c4d.BaseObject

class c4d.BaseObject

The base class of objects.

Here is an example how to create and edit objects.

import c4d

obj = c4d.BaseObject(c4d.Ocube) # Create new cube
obj.SetRelPos(c4d.Vector(20))   # Set position of cube
doc.InsertObject(obj)           # Insert object in document
c4d.EventAdd()                  # Send global event message

Methods Signatures

BaseObject.__init__()

Initialize a new BaseObject in memory.

BaseObject.GetAbsPos()	Returns the absolute position of the object. These will be absolute local coordinates within its parent object.
BaseObject.SetAbsPos()	Sets the absolute local position of the object within its parent. If the object has no parent then these will be world coordinates.
BaseObject.GetAbsScale()	Returns the absolute scale of the object. These will be relative to the objects parent if it has one.
BaseObject.SetAbsScale()	Sets the absolute scale of the object relative to its parent object if it has one.
BaseObject.GetAbsRot()	Returns the absolute HPB rotation of the object relative to any parent object.
BaseObject.SetAbsRot()	Sets the absolute HPB rotation of the object relative to any parent object.
BaseObject.GetFrozenPos()	Returns the frozen position of the object.
BaseObject.SetFrozenPos()	Sets the frozen position of the object.
BaseObject.GetFrozenScale()	Returns the frozen scale of the object.
BaseObject.SetFrozenScale()	Sets the frozen scale of the object.
BaseObject.GetFrozenRot()	Returns the frozen HPB rotation of the object.
BaseObject.SetFrozenRot()	Sets the frozen HPB rotation of the object.
BaseObject.GetRelPos()	Returns the relative position of the object.
BaseObject.SetRelPos()	Set the relative position of the object.
BaseObject.GetRelScale()	Returns the relative scale of the object.
BaseObject.SetRelScale()	Sets the relative scale of the object.
BaseObject.GetRelRot()	Returns the relative HPB rotation of the object.
BaseObject.SetRelRot()	Sets the relative HPB rotation of the object.
BaseObject.GetMl()	Get the local matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.SetMl()	Set the local matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.GetFrozenMln()	Returns the frozen and normalized matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.
BaseObject.GetRelMln()	Returns the relative and normalized matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.
BaseObject.GetRelMl()	Returns the relative matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.
BaseObject.SetRelMl()	Sets the relative matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.
BaseObject.GetMg()	Get the world (global) matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.SetMg()	Set the world (global) matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.GetMln()	Get the local normalized matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.GetMgn()	Get the global normalized matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.GetUpMg()	Get the global matrix of the parent object that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.
BaseObject.CopyMatrixTo()	Copy the matrix to another object.
BaseObject.GetMp()	Bounding box center (vector), in local space.
BaseObject.GetRad()	This is the bounding box radius (x/y/z) of the object, this works for all objects and is faster than manually finding the bounds of even polygon objects, the radius is internally cached.
BaseObject.GetEditorMode()	Returns the state of the editor dot for this object.
BaseObject.SetEditorMode()	Set the state of the editor dot for this object.
BaseObject.GetRenderMode()	Returns the state of the render dot for this object.
BaseObject.SetRenderMode()	Set the render state for this object.
BaseObject.GetTag()	Get a tag of a certain type associated with this object.
BaseObject.KillTag()	Removes a tag from the object and free its resources.
BaseObject.GetRealSpline()	Get a real spline representation of a primitive spline object.
BaseObject.GetVisibility()	The object’s visibility depends upon its parent, if it has no visibility track this will return the parent’s visibility which is passed.
BaseObject.SetDeformMode()	Set the state of the deformation/generator tick.
BaseObject.GetDeformMode()	Returns the state of the deformation/generator tick.
BaseObject.GetUniqueIP()	Get the ip of the object.
BaseObject.SetUniqueIP()	Set the ip of the object.
BaseObject.CopyTagsTo()	Copy the tags of the object to another object.
BaseObject.GetFirstTag()	Returns the first tag of the object.
BaseObject.GetLastTag()	Returns the last tag of the object.
BaseObject.GetTags()	Returns all tags in a list.
BaseObject.MakeTag()	Create and insert a tag for this object.
BaseObject.MakeVariableTag()	Create a variable tag for this object.
BaseObject.InsertTag()	Attach a BaseTag to BaseObject.
BaseObject.GetTagDataCount()	Get the variable tag data count.
BaseObject.IsDirty()	Check if the object has been changed since the last time the object was touched.
BaseObject.SetDirty()	Check if the object has been changed since the last time the object was touched.
BaseObject.Touch()	Mark object to be used by a generator; automatically resets ‘dirty’.
BaseObject.SetPhong()	Set the phong smoothing for the object.
BaseObject.GetIsoparm()	Gets the previously built isoparm representation of the object.
BaseObject.SetIsoparm()	Sets the isoparm representation of the object.
BaseObject.GetDeformCache()	Gets the previously built cache that has been deformed by an active deformer.
BaseObject.GetCache()	Get the object from the previously built cache.
BaseObject.GetCacheParent()	A cache/deform object has no GetUp link.
BaseObject.CheckCache()	Check if cache is built, if it matches the requirements (polygonized/isoparm, level of detail etc.).
BaseObject.GetHighlightHandle()	Checks if a highlight handle has been hit, by returning the ID previously returned by ObjectData.DetectHandle().
BaseObject.NewDependenceList()	Start a new dependence list. These enable you to keep track of changes made to any children.
BaseObject.CompareDependenceList()	Compares if anything in the dependence list has changed.
BaseObject.AddDependence()	Add a child object to the dependence list.
BaseObject.TouchDependenceList()	Mark all the objects in the dependence list that they will be replaced by the generator.
BaseObject.SearchHierarchy()	Check if the object is a child of op.
BaseObject.GetAndCheckHierarchyClone()	Check and generate a clone of the child objects of a parent generator.
BaseObject.GetHierarchyClone()	Generate a clone of the child objects of a parent generator.
BaseObject.SetRotationOrder()	Sets the rotation order of the object.
BaseObject.GetRotationOrder()	Gets the rotation order of the object.
BaseObject.GetGUID()	Returns a unique ID for any object in a document.
BaseObject.SetQuaternionRotationMode()	Sets the quaternion rotation mode of the object.
BaseObject.IsQuaternionRotationMode()	Checks if object rotation is interpolated in quaternion mode.
BaseObject.SynchronizeVectorTrackKeys()	Makes sure that the track Curves components are synchronized (keys on each component).
BaseObject.FindBestEulerAngle()	Tries to find the best Euler angle according to the previous key.
BaseObject.EvaluateSynchronizedRotation()	Forces an evaluation of all rotation tracks and considers quaternion interpolation.
BaseObject.GetVectorTracks()	Returns each component track for the given id.
BaseObject.GetVectorCurves()	Returns each component curve for the given curve.
BaseObject.GetModelingAxis()	Gets the internal matrix for the modeling axis.
BaseObject.SetModelingAxis()	Sets the internal matrix for the modeling axis.

