In the following procedure, you create two Auxiliary pivots for additional
control over the IK system on Mia’s Control rig. These Auxiliary objects can
be used to create realistic rotation on Mia’s feet as she walks. They also make
it easier to rotate Mia’s feet while creating keyframe animation.
1 In the Character Controls window, right-click the Left Ankle cell and
select Create Aux Pivot from the contextual menu (A).
An Auxiliary pivot is created for the left ankle IK effector (A). The Auxiliary
pivot displays on the left ankle cell in the Character Controls window as
an X (shown in the following figure).
By default, the foot effector is deselected when you create the Auxiliary
pivot, and the Auxiliary pivot is selected.
2 In the Viewer window, select Pivot from the Selection mode menu to
switch to Pivot Selection mode if it is not already selected
3 Select the Auxiliary pivot you created, if it is not already selected, and
translate it until it is placed at the tip of Mia’s toes, as shown in the
following figure.
Left Ankle Auxiliary pivot A. Front view B. Side view
NOTE You can use the Show menu in the Character Controls to hide the
Control rig effectors and floor contact markers as you place the Auxiliary
pivots.
4 Right-click the Left Ankle cell again and select Create Aux Pivot from the
contextual menu.
 Create Aux Pivot on the left ankle
A second Auxiliary pivot displays in the Viewer window.
5 Translate the second Auxiliary pivot to display at the heel of the foot, as
shown in the following figure.
Summary
In this tutorial, you created a Control rig, arranged the floor contact markers
on the character’s feet, then created two Auxiliary pivots to control the rotation
of the foot.