Set up props and objects using Transform Role

This page covers how to set up props and objects using Transform Role within Unreal Engine.

This involves importing Skeletal Mesh or Static Mesh files into Unreal Engine. You then add props and objects as components from these files.

Prerequisites

To ensure the data streamed from Vicon is aligned correctly, create an empty actor to serve as a parent actor. You can then add other actors (as well as props and objects) to this parent actor as child actors. For more information, see Set up a Vicon Origin actor.

Add actors to handle streamed prop and object transforms

1. In the scene, select Quick Add > Basic > Actor.

   

2. In the Outliner panel, select this new actor and give it an appropriate name. In this example, the actor is named ParentProp1.

   

3. Make this a new actor a child of the Vicon Origin actor. For more information on best practices when using streamed subjects, see Set up a Vicon Origin actor.

   

4. Select the actor and in the Details panel, zero out the actor's position (ie set all the Location and Rotation fields to 0.0).

5. In the Outliner panel, select your ParentProp1 actor, and then in the Details panel, click the Add button and select Live Link Component Controller.

   Tip: When you add a component, search for Live Link.

   

6. In the Details panel, select the new Live LinkComponentController, and in Subject Representation, select the name of the required subject from the drop-down field.

   

The empty actor named ParentProp1 is now animated using the streamed prop data.

Add a mesh for visualizing the prop or object

With this method, you can use a Skeletal Meshor Static Mesh. If you use a Static Mesh, ensure its Mobilityis set to Movable (this setting is found in the Details panel after you have selected the actor that the Static Mesh is linked to).

1. Open Content Browser.

2. Right-click in an empty space to create a new folder in the Content Browser.

3. Enter a name for the folder (for example, Props).

   

4. In the new empty folder, select Import in the Content Browser toolbar.

   

5. Locate the desired FBX files. Shogun and Evoke provide some simple FBX files found in the following file paths:

   • Shogun: C:\Program Files\Vicon\ShogunLive1.#\PropMeshes

   • Evoke: C:\Program Files\Vicon\Evoke1.#\PropMeshes

6. Add the imported mesh to the scene and make it a child of the previously made ParentProp1 actor.

7. In the Details panel, select the prop and zero out the prop's position (ie, set all the Location and Rotation fields to 0.0).

   

8. Pause the streamed data from the Vicon software at a time when the props are in a relatively easy position to view. For example, pause when the props are laying flat in one of the cardinal directions.

9. In Unreal Engine, select the prop mesh and adjust its position so it matches the streamed data.

   Tip: To make it easier to find the position of the prop, use the Vicon Marker Visualizer.

The prop mesh inherits the position of the parent actor and is animated with the Vicon live link data.