Configure a Passive Rigid Body in Blender

In Blender, a passive rigid body acts as an unyielding physical obstacle that influences active physics objects without being moved by simulation forces like gravity or collisions. This guide explains how to set up an object as a passive rigid body, configure its collision shapes, adjust surface response properties like friction and bounciness, and handle animated obstacles.

Step 1: Select the Object

In the 3D Viewport, click to select the mesh object you want to designate as a static or immovable obstacle (such as a floor, wall, or container).

Step 2: Enable Rigid Body Physics

  1. Open the Physics Properties tab in the Properties panel on the right side of the interface (represented by a bouncing ball icon).
  2. Click the Rigid Body button to apply physics to the selected object.

Step 3: Set Rigid Body Type to Passive

  1. Under the Rigid Body panel, locate the Type dropdown menu.
  2. Change the type from Active to Passive.

Once set to Passive, the object will stay fixed in place and will not fall under gravity, but active rigid bodies will collide with it.

Step 4: Choose the Correct Collision Shape

Under the Collisions section, set the Shape according to your object's geometry:

  • Convex Hull: The default and most performance-efficient shape. Suitable for simple objects without hollows or cavities.
  • Mesh: Required for concave or complex geometry (such as bowls, hollow rooms, or uneven terrain) so that active objects can enter concave areas.
  • Box / Sphere / Cylinder / Capsule: Highly optimized primitives recommended if the object closely matches these basic shapes.

Step 5: Adjust Surface Response

Fine-tune how other objects interact with the passive surface:

  • Friction: Controls how easily active objects slide across the surface. Higher values reduce sliding.
  • Bounciness: Controls how much energy active objects retain when hitting the surface. Set higher for elastic surfaces like rubber and lower for rigid surfaces like concrete.

Step 6: Enable Animation (Optional)

If you want to keyframe the passive object's movement (e.g., a swinging bat, a moving elevator, or a rotating obstacle):

  1. In the Rigid Body panel, locate the Settings sub-panel.
  2. Check the Animated checkbox.
  3. Keyframe the object's transform properties as needed. Active rigid bodies will now react dynamically to the moving passive object.