Which is more appropriate for muscle systems: bone-based rigging or joint-based rigging?

I think the human skeleton is more like bone-based rigging, but KineFX, which houdini is focusing on, is joint-based rigging.

When I previously asked, I was told that the muscle system should be attached to the bone geometry, and the bone geometry should be rigged to the bones.

Additionally, in the muscle tutorial, the dinosaur legs are also made with bone-based rigging.

I think you're overthinking this. KineFX is perfectly fine to drive bone geometries.

Muscles are techinically driven by Vellum. It's independent to "rigging". You use KineFX to drive bone geometries (not "bone" in rigging context) and then use bone geometries to drive your Vellum muscles.

it doesn't matter, both of them are just hierarchy of transforms, the difference is that bones have length and therefore define a special type of parent space which is offset from it's root

since nowadays it's more convenient to use KineFX to build or import skeleton you are better off with joint based rig

raincole
I think you're overthinking this. KineFX is perfectly fine to drive bone geometries.

Muscles are techinically driven by Vellum. It's independent to "rigging". You use KineFX to drive bone geometries (not "bone" in rigging context) and then use bone geometries to drive your Vellum muscles.

“KineFX is perfectly fine to drive bone geometries.”
That's really nice.
Thanks for the clear answer!

tamte
it doesn't matter, both of them are just hierarchy of transforms, the difference is that bones have length and therefore define a special type of parent space which is offset from it's root

since nowadays it's more convenient to use KineFX to build or import skeleton you are better off with joint based rig

Thanks for the reply!
Now I can use KineFX without hesitation.