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Overview

The Set Parent action makes a scene object or one of its children a child of another scene object. Once attached, the object follows its new parent’s movement, rotation, and scale. Use it to attach a component to an assembly or make several parts move together. Add this action to a step’s On Entry or On Exit list, or to a transition’s Actions list when the attachment should happen after a learner interaction. Both objects must be available when the action runs.

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When to Use

  • Assembly: attach a placed component to the assembly it belongs to.
  • Following behavior: make an object move, rotate, and scale with another object.
  • Grouping: attach several parts to an existing assembly frame or container.
  • Relative positioning: place a part at a specified position and orientation relative to its new parent.

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Parameters

With New Parent selected and Maintain World Position unchecked, expand Transform (in parent space) to set the placement explicitly. Turning Maintain World Position from checked to unchecked resets Position and Rotation to (0, 0, 0) and Scale to (1, 1, 1). Review these values before saving.

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Key Behavior

  • Immediate attachment: The selected object becomes a child of the new parent when the action runs.
  • Keep the current placement: Check Maintain World Position when the object is already positioned correctly. Its local transform is recalculated to preserve its world position, rotation, and scale; saved local transform values are ignored for this action.
  • Set a new placement: Uncheck Maintain World Position and enter Position, Rotation, and Scale to place the object relative to its new parent. The parent’s rotation and scale affect how these values appear in the scene.
  • Follow later changes: After attachment, the object follows subsequent movement, rotation, and scaling of its new parent.
  • Reparent again: To make an object follow a different scene object later, run Set Parent again with that object selected as New Parent.
Use Transform Object to animate movement before attachment. Enable Wait Until Complete on that transformation when Set Parent must run after the movement finishes.

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Practical Examples

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Attach a Component After Placement

Scenario: The trainee moves component_a into its assembly position. Once placed, the component should stay attached when assembly_base moves.
1

Configure the placement interaction

Load a scene containing component_a and assembly_base. Configure a Move event on the placement transition for component_a, with its destination at the intended assembly position.
2

Attach the placed component

In that transition’s Actions list, add Set Parent:
  • Child Object: component_a
  • New Parent: assembly_base
  • Maintain World Position: checked
3

Verify the result

Complete the placement in training playback. The component keeps its world position, rotation, and scale when attached. A later transformation of assembly_base also moves the component.

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Place a Component at a Parent Offset

Scenario: Selecting a component installs it immediately at a mounting point on an assembly.
1

Configure the selection

With component_a and assembly_base loaded, create a transition with a Tap event targeting component_a.
2

Configure the attachment

In the transition’s Actions list, add Set Parent:
  • Child Object: component_a
  • New Parent: assembly_base
  • Maintain World Position: unchecked
Expand Transform (in parent space) and enter:
  • Position: (1, 0.5, 0)
  • Rotation: (0, 0, 0)
  • Scale: (1, 1, 1)
3

Check the mounting position

Tapping the component attaches it at the configured local transform. These example values place it along the assembly’s local X and Y axes; adjust them to match the model’s mounting point. To use a specific child object as the mounting reference, select that child under New Parent.

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Animate a Component Before Attachment

Scenario: Tapping a component moves it into place over 1.5 seconds, then attaches it to the assembly.
1

Configure the animated movement

Create a Tap transition targeting component_a. In its Actions list, add Transform Object:
  • Target Object: component_a
  • Reference Object: assembly_base
  • Position: (1, 0.5, 0)
  • Rotation: (0, 0, 0)
  • Scale: (1, 1, 1)
  • Transform Mode: Linear Interpolation
  • Duration (ms): 1500
  • Use Spline Path: unchecked
  • Reparent to Reference: unchecked
  • Wait Until Complete: checked
2

Attach after the movement finishes

Add Set Parent immediately after Transform Object in the same Actions list:
  • Child Object: component_a
  • New Parent: assembly_base
  • Maintain World Position: checked
3

Verify the sequence

The component finishes moving before Set Parent runs. The attachment preserves its final placement, and subsequent assembly movement carries the component with it.

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Choosing Maintain World Position

Suppose a tool is at world position (5, 2, 0) and the new parent, workbench, is at (10, 1, 0). For this example, both the current parent and workbench have no rotation and world scale (1, 1, 1).
Check Maintain World Position to attach an object where it already is. Uncheck it and configure the local transform to place the object at a mounting point on its new parent.
Set Parent preserves the object’s materials. Its placement and scale depend on Maintain World Position, the configured local transform, and the new parent’s transform.
An object cannot be its own parent or be parented under one of its descendants. Select a separate object or a suitable ancestor as New Parent.