PluginsMaya

AFK AI for Maya: Auto-rig plug-in

Rig and animate a model without leaving Maya. Select it, click Rig, and about a minute later a rigged copy appears next to it, in a namespace of its own, ready to play. Your original stays exactly as it was.

Download for MayaHow it works ↓

Version 0.1.0 · 32.4 KBafk-ai-maya-0.1.0.zip
Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux

Three steps, inside Maya

  1. Maya
    persp
    1

    Select your model

    One or more polygon meshes, or the group they're in. Materials and textures go with them.

  2. Maya

    AFK AISign out

    you@example.com · 2 rigs left this month

    Body type
    Human▾
    All animationsRig only
    FacingAuto ▾
    Rig

    Rigging: adding the animations…

    2

    Click Rig

    In the AFK AI window, pick the body type and click Rig. Keep working while it rigs.

  3. Maya
    persp
    hero_rigged:rig
    3

    It's back in your scene

    The rigged copy appears to the right of the original, in its own namespace, with its first animation ready to play.

Install

  1. Download afk-ai-maya-0.1.0.zip and unzip it.
  2. Drag install.py from the unzipped folder onto Maya's viewport.
  3. AFK AI is installed and its window opens. From now on there's an AFK AI menu at the top of Maya, in every Maya version you have.

Rather do it by hand? Copy the afk_ai folder and the afk_ai.mod file into the modules folder of your Maya preferences (Documents\maya\modules on Windows, ~/Library/Preferences/Autodesk/maya/modules on a Mac, ~/maya/modules on Linux), then restart Maya.

Download

Download for Maya

Free to download

File
afk-ai-maya-0.1.0.zip
Version
0.1.0
Size
32.4 KB
Runs on
Windows, macOS, and Linux
SHA-256
04f5c660e0791a0b7c0f88a9dc2f3f092538d0f7b5cc58d735a2ea5cc022883a

Requirements

  • Maya 2022 or later, on Windows, macOS or Linux
  • Maya's FBX plug-in (fbxmaya) loaded, as it is unless you've turned it off
  • An afk.ai account: you sign in with Google. A free account gets 3 rigs a month.
  • An internet connection: the rigging happens on AFK AI's servers.

Use it

  1. Choose AFK AI > Rig with AFK AI.... Drag the window's tab to dock it wherever you like.
  2. Click Sign in. Your browser opens afk.ai: sign in with Google there, then go back to Maya. The window shows your email and how many rigs you have left this month.
  3. Select the model. Choose its Body type, then All animations for every animation for that body type, or Rig only for just the skeleton. Leave Facing on Auto.
  4. Click Rig. The window shows the progress: uploading, rigging, adding the animations, downloading.

If the browser can't get back to Maya (a firewall, or Maya on another computer), the afk.ai page shows a sign-in code. Click I have a sign-in code in the window and paste it. A code works for an hour.

Each rig uses one of your account's rigs, the same as on afk.ai/rig. A free account gets 3 a month, with the free animations; a plan gives you more rigs and every animation. A rig that fails doesn't count.

What you get back

Where
To the right of the original, selected. Everything in it has its own namespace, name_rigged:, so nothing clashes with your scene.
To move it
Move the name_rigged:rig group: the mesh follows its skeleton. Don't move the mesh itself.
Animations
The first comes in, and the window says which one and how many the rig has. Drag the saved file into the Time Editor to get them all as clips.
The file
name_rigged.fbx, saved next to your scene file, or in your project folder. Keep it: Maya reads the textures from the name_rigged.fbm folder beside it.
What AFK AI makes, in 3D: the model on a skeleton made for its body type, with its skin weights painted and its animations. Drag to turn it, and pick an animation to play. Knight: Medieval Knight by Andy Woodhead, CC BY 4.0.

Limits worth knowing

  • Maya brings in one animation at a time from an FBX file, so the rigged copy arrives with its first animation. The rest are in the saved FBX: drag it into Windows > Animation Editors > Time Editor.
  • Polygon meshes only. Convert NURBS or subdivision surfaces to polygons first (Modify > Convert).
  • Models up to 50 MB. If yours is bigger, remove hidden parts or very large textures, or lower the polygon count (Mesh > Reduce).
  • Every click on Rig that reaches AFK AI uses one of your rigs, even if you click Cancel while waiting.

Questions

Why does only one animation come in?

Maya imports one animation at a time from an FBX file, so AFK AI brings in the first and tells you how many the rig has. They're all in the saved name_rigged.fbx: drag it into the Time Editor to get every one as a clip.

There's no AFK AI menu. What now?

Check that afk_ai.mod and the afk_ai folder are in your modules folder, then restart Maya. If Maya is set not to run start-up scripts, allow them, or run import afk_ai_maya; afk_ai_maya.startup() in a Python tab of the Script Editor.

How do I update or uninstall it?

To update, install the new version the same way and restart Maya. To uninstall, delete afk_ai and afk_ai.mod from your modules folder.

It says Maya's FBX plug-in couldn't be loaded.

Open Windows > Settings/Preferences > Plug-in Manager and tick Loaded next to fbxmaya, then rig again.

Is AFK AI for Maya free?

It's free to download. Each rig uses one of your afk.ai account's rigs, the same as on afk.ai/rig: a free account gets 3 a month, with the free animations, and a plan gives you more rigs and every animation. A rig that fails doesn't count.

Does my sign-in end up in my files?

No. Your sign-in is kept on your computer, in your own user settings, never in a scene or project file, so sharing or committing your work never shares your account. Sign out forgets it.

Can I use the result in a commercial game?

Yes. The animations are CC0 (public domain), and your model stays yours.

Step by stepAuto-rig plugins for nine 3D apps and game engines: Blender, Maya, Unity, Unreal and moreOne AFK AI plugin for each of nine apps. Select a model, click Rig, and about a minute later it's back in your scene or project, rigged and animated.Read the guide →

AFK AI for your other apps

All plugins →

Rather rig in your browser?

afk.ai/rig rigs the same way, with a preview, fixes and every download format.

Rig a model