I recently found a great tutorial on created live-collision joints using Mayas in-built muscle system nodes. I thought this was a really clever solution as it is importantly real-time, meaning animators can see the output immediately, and it utilises nodes already existing within Maya.
To read up on how to create this awesome looking system, take a look here:
http://www.rihamtoulan.com/blog/2018/3/24/faking-collisions-with-joints-based-setup-8snd2
