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Spark AR is Facebook’s free AR creation platform that enables users to create interactive AR experiences for Facebook and Instagram. More than 400,000 creators in 190 countries have used Spark AR to create their own AR creations

Since the software requires no coding knowledge to use, anyone can now lead the world by creating the next crazy viral Instagram AR effects with little experience in the AR world.

Specialized AR filter designers can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $30,000.

If a 3D object has a skeleton, you can use Patches to set how the joints in the skeleton move — animate objects. This is called program animation.

To test this, import your own 3D objects or choose from the AR library.

You can apply the same technique to other types of objects, such as grids that make up 3D objects.

Find the joint you want to animate

Expand your object in the Scene panel and select the joint you want to animate.

In the example below, we add an object named boombox_animated to the scene. It consists of several grids and a skeleton with three joints. We have selected a joint named base_jnt that will allow us to animate the base of the object.

Create patches for joint position, rotation, and scaling

In the inspector, create a patch to represent joint position, rotation, or scaling.

Would you choose:

  • Position: To move objects between different positions.
  • Rotate: Rotate an object.
  • Zoom: Makes objects larger and smaller.

To create the patch, simply click the arrow next to the property. In the example below, we create a patch to represent the size of the joint.

Create a Loop Animation and Transition the patch

You will animate the joint using two patches, looping animation and translation.

Looping animation patches and moving patches are usually used together. This is because a looping animation patch controls the progress of the animation, while a pan patch can be configured to control how and where objects move.

Create these patches:

  • Right-click in the patch editor and select a Loop Animation patch from the menu.
  • Right-click again and select a Transition patch.

Connect patches and edit their values

Connection:

  • Progress from the output of the Loop Animation patch to the input Progress in the Transition patch.
  • Transition the output of the patch to the patch that represents the properties you want to animate.

Editor:

Next, edit the Loop Animation patch

Change the Duration value to slow or speed up the animation. Select the check box next to Mirrored to move Mirrored back and forth.

In the Transition patch, set values for objects between animations. For example, if we set each value next to Start to 0.9, the object will have a slightly larger effect:

Finally, it’s worth looking at the Curve value in the Transition patch, which you can adjust to set the pace of movement. It’s worth trying this option in your own effects. The following figure shows the types of adjustment curve values supported.