Three dimensional modeling and animation system

A method of facilitating modification of a graphical model that is displayed by a graphical modeling system on a graphical display device, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

• storing a plurality of object descriptions in memory device, wherein each object description defines a portion of the model;
• storing, in association with each of the object descriptions, an ordered list of objects, in which each of the objects defines a successive modification to an appearance of the graphical model;
• displaying a graphical display of the list of the objects in order of the successive modifications;
• displaying the graphical model by successively applying each of the objects within one of the object descriptions according to the order of the list;
• receiving a changed value for a first one of the objects;
• displaying a first modified graphical model based on the changed value, without undoing the successive modifications that are defined by the objects that are ordered in the list after the first one of the objects;
• and
• updating the graphical display of the list to reflect the changed value.

A computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of instructions for facilitating modification of a graphical model that is displayed by a graphical modeling system on a graphical display device, wherein execution of the one or more sequences of instructions by one or more processors causes the one or more processors to perform the steps of:

• storing a plurality of object descriptions in a memory device, wherein each object description defines a portion of the model;
• storing, in association with each of the object descriptions, an ordered list of objects, in which each of the objects defines a successive modification to an appearance of the graphical model;
• displaying a graphical display of the list of the objects in order of the successive modifications;
• displaying the graphical model by successively applying each of the objects within one of the object descriptions according to the order of the list;
• receiving user input that defines a changed value for a first one of the objects;
• displaying a first modified graphical model based on the changed value, without undoing the successive modifications that are defined by the objects that are ordered in the list after the first one of the objects;
• and
• updating the graphical display to reflect the changed value.

A method of facilitating modification of a graphical model that is displayed by a graphical modeling system on a graphical display device, the method comprising the computer-implemented steps of:

• storing a plurality of object descriptions in a memory device, wherein each object description defines a portion of the model;
• storing, in association with each of the object descriptions, an ordered stack of modifiers, in which each of the modifiers defines a successive modification to an appearance of the graphical model;
• displaying the graphical model by successively applying each of the modifiers within one of the object descriptions according to the order of the stack;
• receiving user input that defines a changed value for a first one of the modifiers;
• and
• displaying a first modified graphical model based on the changed value, without undoing the successive modifications that are defined by the modifiers that are ordered in the stack after the first one of the modifiers.

A computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions for facilitating modification of a graphical model that is displayed by a graphical modeling system on a graphical display device, the one or more sequences of one or more instructions including instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:

• storing a plurality of object descriptions in a memory device, wherein each object description defines a portion of the model;
• storing, in association with each of the object descriptions, an ordered stack of modifiers, in which each of the modifiers defines a successive modification to an appearance of the graphical model;
• displaying the graphical model by successively applying each of the modifiers within one of the object descriptions according to the order of the stack;
• receiving user input that defines a changed value for a first one of the modifiers;
• and
• displaying a first modified graphical model based on the changed value, without undoing the successive modifications that are defined by the modifiers that are ordered in the stack after the first one of the modifiers.

A computer-readable medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions for displaying 3D modeling and animation information, the one or more sequences of one or more instructions including instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:

• accessing a description of a 3D model, said 3D model including a set of objects defining said 3D model;
• displaying a hierarchic representation of said description;
• and
• displaying one or more graphical representations of modifiers of the objects that affect appearances of the objects in world space coordinates, in which each graphical representation indicates how the appearance of each corresponding object is animated over time.