Hierarchical Kinematic Behaviors for Complex Articulated Figures

The hierarchical control decomposition provided by inverse kinematics is seldom used in the field of Computer Animation. In this chapter we first review the properties and limitations of inverse kinematics compared to other techniques dedicated to the motion control of complex articulated figures. Then, beyond the sole pseudo-inverse solution, we examine the homogeneous solution allowing the partial realization of a secondary task (or optimization or behavior). Case studies are presented in two distinct application areas of this technique : balance control and motion correction.