Inheritance

Parent Class:

• c4d.BaseList2D

Children Classes:

• c4d.CameraObject

• c4d.PointObject

• c4d.VoronoiFracture

• c4d.LodObject

• c4d.InstanceObject

• c4d.modules.character.CAJointObject

• c4d.modules.mograph.FieldObject

• c4d.modules.hair.HairObject

• c4d.modules.sculpting.SculptObject

• c4d.modules.sculpting.SculptLayerBase

• c4d.modules.motiontracker.MotionTrackerObject

• c4d.modules.volume.VolumeObject

• c4d.modules.volume.VolumeBuilder

Methods Documentation

BaseObject.__init__(self, type)

Initialize a new BaseObject in memory.

Parameters

type (int) – The object type : Object Types.

BaseObject.GetAbsPos(self)

Returns the absolute position of the object. These will be absolute local coordinates within its parent object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The absolute object position.

BaseObject.SetAbsPos(self, v)

Sets the absolute local position of the object within its parent. If the object has no parent then these will be world coordinates.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The absolute object position.

BaseObject.GetAbsScale(self)

Returns the absolute scale of the object. These will be relative to the objects parent if it has one.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The absolute object scale.

BaseObject.SetAbsScale(self, v)

Sets the absolute scale of the object relative to its parent object if it has one.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The absolute object scale.

BaseObject.GetAbsRot(self)

Returns the absolute HPB rotation of the object relative to any parent object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The absolute object rotation.

BaseObject.SetAbsRot(self, v)

Sets the absolute HPB rotation of the object relative to any parent object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The absolute object rotation.

BaseObject.GetFrozenPos(self)

Returns the frozen position of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The frozen object position.

BaseObject.SetFrozenPos(self, v)

Sets the frozen position of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The frozen object position.

BaseObject.GetFrozenScale(self)

Returns the frozen scale of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The frozen object scale.

BaseObject.SetFrozenScale(self, v)

Sets the frozen scale of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The frozen object scale.

BaseObject.GetFrozenRot(self)

Returns the frozen HPB rotation of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The frozen object rotation.

BaseObject.SetFrozenRot(self, v)

Sets the frozen HPB rotation of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The frozen object rotation.

BaseObject.GetRelPos(self)

Returns the relative position of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The relative object position.

BaseObject.SetRelPos(self, v)

Set the relative position of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The relative object position.

