Keep the detail.
Follow the form.

Use the package supplied for your Maya version and operating system. Follow its release notes for supported configurations and runtime requirements.

Install the module package

1. Keep the package together

   Place the supplied folder in a stable location. Keep rigidWrap.mod, plug-ins, and scripts in their original arrangement.

2. Register the installation folder

   Add the package folder to MAYA_MODULE_PATH before Maya starts, or add it to your Maya version’s Maya.env. Use your actual installation path.

MAYA_MODULE_PATH=C:/plugins/rigidWrap-1.1.0

3. Load rigidWrap

   Start Maya. Open Windows → Settings/Preferences → Plug-in Manager and load rigidWrap. Windows builds use rigidWrap.mll; Linux builds use rigidWrap.so.

4. Open the tool window

   If your package includes the artist interface, run the following in the Python tab of Maya’s Script Editor.

import rigidWrapUI
rigidWrapUI.show()

Restart Maya before switching plugin releases. The module package registers the binary and scripts for its matching Maya major version and platform.

Start with your driver and details in their intended rest pose. A driven mesh can contain many disconnected pieces.

1. Choose the meshes

   Open the Bind tab. Select the details and click Use Selected beside Driven mesh. Select the deforming surface and repeat beside Driver mesh.

2. Choose a preset

   Use General Surface for an open surface. Use Local Patch around folds, mouths, or nearby surface regions. Open Advanced binding if you need to adjust coverage.

3. Create the attachment

   Click Bind Meshes. Pose or animate the driver and inspect the details. Binding supports Maya Undo/Redo.

4. Adjust the existing deformer

   Select the rigidWrap node and use Maya’s Attribute Editor for rotation, spacing, scale, attachment, and collision controls.

rigidWrapBind "scaleMesh" "bodyMesh";

import maya.cmds as cmds

node = cmds.rigidWrapBind("scaleMesh", "bodyMesh")
print(node)

import maya.cmds as cmds

node = cmds.rigidWrapBind()
print(node)

Use one rigidWrap node per driven mesh. Driver instances are supported; instanced driven shapes are not. For transforms with multiple visible mesh shapes, specify the intended shape.

Set these in Bind → Advanced binding before creating an attachment. To apply different binding settings to an existing setup, remove its rigidWrap deformer and bind again in the intended rest pose.

Custom preserves your Advanced binding choices. Presets are starting settings; inspect the attachment around gaps and folds.

Rebind after changes to driver or driven topology, or edits to the driven rest shape. Ordinary driver animation does not require rebinding. To extend existing collision coverage, see Expand Collision Neighbors.

Edit the active deformer in the Attribute Editor. Controls are grouped into Main, Relaxation, Collision, Scale, Attachment, and GPU Override. Hover controls for additional help.

connectAttr joint1.scaleX rigidWrap1.scaleX;
connectAttr joint1.scaleY rigidWrap1.scaleY;
connectAttr joint1.scaleZ rigidWrap1.scaleZ;

import maya.cmds as cmds

cmds.connectAttr("joint1.scaleX", "rigidWrap1.scaleX")
cmds.connectAttr("joint1.scaleY", "rigidWrap1.scaleY")
cmds.connectAttr("joint1.scaleZ", "rigidWrap1.scaleZ")

Use collision to reduce overlap between rigid islands as the driver deforms. Intentional overlap in the bind pose is preserved. Collision acts between detail pieces; it does not prevent intersection with the driver surface.

Choose a contact shape

Contact shapes can bridge concave areas and holes. Use Tools → Viewport debug to inspect them. Changing Collision Mode does not require rebinding.

A useful starting setup

For details that should follow compression until they touch, start with Relaxation = 0 and Collision Shape Size = 1, then raise Collision as needed. Collision separates contacting pieces; use Relaxation when you want to adjust stretched spacing.

Collision is approximate. Extreme bends, crowded details, tight movement limits, or strong attachment can leave visible intersections. Check representative poses with both viewport inspection and Check Contacts.

Use Maya’s paintable deformer attributes on the driven mesh to vary spacing and collision across your details.

Custom spacing and collision maps act per rigid island. Keep values consistent across a piece when you want a uniform response.

Open Tools and choose the Active node, or select its driven mesh and click Use Selected. The chosen node remains the tool target when viewport selection changes.

Check Contacts

Click Check Contacts for a snapshot of unresolved contact and maximum penetration at the current frame. It creates no scene nodes. Run it again after changing a pose or settings.

Expand Collision Neighbors

Use this button when an existing bind needs wider collision coverage. It extends contact coverage through existing neighbors while keeping the attachment and spacing setup. It can be used at any animation frame and supports Undo.

