[MUD-Dev] Neverwinter Nights

[Nathan F. Yospe]

John Buehler <johnbue at msn.com> said:

> Anybody know the math for handling muscle tension?

Yes.  Perhaps uniquely, not just on the list, but in most fields.
(With few exceptions, there aren't a lot of physicists working on
cybernetics, with tensile balance emphasis...)

> Is it just a spring?

Not quite.  The curve is nonlinear, looks like a backwards, sideways
'S' thing.  There are tear points (shear lines) and multiple
compression and decompression regions.  The scale can be reasonably
modeled by elipsoids with teardrop offsets, giving a four point
computation that can take the muscle shape itself (approximated) in
compressed and decompressed forms, and give by-force tension for any
compression.  Of course, by-force does mean you have to give the
force angle at the muscle's anchor point, with the opposing muscle
fixed, and then apply the force resultant to the one opposing...

But why are you doing that?  Seems too much computation, when you
could, with little effort, get close enough on two constants defined
per player and situation (or muscle group per player) and a discreet
table computed in advance... you need the force, but you merely need
the flex point and break point for the player... and muscle tension
will follow as a ratio, mass (in the opposing direction) times the
constant for that flex angle, times the flex constant for that
player, times a power of break point to mass ratio... I don't have
the numbers at hand, and computing them was a big chore, but this
does give the fastest shortcut (when you need to get a check on
does-he-lift-or-fail-or-pull-a-muscle?) without just going to his
strength and a lookup table.

--
Nathan F. Yospe | nyospe at a2i.com
Don't mind me, I'm just insane - there's someone else here, in my brain. 


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