BaseObject.GetRelScale(self)

Returns the relative scale of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The relative object scale.

BaseObject.SetRelScale(self, v)

Sets the relative scale of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The relative object scale.

BaseObject.GetRelRot(self)

Returns the relative HPB rotation of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The relative object rotation.

BaseObject.SetRelRot(self, v)

Sets the relative HPB rotation of the object.

See also

See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

v (c4d.Vector) – The relative object rotation.

BaseObject.GetMl(self)

Get the local matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s local matrix.

BaseObject.SetMl(self, m)

Set the local matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Parameters

m (c4d.Matrix) – The object’s new local matrix.

BaseObject.GetFrozenMln(self, m)

Returns the frozen and normalized matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

m (c4d.Matrix) – The object’s frozen and normalized matrix.

BaseObject.GetRelMln(self)

Returns the relative and normalized matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s relative and normalized matrix.

BaseObject.GetRelMl(self)

Returns the relative matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s relative matrix.

BaseObject.SetRelMl(self, m)

Sets the relative matrix of the object. See also Freeze Transformations.

Parameters

m (c4d.Matrix) – The object’s new relative matrix.

BaseObject.GetMg(self)

Get the world (global) matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Note

This will only work if the object is attached to a document.

Virtual objects in caches and deform caches are not attached to a document, so this function cannot be used for those objects.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s world matrix.

BaseObject.SetMg(self, m)

Set the world (global) matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Parameters

m (c4d.Matrix) – The object’s new world matrix.

BaseObject.GetMln(self)

Get the local normalized matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s normalized local matrix.

BaseObject.GetMgn(self)

Get the global normalized matrix that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The object’s normalized world matrix.

BaseObject.GetUpMg(self)

Get the global matrix of the parent object that represents the objects position, scale and rotation.

If the object has no parent object then this matrix will be a unit matrix.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The parent object’s world matrix.

BaseObject.CopyMatrixTo(self, dst)

Copy the matrix to another object.

Parameters

dst (c4d.BaseObject) – The destintation object.

BaseObject.GetMp(self)

Bounding box center (vector), in local space.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The bounding box center.

BaseObject.GetRad(self)

This is the bounding box radius (x/y/z) of the object, this works for all objects and is faster than manually finding the bounds of even polygon objects, the radius is internally cached.

Return type

c4d.Vector

Returns

The bounding box width, height and depth.

BaseObject.GetEditorMode(self)

Returns the state of the editor dot for this object.

Return type

int

Returns

The editor mode:

MODE_ON	The object is enabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_OFF	The object is disabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_UNDEF	The object is enabled by default, but the state of any parent object is used if it is enabled or disabled.

BaseObject.SetEditorMode(self, mode)

Set the state of the editor dot for this object.

Parameters

mode (int) –

The editor mode:

MODE_ON	The object is enabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_OFF	The object is disabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_UNDEF	The object is enabled by default, but the state of any parent object is used if it is enabled or disabled.

BaseObject.GetRenderMode(self)

Returns the state of the render dot for this object.

Return type

int

Returns

The render mode:

MODE_ON	The object is enabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_OFF	The object is disabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_UNDEF	The object is enabled by default, but the state of any parent object is used if it is enabled or disabled.

BaseObject.SetRenderMode(self, mode)

Set the render state for this object.

Parameters

mode (int) –

The render mode:

MODE_ON	The object is enabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_OFF	The object is disabled regardless of the state of any parent object.
MODE_UNDEF	The object is enabled by default, but the state of any parent object is used if it is enabled or disabled.

BaseObject.GetTag(self, type, nr=0)

Get a tag of a certain type associated with this object.

Parameters

• type (int) – The type of tag to fetch from the object. See Tag Types.

• nr (int) – The starting tag index to find of this type.

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseTag]

Returns

The requested tag, or None if no tags of the requested type are available.

Note

If you request a specific number that is not available then None will be returned even if there is a tag of that type with a different index.

BaseObject.KillTag(self, type, nr=0)

Removes a tag from the object and free its resources.

Parameters

• type (int) – The type of tag to fetch from the object. See Tag Types.

• nr (int) – The starting tag index to find of this type.

BaseObject.GetRealSpline(self)

Get a real spline representation of a primitive spline object.

This can for example be used to calculate the length of the spline.

If the object is a real spline it returns this. Otherwise None.

Note

The matrix of the returned object must not be used.

Use the matrix of the original primitive spline object instead.

Return type

Optional[c4d.SplineObject]

Returns

The created spline object.

Warning

The returned object is owned by the host object and therefore should be cloned when inserted somewhere else.

Ignoring this would lead to a crash if the original object is deleted.

To safely insert a real spline representation of a primitive spline object, it should be cloned beforehand.

