Cartesian Mimic with Pan Bars¶

[BOTH] The MRMC Mimic Handwheels can drive a Flair rig in Cartesian (carts) mode, giving the operator pan/tilt-style physical control of the camera path in world space — not just axis-by-axis movement. This is distinct from the simpler Axis Mimic mode and requires specific configuration steps.

Experienced operators only

Cartesian Mimic disables the normal Cartesian control limits when configured for free movement. The rig can run into mechanical singularities without warning in this mode. Understand singularity points for your rig before using this feature live.

Prerequisites¶

MRMC Mimic Handwheels connected and communicating with Flair.
Rig must support Cartesian control (Bolt Pan/Tilt, Bolt on Track, or similar).
Cartesian (carts) mode must be configured in Flair.

Setup Steps¶

1. Clear any axis mimic assignment¶

Ensure there is no axis assigned in the numeric Mimic display. An axis mimic assignment at the same time as a carts mimic assignment will cause a conflict.

"You need to ensure that there is no axis assigned in the numeric Mimic display, as this will confuse matters." — @peter

2. Set Target Tracking mode¶

Set the correct Target Tracking mode for your rig. For a Bolt Pan/Tilt setup without a separate camera head, use Pan/Tilt TT (pan/tilt target tracking).

"Try with pan/tilt TT." — @fabrizio

3. Set Roll mode¶

Set Roll Level or Roll Up as appropriate for your shoot. This must be set before entering Cartesian Mimic.

4. Assign handwheel inputs in Cartesian Mimic¶

In the Cartesian Mimic settings, assign the handwheel inputs to either:

Pan and Tilt (if using a rig with a physical pan/tilt head), or
Target Y and Target Z — which is what the handwheels are actually driving in a non-locked carts system.

"In your carts Mimic set the handwheel inputs to run either pan and Tilt, or if not run Target Y and Target Z as that is actually what they are doing in a Non-Locked Carts system." — @peter

5. Control limits¶

Cart.Control Limits must typically be off for Handwheel Pan Bar operation in full carts movement mode. When limits are on, the operator cannot move the rig in certain carts modes.

Singularity risk with limits off

With Cart.Control Limits off, the software will not check for singularities. The operator must be aware of the rig's singularity positions (e.g. Tilt 90°, Rotate 90°). Approaching or crossing a singularity with limits off can cause the robot to make an uncontrolled, violent corrective movement.

If you only want to add to a pre-programmed move in pan/tilt target tracking, you do not need to switch limits off.

6. Enter Mimic Live or Mimic Learn¶

Go to Mimic Live (for live control) or Mimic Learn (to record the handwheel moves into a Flair move).

Setting up Jitter and Axis Parameters¶

The Cartesian pan and tilt axes have their own axis setup. Go to Axis Setup for the carts pan/tilt axes to adjust jitter settings and other axis-specific parameters separately from the physical axes.

Locking Up / Axes Frozen¶

If the rig locks and you cannot move any Cartesian axis (even with the mouse), the cause is typically the Cartesian soft limits triggering. To recover:

Turn off Cart.Control Limits (if safe to do so), or
Restart Flair.

"This is due to the soft limits in carts somehow locking up. The moment you turn them off (which you don't want to do) you can move it again. But you need to restart Flair for it to work again." — @julian

FBX Export with Pan/Tilt Active¶

When saving a Cartesian Mimic move back to FBX format, the target/aim information may be partially lost if Pan/Tilt axes are active. If this occurs, send a full Flair bug report (via Flair Reports) including the export file and move details.

Tutorial Videos¶

MRMC published three tutorial videos on this topic: "Set up Cartesian Mimic", "Mimic – Add Move", and "Singularity Example". Search the MRMC YouTube channel for these titles.

Source: Setting up MRMC Mimic Handwheels for Cartesian Mimic on a Bolt Pan/Tilt — talk.mrmoco.com