The pivot point defines the position around which objects or components are rotated and scaled. By default, the pivot point of an object or group of objects/components is located at its center. If you want to rotate an around a specific point, like a forearm rotates from an elbow, you need to adjust the pivot's position. There are two methods:
Reposition pivots with
Height Baseline
Adjusting
Height Baseline moves the pivot
Each polygonal geometry object has the pivot set to the geometry center (0) by default. The
Height Baseline attribute lets you reposition it to either the top (-1) or bottom (0) of the object.
To modify the pivot's position, do one of the following:
-
- In the
Attribute Editor geometry tab, for example polyCube1, change the
Height Baseline setting.
- In the
Node Editor, click the output port of the geometry node, for example polyCube1, and choose
Height Baseline.
Reposition pivots using
Custom Pivot mode
Custom Pivot mode is another method you can use to set object and component pivot points.
See also: Adjusting an object's pivot (video)
Transformation
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Relationship to Pivot
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Move
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Moves the pivot point (and the object travels along with it).
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Scale
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Scales object out from or in toward the pivot point.
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Rotation
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Rotates object around the pivot point.
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Tip: You can change the pivot size by pressing + or - on the keyboard.
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To change the pivot point
- Select the object(s) or component(s) to be transformed.
- Select a
transform tool.
- Enter
Custom Pivot mode by doing one of the following:
- Press D (or hold it) or Insert.
- Click
Edit Pivot in the
Tool Settings.
The custom pivot manipulator (the translate and rotate manipulators combined) appears. If you're modeling in component mode, multi-component selection mode activates.
Tip: Use the
Pivot Manipulator options in the
Manipulator preferences to hide or adjust the orientation handle of the custom pivot manipulator.
- Drag or
snap the custom pivot manipulator to move or rotate the pivot.
You can also use the following workflows:
- Exit
Custom Pivot mode by repeating step 4.
Note: Custom pivots are preserved when you switch tools, or when clicking from one object to another in
Custom Pivot mode.
You can reset a modified pivot's position/orientation at any time by right-clicking the scene and selecting any of the
Reset Pivot options (only in
Custom Pivot mode).
In addition to using
Custom Pivot mode, you can also position an object's pivot by inputting exact values in the Attribute Editor.
To reposition an object's pivot using exact values
- Open the
Attribute Editor and click the transform node’s tab.
- In the
Pivots section, turn on the pivot display options so you can see the effects of editing the pivot values.
- Do one of the following:
- In the
Local Space section, type X, Y, and Z coordinates for the
Rotate Pivot and
Scale Pivot relative to the object’s origin.
- In the
World Space section, type X, Y, and Z coordinates for the
Rotate Pivot and
Scale Pivot relative to the world origin.