# The real spline representation.
realSpline = op.GetRealSpline()

if realSpline is not None:
    # The clone is inserted into the document.
    clone = realSpline.GetClone()
    doc.InsertObject(clone)

    # Update Cinema 4D.
    c4d.EventAdd()

BaseObject.GetVisibility(self, parent)

The object’s visibility depends upon its parent, if it has no visibility track this will return the parent’s visibility which is passed.

Note

The range of values are 0.0<=visibility<=1.0.

Note

In the editor only a visibility of 0.0 can be noticed but all other intermediate values are visualized in the renderer only.

Parameters

float – The parent objects visibility.

Return type

float

Returns

The visibility.

BaseObject.SetDeformMode(self, mode)

Set the state of the deformation/generator tick.

Parameters

mode (bool) – True to enable the generator/deformer object.

BaseObject.GetDeformMode(self)

Returns the state of the deformation/generator tick.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if the generator/deformer object is enabled.

BaseObject.GetUniqueIP(self)

Get the ip of the object.

Return type

int

Returns

The object IP number.

BaseObject.SetUniqueIP(self, ip)

Set the ip of the object.

Parameters

ip (int) – The object IP number.

BaseObject.CopyTagsTo(self, dest, visible, variable, hierarchical)

Copy the tags of the object to another object.

Parameters

• dest (c4d.BaseObject) – The destination object.

• visible (bool) – True if the tags must be visible, False if it must not be visible or NOTOK if it can be either (if this property does not need to be checked).

• variable (bool) – True if the tags must be variable, False if it must not be variable or NOTOK if it can be either (if this property does not need to be checked).

• hierarchical (bool) – True if the tags must be hierarchical, False if it must not be hierarchical or NOTOK if it can be either (if this property does not need to be checked).

Returns

True if the object’s tags were copied successfully, otherwise False.

BaseObject.GetFirstTag(self)

Returns the first tag of the object.

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseTag]

Returns

The first tag of the object, or None if the object has no tags.

BaseObject.GetLastTag(self)

Returns the last tag of the object.

New in version R19.024.

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseTag]

Returns

The last tag of the object, or None if the object has no tags.

BaseObject.GetTags(self)

Returns all tags in a list.

Return type

List[c4d.BaseTag]

Returns

The list of all tags.

BaseObject.MakeTag(self, x, pred=None)

Create and insert a tag for this object.

Parameters

• x (int) – The type of tag to create. See Tag Types.

• pred (Optional[c4d.BaseTag]) – The tag will insert after pred.

Return type

c4d.BaseTag

Returns

The new tag.

BaseObject.MakeVariableTag(self, x, count, pred=None)

Create a variable tag for this object.

Parameters

• x (int) –

  The type of tag to create:

  The table lists the supported variable tags by VariableTag.GetAllHighlevelData()/SetAllHighlevelData() and their corresponding data.

  Tag	Data	Description
  Tpoint	list of c4d.Vector	The points.
  Tpolygon	list of c4d.CPolygon	The polygons.
  Ttangent	list of (c4d.Vector, c4d.Vector)	The tangents left and right interpolation.
  Tsegment	list of dict{cnt: int, closed: bool}	The segments number of points and closed state.
  Tline	list of dict{pos: float, t: float}	The line points percentage position and original spline point.
  Tvertexmap	list of float	The vertex map values.
  Tnormal	List[int]eger	The normals. Note: Contains 12 times more elements than VariableTag.GetDataCount() returns.
  Tvertexcolor	list of dict{a, b, c, d: c4d.Vector4d}	The vertex colors for a polygon.
  Tsoftselection	list of float	The soft selection values.

• count (int) – The size of the variable tags data.

• pred (Optional[c4d.BaseTag]) – The tag will insert after pred.

Return type

c4d.BaseTag

Returns

The new tag.

BaseObject.InsertTag(self, tp, pred=None)

Attach a BaseTag to BaseObject.

Warning

If the tag type was not registered with TAG_MULTIPLE, any existing old tag of same type will be implicitly removed.

Any previous reference to the old tag will be invalid afterwards.

Parameters

• tp (c4d.BaseTag) – The tag which will be attached.

• pred (Optional[c4d.BaseTag]) – tp will insert after pred.

BaseObject.GetTagDataCount(self, type)

Get the variable tag data count.

Parameters

type (int) –

The type of tag:

The table lists the supported variable tags by VariableTag.GetAllHighlevelData()/SetAllHighlevelData() and their corresponding data.

