#theozone
After our successful collaboration with KPM USA, their UK division reached out as they had a product in need of a real hero moment.
It was a product that quite literally runs the world, operating inside machinery that most might never notice but ultimately powers some of the greatest human triumphs. Capable of generating immense torque, dynamic configurations for a wide range of applications and a company behind it that's recognized worldwide, we needed to make one key feature of the product the focus of our animation...
The incredibly unique radial piston design.
In order to create this pumps HERO moment, we need to show what actually happens inside a high-performance hydraulic radial pump when everything is pushed to the limit.
From fluid simulation in motion to the precision timing of radial pistons animated procedurally, every frame is built to reveal what’s normally hidden and convey the true power and excellence of this machine.
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KPM UK instructed us that this would be the start of a series of videos and with that their one major request in the creative was thatwe needed to start the animation with a 'mission-selection' style sequence that allowed scalability to their many other products in future videos.
To achieve the object while keeping the audiences engages and immersed, we created an intro animation that was grounded in real scenery and that sought to 'scan-into-existence' the visuals that were about to come.
Through dynamic x-ray cross-sections and sci-fi scanning visuals, we created a loading sequence that started the HERO moment for the HPC400 up next.
As the animation began, we really wanted the audience to understand both how a hydraulic pump differs from a combustion engine, as well as how it contributes to a radial function, so we started the visuals with the camera tracking the first path of the fluid through the pump. Paying close attention to the viscosity, color and impurities found in hydraulic fluid, we created an accurate representation (slowed down, of course) of the fluid as it enters the cylinder in the compression phase and begins the high-torque rotational capacity of the pump.
The rigging for the piston of this pump was a unique challenge as well. It not only had to be displaced procedurally by the pistons, it also needed to by dynamically adjusted relative to the motion of of either bank of pistons amongst the 4 displacement modes that the pump is capable of. Generating this rigging system, after much trial and error, allowed us to create a dynamic system controllable by a single slider only, and scalable to any speed imaginable with ease. This only aided the realism and our ability to demonstrate accurately one of the key features of this pump.
Take a look below at the vertical version created for this animation, along with a more in depth BTS breakdown from our director of the theory described here...
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By laying out the full idea through storyboards prior to any keyframes being added, simulations being tested or rigging being done, we were able to iron out the flow, the sequential messaging, and the overall visual style progression from the intro animation to the main 'HERO' in advance so that we could ensure perfection on the first attempt.
This turned out to be true as ProjectFilev1.mp4 turned into ProjectFileFinal.mov!
From fluid simulations, to intentional material juxtapositions and complex rigging systems, this project was a test of our team’s abilities to convey complicated and powerful mechanical concepts in a tangible and digestible fashion.
How do you think we did making this product truly feel like a HERO!?
