handle is selected, press G to translate
- Press Z, X, or Y to constrain movement
- With a handle selected, press R to rotate
- *Notice that translations and rotations are impacted by your point of view. Compare the results you get when looking from the front, side, top, etc.
- Move to new location and press left mouse button to apply
- Undo with CTRL Z
- More information on moving in Blender can be found here: http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Doc:2.6/Manual/3D_interaction/Transformations/Basics/Grab
- To export:
- First, save as a blender file in case you need to return to the file later.
- Next, go to file > export > OBJ
- Helpful links:
- Selecting and transforming objects in Blender: http://cgcookie.com/blender/lessons/selecting-transforming-objects/
- Working with MakeHuman and Blender: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPYbdnPwHuQ
In Rhino
- File > Import
- Mesh can be point edited by pressing F10, but since meshes are difficult to edit, this is only really effective for deleting unwanted body parts.
- To further edit the figure, it is best to use T-Splines by following these steps:
- Activate T-Splines by pushing the “power button” for the program
- In the lower left, click to “Convert NURBS or mesh to T-Spline”
- Your human form should appear more faceted if this command works because it will convert to a T-Splines mesh in box mode.
- Press TAB to toggle to smooth mode. Note: Makehuman figures have complex geometry and can take a long time to smooth. It is generally best to make modifications in box mode, and convert to smooth mode at the end just before exporting to NURBS.
- Before exporting your T-Spline form to Keyshot you’ll want to convert your forms to smooth mode in t-spines, then convert to Rhino NURBS (use the far left button next to the tsplines power button)
- It is possible to use symmetry with a Makehuman mesh. Watch these videos to learn how:
- To further your knowledge of T-Splines, watch the tutorials available here: http://www.tsplines.com/store/tstutorials.html