Tag	Data	Description
Tpoint	list of c4d.Vector	The points.
Tpolygon	list of c4d.CPolygon	The polygons.
Ttangent	list of (c4d.Vector, c4d.Vector)	The tangents left and right interpolation.
Tsegment	list of dict{cnt: int, closed: bool}	The segments number of points and closed state.
Tline	list of dict{pos: float, t: float}	The line points percentage position and original spline point.
Tvertexmap	list of float	The vertex map values.
Tnormal	List[int]eger	The normals. Note: Contains 12 times more elements than VariableTag.GetDataCount() returns.
Tvertexcolor	list of dict{a, b, c, d: c4d.Vector4d}	The vertex colors for a polygon.
Tsoftselection	list of float	The soft selection values.

Return type

int

Returns

The number of elements in the variable tag.

BaseObject.IsDirty(self, flags)

Check if the object has been changed since the last time the object was touched.

Parameters

flags (int) –

The object part to check:

DIRTYFLAGS_NONE	None.
DIRTYFLAGS_MATRIX	Matrix changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_DATA	Container changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_SELECT	Checks all valid selections of the object, e.g. points, edge, polys.
DIRTYFLAGS_CACHE	Checks if the cache of an object has been changed (rebuilt).
DIRTYFLAGS_CHILDREN	Checks if the children are dirty.
DIRTYFLAGS_DESCRIPTION	Description changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_OBJECTS	For BaseDocument, object selections have changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_TAGS	For BaseDocument, tag selections have changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_MATERIALS	For BaseDocument, material selections have changed.
DIRTYFLAGS_ALL	Check all dirty flags.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if the object is dirty, otherwise False.

BaseObject.SetDirty(self, flags)

Check if the object has been changed since the last time the object was touched.

Parameters

flags (int) – See parameters at IsDirty().

BaseObject.Touch(self)

Mark object to be used by a generator; automatically resets ‘dirty’.

BaseObject.SetPhong(self, on, anglelimit, angle)

Set the phong smoothing for the object.

Note

This function will delete any existing Phong tag.

If on is set to True it will create a new Phong tag.

Parameters

• on (bool) – False removes the phong tag from the object.

• anglelimit (bool) – True if angle should be used.

• angle (float) – The phong angle.

Return type

bool

Returns

Success of changing the smoothing.

BaseObject.GetIsoparm(self)

Gets the previously built isoparm representation of the object.

Note

May return None if the isoparm is not available or is not yet built.

Return type

Optional[c4d.LineObject]

Returns

The LineObject representing isoparam.

BaseObject.SetIsoparm(self, l)

Sets the isoparm representation of the object.

Warning

Must only be called from within ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() of a generator object.

Parameters

l (c4d.LineObject) – The isoparm representation of the object to set.

BaseObject.GetDeformCache(self)

Gets the previously built cache that has been deformed by an active deformer.

It is important to understand the concept how the deformer cache operates.

For each object in the hierarchy that generates a polygonal cache a deformer cache could also have been created by an active deformer object.

A simple example will help to see how this works:

Take the simple hierarchy shown above, the array generator object creates a virtual hierarchy in the cache, this can be retrieved using GetCache().

This hierarchy is:

From each of the Cube objects a further cache is generated, this time polygonal:

From these the deformer object generates a deformed polygon cache:

So the final hierarchy is:

When a deformer becomes active every object/cache object gets a deform cache (if it was a polygonal object).

The deformer cache is always polygonal and is only ever a single object.

Note

The caches are always built after all plugins and expressions have been called.

If the virtual objects have to be accessed to obtain a polygonal based object it is generally advised to call SendModelingCommand() with MCOMMAND_CURRENTSTATETOOBJECT.

This will rebuild the cache for the passed object if needed, and then clone the polygonal objects.

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseObject]

Returns

The objects previously built deformed cache. May return None if the cache is not available or is not yet built.

BaseObject.GetCache(self, hh=None)

Get the object from the previously built cache.

Note

Situations can be quite complex in Cinema 4D. For instance GetCache() could return a list of objects.

For example the default Sweep Generator internally has some built-in caches for the sweep surface and for the caps.

The following helper routine can be used to make things easier. It browses through this rather complex hierarchy of objects and caches recursively

def DoRecursion(op):
tp = op.GetDeformCache()
if tp is not None:
    DoRecursion(tp)
else:
    tp = op.GetCache()
    if tp is not None:
        DoRecursion(tp)
    else:
        if not op.GetBit(c4d.BIT_CONTROLOBJECT):
            if op.IsInstanceOf(c4d.Opolygon):
                ...

tp = op.GetDown()
while tp is not None:
    DoRecursion(tp)
    tp = tp.GetNext()

Warning

Use the above routine only if the caches are already built.

It is for instance not safe to use it in a command plugin since the user can have stopped the scene redraw and the building of caches.

Parameters

hh (Optional[object]) –

An optional hierarchy helper for the operation. Only for some special cases a hierarchy help must be passed.

