9

Clone and Align Tool 459
Follow—
Usethistoalignthepivotpointsofthe
distr ibuted objects to the tangent of the spline.
Type of O bject group
DeterminesthetypeofcopiesmadebytheSpacing
tool. The default is Copy. You can copy, instance
(page 3–957) ,orreference (page 3–1002) objects.
Co py—Distributes copies of the selected object to
the specified position.
Instance—Distributes instances of the selected
object to the specified position.
Reference—Distributes references of the selected
object to the specified position.
Tip: You can use compound shapes containing
multiplesplinesasthesplinepathfordistributing
objects. Before creating shapes, turn off Start New
Shape under Shapes on the Create panel. Then
create your shapes. 3ds Max adds each spline to
thecurrentshapeuntilyouclicktheStartNew
Shape button so that it’s checked. When you select
the compound shape so that the Spacing tool can
use it as a path, objects are distributed along al l of
the splines of the compound shape. For example,
you mig ht find this technique useful in spacing
light standards along a path defined by separated
splines.
Clone and A lign Tool
Extras toolba r > Clone and Align Tool (on Array flyout)
Tools menu > Clone and Align
The Clone And Align tool lets you dist ribute s ource
objects based on the current selection to a second
selection of destination objects. For example, you
can populate several rooms simultaneously w ith
thesamefurniturearrangement.Similarly,ifyou
import a CAD file that contains 2D symbols that
represent chairs in a conference room, you can use
CloneAndAligntoreplacethesymbolswith3D
chair objects en masse.
The distributed objects can be copies, instances
(page 3–957),orreferences (page 3–1002) of the
current selected object. You determine the number
of clones or clone sets by specifying any number of
destinationobjects.Youcanalsospecifyposition
and orientation alignment of the clones on one,
two, or three axes, with optional offsets.
Yo u c a n u s e a ny n u m b e r o f s o u r c e o b j e c t s a n d
destination objects.
YoucanpickobjectswithinanXRefsceneas
destination objects.
With multiple source objects, Clone And Align
maintains the positional relationships among
the members of each cloned group, aligning the
selection center with the destination’s pivot.
Procedure
To use the Clone And Align tool:
1.
Create or load an object or objects to be cloned,
aswellasoneormoredestinationobjects.
2. Select the object or objects to be cloned.
3. Open the Clone And Align dialog.
Note: Theorderofsteps2and3canbereversed.
4. Do either of the following:
• Click Pick once and then click each
destination object in turn. Next, click Pick
again to turn it off.
• Click Pick List and then use the Pick
Destination Objects dia log to pick all
destination objects simultaneously.
5. On the Clone Parameters rollout, choose the
type of clone, and, if appropriate, how to copy
the con troller. For details, see Clone Options
Dialog (page 1–476).
6. UsetheCloneParametersrolloutsettingsto
specify position, orientation, and scale options.