When preparing animated molecular presentations, a common challenge researchers face is visualizing how atoms or molecules move across time. Just watching the animation may not give enough insight into the exact path atoms follow. This can be critical, especially when demonstrating docking processes, molecular assembly, or complex simulations.
The Record path animation in SAMSON provides a solution to this issue by allowing you to record atomic trajectories as they occur during your presentation. This creates a tangible track of motion, which can help with analysis, communication, and visual storytelling.
Why should you track atomic paths?
Whether you’re illustrating ligand binding, assembly sequences, or molecular interactions, having an explicit “trail” helps viewers follow atom movements more intuitively. It also enables backtracking, detecting unexpected motions, and highlighting complex behavior in structural biology or drug design workflows.
Let’s take a closer look at how to use the Record path animation in SAMSON effectively.
How to add the Record path animation
To start, simply double-click the Record path effect in the Animation panel within the Animator. A keyframe will be added at your current frame position. You can always move this keyframe later to match your animation structure.
One important note: Record path should be placed after the other animations that affect atomic locations (e.g., docking or simulation). SAMSON executes animations from top to bottom, so this order ensures that path recording captures the final transformed positions.
Track color cues
The path track uses visual colors to indicate capture status:
- Green segments indicate recorded atomic positions at that frame.
- Red segments show missing or invalid data—for example, when recording has not occurred or previous records got altered.
Tips for better performance and control
You can toggle path recording on or off to optimize performance. For instance, you might disable recording while refining your animation or once your full motion has been captured. To control this, use either:
- The Inspector interface
- Or right-click on the Record path track within the Animator and adjust Enable recording.
Disabled recording will visually darken the animation controller, so you can easily keep track of its state.
Exporting your path as a Path node
After playing your presentation and ensuring the entire Record path track is green, convert the track into a Path node. Here’s how:
- Click “Create path” in the Inspector pane, or
- Right-click the Record path animation in the Animator and select Create path.
The resulting Path node can then be used in other visualizations, or played back using the Play path or Play reverse path animations.
If you work with molecular motions regularly and present interactive content, the Record path feature will likely become a valuable part of your visualization toolset.
To learn more, visit the full documentation page: https://documentation.samson-connect.net/users/latest/animations/record-path/
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.