Expressions are instructions you give Maya to control attributes over time. An attribute is a characteristic of an object, for instance, X scale, Y translate, visibility, and so on.
Note: The Time Editor does not support Animation Layers. Instead, use the Time Editor Clip Layers to alter animation on existing clips. You cannot drive animation with
both Animation Layers and Clip Layers as this will create conflicts.
To add an expression to a Time Editor Clip Layer
- Add a Clip Layer to the Time Editor. (See Key on Clip Layers for information about creating an Clip Layer in the Time Editor.)
- Click the Layer icon
to expand the Clip Layer to view the attributes associated with that Layer.
- Right-click the attribute for which you want to create an expression in the Roster and select Add Expression from the Clip Layer attribute contextual menu . The Expression Editor opens for you to assign an expression to control the associated attribute(s).
When a layer attribute is driven by an expression, the clip layer attribute row updates to show that the attribute is driven by an expression
See also Use constraints and expressions with animation layers.