Usually passed through from a calling function, for example from ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() or a Python generator main().

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseObject]

Returns

The object’s previously built cache. May return None if the cache is not available or is not yet built.

BaseObject.GetCacheParent(self)

A cache/deform object has no GetUp link.

Instead this method can be called to detect the cache building parent.

Return type

Optional[c4d.BaseObject]

Returns

The cache parent or None.

BaseObject.CheckCache(self, hh)

Check if cache is built, if it matches the requirements (polygonized/isoparm, level of detail etc.).

It returns the dirty status of the cache.

Note

This function must only be called from within ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects()/main() of a generator object.

Parameters

hh (object) –

A hierarchy helper for the operation.

Usually passed through from a calling function, for example from ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() or a Python generator main().

Return type

bool

Returns

True if the cache is dirty, False if it is valid.

BaseObject.GetHighlightHandle(self, bd)

Checks if a highlight handle has been hit, by returning the ID previously returned by ObjectData.DetectHandle().

The handle can then be drawn in the highlight mode.

Parameters

bd (c4d.BaseDraw) – A base draw.

Return type

int

Returns

The handle ID.

BaseObject.NewDependenceList(self)

Start a new dependence list. These enable you to keep track of changes made to any children.

Note

The object must be children of your object.

BaseObject.CompareDependenceList(self)

Compares if anything in the dependence list has changed.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if the list has not changed (are the same).

BaseObject.AddDependence(self, hh, op, dirtyflags=DIRTYFLAGS_DATA | DIRTYFLAGS_MATRIX)

Add a child object to the dependence list.

Usually this will be child objects that are used by a generator object.

Parameters

• hh (Optional[object]) –

  Deprecated since version 2024.0.0: This parameter will be removed in 2025.0.0.

  A hierarchy helper for the operation.

  Usually passed through from a calling function, for example from ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() or a Python generator main() function.

• op (c4d.BaseObject) – The child object to add to the dependence list.

• dirtyflags (Optional[int]) –

  New in version R19.024.

  The dirty flags stored within the dependence list:

  DIRTYFLAGS_NONE	None.
  DIRTYFLAGS_MATRIX	Matrix changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_DATA	Container changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECT	Checks all valid selections of the object, e.g. points, edge, polys.
  DIRTYFLAGS_CACHE	Checks if the cache of an object has been changed (rebuilt).
  DIRTYFLAGS_CHILDREN	Checks if the children are dirty.
  DIRTYFLAGS_DESCRIPTION	Description changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_OBJECTS	For BaseDocument, object selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_TAGS	For BaseDocument, tag selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_MATERIALS	For BaseDocument, material selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_ALL	Check all dirty flags.

BaseObject.TouchDependenceList(self)

Mark all the objects in the dependence list that they will be replaced by the generator.

BaseObject.SearchHierarchy(self, op)

Check if the object is a child of op.

Parameters

op (c4d.BaseObject) – Check within this object’s hierarchy.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if the object is a child of op, otherwise False.

BaseObject.GetAndCheckHierarchyClone(self, hh, op, flags, allchildren, dirty=False, trans=None)

Check and generate a clone of the child objects of a parent generator.

This is similar to GetHierarchyClone() except that it will check if the hierarchy is dirty and if not it will not need to generate a new clone.

Parameters

• hh (object) –

  A hierarchy helper for the operation.

  Usually passed through from a calling function, for example from ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() or a Python generator main() function.

• op (c4d.BaseObject) – The object to start the clone from, usually the first child of the parent object.

• flags (int) –

  The flags for the generation of the cloned chain, the values are:

  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_NONE	None.
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASIS	Objects unchanged. (Used by e.g. Oarray.)
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASPOLY	Objects cloned as polygons. (Used by e.g. HyperNURBS.)
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASLINE	Objects cloned as line objects.
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASSPLINE	Objects cloned as splines.

• allchildren (bool) – True if all children should be used in the check.

• dirty (bool) –

  New in version R18.057.

  Has to be set to None (or left unset) for the cloning to take place. Set to True if some part of the child objects in the chain has changed, or False if nothing has changed.

• trans (Optional[c4d.AliasTrans]) –

  New in version R18.057.

  An optional alias translator for the operation.

Return type

Dict[clone: BaseObject, dirty: bool]

Returns

The cloned object and a dirty flag: True if some part of the child objects in the chain has changed, or False if nothing has changed.

BaseObject.GetHierarchyClone(self, hh, op, flags, dirty=None, trans=None, dirtyflags=DIRTYFLAGS_DATA | DIRTYFLAGS_MATRIX)

Generate a clone of the child objects of a parent generator.

The result returned by GetAndCheckHierarchyClone() will be a chain of objects with various types. Passing HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASLINE e.g. will force all splines to be converted, but not every object in the chain will be of type Oline.

