Camera control in vehicle script

[Spaz]

I'm trying to modify the camera in the vehicle_4wheel script so that I have a first-person driver's point of view.  I've got it pretty close, but I can't figure out what to alter so that the camera will stop sliding backwards as the car accelerates and sliding forward as the car slows down. (I rarely sit in the back seat to drive fast and move to the front seat to drive slow. ) 

The script looks like it should have something to do with the FOV based on vehicle speed, but I've commented out those lines and it still does the same thing. 

Anybody know what else I should be looking at?

[Ron]

Your post convinced me to try it (its been on my list for awhile now).

I'm getting the same, gonna keep pokin around see if I can see what it is.

[Ron]

Look like if you change

camera.SetTransition( 0.5);

to

camera.SetTransition( 0.0);

it works.

I'm changing over to the new vehicle script too, so your not alone in the growing pains. I do love the way it 'drives' though

[Spaz]

Sweet, Ron.  Thanks!  I'd changed several other setTransitions in the file (I've added several different camera angles), but hadn't seen that one at the bottom (because I'd added so many).

And I agree, the cars behave much more realistically with this new script.

Can I ask you to take a look at something else, too?  I've got it worked out so that my camera can look left and right with the mouse from the first-person driver's point of view.  It can also look down and as far up as level, but I can't get it to look up.  I'm sure it's something to do with the camDir and pitchAngle, but I'm not sure what.

Code:

float vehicleAngle = lastVehicleAngle;
            if (object.GetInterpMatrix().YAxis.y > 0.005)
            {
                float zy = object.GetInterpMatrix().ZAxis.y;
                if (zy > -0.99 && zy < 0.99)
                {
                    vehicleAngle = atan2( -object.GetInterpMatrix().ZAxis.x, -object.GetInterpMatrix().ZAxis.z);
                    lastVehicleAngle = vehicleAngle;
                }
            }

            if (cameraAngle > vehicleAngle + 180)
                cameraAngle -= 360;
            if (cameraAngle < vehicleAngle - 180)
                cameraAngle += 360;

            cameraAngle += (vehicleAngle - cameraAngle) * 0.1;

            Vector focus = object.GetInterpMatrix().T + CAMERA_TARGET;

            Matrix mtx;
            mtx.SetRotate( cameraAngle + headingAngle, 0, 0);

            Vector camDir = mtx.ZAxis; // * cos( pitchAngle);
            camDir.y -= sin( pitchAngle);
         
            Vector cameraPos = (object.GetInterpMatrix().Project( 0.25, 1.3f, -0.7));
         
            camera.SetFocus(cameraPos + camDir); //mtx.ZAxis);
            camera.SetPosition(cameraPos);
            camera.SetUp( 0, 1, 0);
            camera.SetTransition( 0.0);

Oh, one more thing I'll be looking at soon but if you happen to see while you're messing around with the script I'd be grateful for - the car, if on any angle at all, will roll even if you're not in it.  Do you see how to put it in "park"  if you're not in it or once you've slowed to a certain speed?

Thanks.

[Ron]

Oh, one more thing I'll be looking at soon but if you happen to see while you're messing around with the script I'd be grateful for - the car, if on any angle at all, will roll even if you're not in it.  Do you see how to put it in "park"  if you're not in it or once you've slowed to a certain speed?

Thanks.

Finally got something figured out that may help... its still needs some teaking though. When I crash and have the brakes on, it make the vehicle look like slow motion.

Code:

if (leftSideForce == 0 && speed < 1  && speed > -1 && handbrakePressed >= 0.5f)
{
collideBase.SetLinearVelocity( Vector( 0, 0, 0));
collideBase.SetAngularVelocity( Vector( 0, 0, 0));
}

[Squat]

Getting the vehicle to stop rolling can be a bit of a tricky one, considering you won't want it to not roll down a steep hill. You'll probably want to disable the vehicle based on both no driver aswell as a downward raycast to detect the ground plane's angle. For now, just test that you can disable it when no driver.

[pixel_legolas]

could you set mass to infinite when not inside it? Would that make it not roll? But then again it can't be bumped or anything

[Squat]

Yes, I think that would be the case. You could set the mass to infinite (0) and it would basically be a static object, unable to move at all. However, you could alter the mass again upon collision and keep it temporarily active based on a timer or its linear velocity...though this can again keep it moving forever. There's also air resistance, but this appears to be a global setting (all objects at once)...which ruins its versatility in my eyes.

[pixel_legolas]

There is one problem as I said and that is if you have cars in a slope and you want to be able to run into them and they move then it can't be set to zero. Isn't there some kind of friction thing that can be increased?

[Ransom]

You can turn on/off collisions, but (unless its been added recently) you can't dynamically alter the mass of an object.

[Spaz]

Yeah, I was guessing friction was the way to go.  It at least needs some lateral friction control because the cars not only roll, they slide sideways.