Inspect the result before expanding again. More coverage can change motion and increase evaluation cost. Expansion can reach beyond the original bind radius or local collision region; it cannot connect separate groups that have no existing neighbor links. Rebind when the required pieces still remain excluded.

Create an animation proxy

1. Return to the bind/rest pose

   Choose the source node and open Animation proxy in Tools.

2. Set the proxy options

   Maximum vertices per island defaults to 16, with a minimum of 3. Increase it for a closer visual match. Scale defaults to 1; leave Name blank for an automatic name.

3. Create and use the proxy

   Click Create Proxy. Hide the high-resolution mesh in the viewport while animating, then check the original for final review.

The proxy starts with copied deformer settings and transferred paint weights, but uses a separate deformer. Later edits do not synchronize automatically. Inspect shape quality and material assignments. Reduced vertex count does not simplify the original contact shapes, so collision cost may remain significant.

rigidWrapCreateProxy -maxVertices 8 -scale 1 -name "scaleAnimProxy" "rigidWrap1";

import maya.cmds as cmds

proxy = cmds.rigidWrapCreateProxy(
    "-maxVertices", 8,
    "-scale", 1.0,
    "-name", "scaleAnimProxy",
    "rigidWrap1"
)
print(proxy)

Viewport debug

Open Viewport debug. Choose Current footprint to follow the active collision mode, or preview Radius, Capsule, Convex hull, or All footprints. Click Draw / Refresh to apply the display options and Clear Debug to remove overlays.

• Spacing links show spacing neighbors. Collision coverage may differ.
• X-ray makes hidden overlays visible through other geometry.
• Lift vectors requires Solve Collision Debug on the debug locator. This displays lift; the deformer’s Collision Lift setting controls movement.

Previewing a shape does not change Collision Mode. Turn off costly debug displays when measuring playback performance. The Attribute Editor also provides Draw Debug, Clear Debug, and Open Tool shortcuts.

Use these examples in Maya’s Script Editor with rigidWrap loaded. Run MEL in the MEL tab and Python in the Python tab. Replace example mesh, node, and joint names with names from your scene.

Binding examples are alternatives: run one in the intended rest pose. Setting a bind option creates a new attachment; it does not edit an existing node. Python examples use the same flag names as MEL, passed as flag/value arguments.

rigidWrapBind
    -sampleCount 8
    -spacingNeighborCount 8
    -spacingNeighborRadius 0
    -driverRegionMode "localPatch"
    -driverRegionRings 12
    -spacingRegionMode "driverPatch"
    -spacingRegionRings 8
    -collisionRegionMode "global"
    "scaleMesh" "bodyMesh";

import maya.cmds as cmds

node = cmds.rigidWrapBind(
    "-sampleCount", 8,
    "-spacingNeighborCount", 8,
    "-spacingNeighborRadius", 0.0,
    "-driverRegionMode", "localPatch",
    "-driverRegionRings", 12,
    "-spacingRegionMode", "driverPatch",
    "-spacingRegionRings", 8,
    "-collisionRegionMode", "global",
    "scaleMesh", "bodyMesh"
)
print(node)

import maya.cmds as cmds

print(cmds.ls(type="rigidWrap") or [])

setAttr "rigidWrap1.collisionStrength" 1;
setAttr "rigidWrap1.collisionMode" 1;
setAttr "rigidWrap1.collisionScale" 1;
setAttr "rigidWrap1.collisionIterations" 16;
setAttr "rigidWrap1.collisionLift" 0.5;

import maya.cmds as cmds

node = "rigidWrap1"
cmds.setAttr(node + ".collisionStrength", 1.0)
cmds.setAttr(node + ".collisionMode", 1)
cmds.setAttr(node + ".collisionScale", 1.0)
cmds.setAttr(node + ".collisionIterations", 16)
cmds.setAttr(node + ".collisionLift", 0.5)

rigidWrapDebugDraw -report "rigidWrap1";

import json
import maya.cmds as cmds

report = json.loads(cmds.rigidWrapDebugDraw("-report", "rigidWrap1"))
print("Collision enabled:", report["collisionEnabled"])
print("Unresolved contacts:", report["unresolvedContactCount"])
print("Maximum excess penetration:", report["maxPenetration"])

rigidWrapDebugDraw -mode all -xray "rigidWrap1";

import maya.cmds as cmds

locator = cmds.rigidWrapDebugDraw("-mode", "all", "-xray", "rigidWrap1")
print(locator)

rigidWrapDebugDraw -clear "rigidWrap1";

import maya.cmds as cmds

cmds.rigidWrapDebugDraw("-clear", "rigidWrap1")

import rigidWrapCollision

summary = rigidWrapCollision.expand_neighbors("rigidWrap1", rings=2)
print(summary)

Change one setting at a time and compare the result in the same pose.