Some objects like PolygonObject cannot be converted, also there are Onull.

Parameters

• hh (HierarchyHelp - Not implemented) –

  A hierarchy helper for the operation.

  Usually passed through from a calling function, for example from ObjectData.GetVirtualObjects() or a Python generator main() function.

• op (c4d.BaseObject) – The object to start the clone from, usually the parent object itself.

• flags (int) –

  The flags for the generation of the cloned chain, the values are:

  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_NONE	None.
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASIS	Objects unchanged. (Used by e.g. Oarray.)
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASPOLY	Objects cloned as polygons. (Used by e.g. HyperNURBS.)
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASLINE	Objects cloned as line objects.
  HIERARCHYCLONEFLAGS_ASSPLINE	Objects cloned as splines.

• dirty (Optional[bool]) –

  New in version R18.057.

  Has to be set to None (or left unset) for the cloning to take place. Set to True if some part of the child objects in the chain has changed, or False if nothing has changed.

• trans (Optional[c4d.AliasTrans]) –

  New in version R18.057.

  An optional alias translator for the operation.

• dirtyflags (int) –

  New in version R19.024.

  The dirty flags stored within the dependence list:

  DIRTYFLAGS_NONE	None.
  DIRTYFLAGS_MATRIX	Matrix changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_DATA	Container changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECT	Checks all valid selections of the object, e.g. points, edge, polys.
  DIRTYFLAGS_CACHE	Checks if the cache of an object has been changed (rebuilt).
  DIRTYFLAGS_CHILDREN	Checks if the children are dirty.
  DIRTYFLAGS_DESCRIPTION	Description changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_OBJECTS	For BaseDocument, object selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_TAGS	For BaseDocument, tag selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_SELECTION_MATERIALS	For BaseDocument, material selections have changed.
  DIRTYFLAGS_ALL	Check all dirty flags.

Return type

dict{clone: BaseObject, dirty: bool}

Returns

The cloned object and a dirty flag: True if some part of the child objects in the chain has changed, or False if nothing has changed.

BaseObject.SetRotationOrder(self, order)

Sets the rotation order of the object.

New in version R14.014.

Parameters

order (int) –

The new rotation order:

ROTATIONORDER_YXZGLOBAL	Global YXZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YZXGLOBAL	Global YZX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZYXGLOBAL	Global ZYX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZXYGLOBAL	Global ZXY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XZYGLOBAL	Global XZY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XYZGLOBAL	Global XYZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YXZLOCAL	Local YXZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YZXLOCAL	Local YZX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZYXLOCAL	Local ZYX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZXYLOCAL	Local ZXY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XZYLOCAL	Local XZY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XYZLOCAL	Local XYZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_HPB	HPB order.
ROTATIONORDER_DEFAULT	Default order. ROTATIONORDER_HPB.

BaseObject.GetRotationOrder(self)

Gets the rotation order of the object.

New in version R14.014.

Return type

int

Returns

The rotation order:

ROTATIONORDER_YXZGLOBAL	Global YXZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YZXGLOBAL	Global YZX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZYXGLOBAL	Global ZYX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZXYGLOBAL	Global ZXY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XZYGLOBAL	Global XZY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XYZGLOBAL	Global XYZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YXZLOCAL	Local YXZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_YZXLOCAL	Local YZX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZYXLOCAL	Local ZYX order.
ROTATIONORDER_ZXYLOCAL	Local ZXY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XZYLOCAL	Local XZY order.
ROTATIONORDER_XYZLOCAL	Local XYZ order.
ROTATIONORDER_HPB	HPB order.
ROTATIONORDER_DEFAULT	Default order. ROTATIONORDER_HPB.

BaseObject.GetGUID(self)

Returns a unique ID for any object in a document.

This works for generated objects in a cache (e.g. clones generated by a MoGraph cloner) and also for ‘real’ objects in the document (this is special, because GetUniqueIP() does not do this).

New in version R14.014.

Note

The ID generation for cache objects is based on GetUniqueIP(), so if two cache objects have the same IP, they will probably also get the same GUID (unless they are point objects or polygon objects with different point or poly count).

Note

The ID generation for ‘real’ objects is based on the object’s marker, so if an object has no marker it will not return a GUID.

Return type

int

Returns

A checksum for the object.

BaseObject.SetQuaternionRotationMode(self, active, undo)

Sets the quaternion rotation mode of the object.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

• active (bool) – Enable/Disable the quaternion rotation mode for the object.

• undo (bool) –

  Add undo for the change of quaternion rotation mode.

  The caller has to to manage start/end of undo actions with BaseDocument.StartUndo()/EndUndo().

