An Empirical Rig for Jaw Animation

In computer graphics the motion of the jaw is commonly modelled by updown and left-right rotation around a fixed pivot plus a forward backward translation, yielding a three dimensional rig that is highly suited for intuitive artistic control. The anatomical motion of the jaw is, however, much more complex since the joints that connect the jaw to the skull exhibit both rotational and translational components. In reality the jaw does not move in a three dimensional subspace but on a constrained manifold in si