BaseObject.IsQuaternionRotationMode(self)

Checks if object rotation is interpolated in quaternion mode.

New in version R18.020.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if rotation interpolation is quaternion, otherwise False.

BaseObject.SynchronizeVectorTrackKeys(self, vectorTrackID, bUndo, startRange=BaseTime(- 108000, 1), endRange=BaseTime(108000, 1))

Makes sure that the track Curves components are synchronized (keys on each component).

If a component track is found, the other track components will be synchronized.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

• vectorTrackID (int) – ID of the vector track to synchronize.

• undo (int) – Add undo to value changed (need to manage start and end externally).

• startRange (c4d.BaseTime) – Optionally start operation at given time.

• endRange (c4d.BaseTime) – Optionally end operation at given time.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if track synchronization was successful, otherwise False.

BaseObject.FindBestEulerAngle(self, rotationTrackID, adjustTangent, undo, startRange=BaseTime(- 108000, 1), endRange=BaseTime(108000, 1))

Tries to find the best Euler angle according to the previous key.

Note

The object must have keys on each component.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

• rotationTrackID (int) – Rotation Track ID to manage (relative, global, absolute, frozen).

• adjustTangent (bool) – Try to adjust the tangent with new value, if False auto is used.

• undo (int) – Add undo to value changed (need to manage start and end externally).

• startRange (c4d.BaseTime) – Optionally start operation at given time.

• endRange (c4d.BaseTime) – Optionally end operation at given time.

Return type

bool

Returns

True if rotation synchronization was successful, otherwise False.

BaseObject.EvaluateSynchronizedRotation(self, time, flags, applyRotation=True)

Forces an evaluation of all rotation tracks and considers quaternion interpolation.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

• time (c4d.BaseTime) – The evaluation time.

• flags (c4d.BaseTime) –

  The animate flags:

  ANIMATEFLAGS_NONE	None.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_NO_PARTICLES	Ignore particles.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_NO_CHILDREN	Do not animate children.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_INRENDER	Prepare to render scene.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_NO_MINMAX	Private.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_NO_NLA	Private.
  ANIMATEFLAGS_NLA_SUM	Private.

• applyRotation (bool) –

  New in version R18.039.

  Pass False to return rotation result instead of updating attributes.

Return type

bool or Tuple[bool, c4d.Vector]

Returns

If applyRotation is True, a bool giving the evaluation result.

If applyRotation is False, a tuple with the following information:

bool: True if evaluation was a success, otherwise False.

c4d.Vector: The rotation vector result.

BaseObject.GetVectorTracks(self, id)

Returns each component track for the given id.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

id (c4d.DescID) – ID of desired vector.

Return type

Tuple[bool, Optional[c4d.CTrack], Optional[c4d.CTrack], Optional[c4d.CTrack]]

Returns

A tuple with the following information:

bool: True if successful, otherwise False.

c4d.CTrack: The X track of vector, or None if not found.

c4d.CTrack: The Y track of vector, or None if not found.

c4d.CTrack: The Z track of vector, or None if not found.

BaseObject.GetVectorCurves(self, curveToSearch)

Returns each component curve for the given curve.

New in version R18.020.

Parameters

curveToSearch (c4d.CCurve) – The curve component of desired vector.

Return type

Tuple[bool, Optional[c4d.CCurve], Optional[c4d.CCurve], Optional[c4d.CCurve]]

Returns

A tuple with the following information:

bool: True if successful, otherwise False.

c4d.CCurve: The X curve of vector, or None if not found.

c4d.CCurve: The Y curve of vector, or None if not found.

c4d.CCurve: The Z curve of vector, or None if not found.

BaseObject.GetModelingAxis(self, doc)

Gets the internal matrix for the modeling axis.

New in version R19.

Note

To access the axis type, and other axis options, use the IDs defined in toolmodelingaxis.h.

See also

BaseObject.SetModelingAxis()

Parameters

doc (c4d.documents.BaseDocument) – The document for the operation.

Return type

c4d.Matrix

Returns

The modeling axis.

BaseObject.SetModelingAxis(self, m)

Sets the internal matrix for the modeling axis.

New in version R19.

Note

To access the axis type, and other axis options, use the IDs in toolmodelingaxis.h.

Here is a code sample:

import c4d

    def SetToolData(doc, toolID, paramID, data):
    plug = c4d.plugins.FindPlugin(toolID, c4d.PLUGINTYPE_TOOL)
    if plug is None:
        return

    plug[paramID] = data
    SetToolData(doc, c4d.ID_MODELING_LIVESELECTION, c4d.MDATA_AXIS_MODE, c4d.MDATA_AXIS_MODE_FREE)

Parameters

m (c4d.Matrix) – The new modeling axis to set.