Motion Capture capabilities at CDI are emerging to include high-resolution, high-speed, and real-time data acquisition systems and associated software techniques, for applications in art, science, health care and education. Motion capture is the process by which movement is recorded and analyzed for further use via digital techniques. Originally developed for scientific and military applications, the methods are now becoming more accessible and more broadly useful. Many people are becoming especially interested in related capabilities of animation and data visualization. Some of the data analysis methods draw from the entertainment industry and traditional animation techniques such as rotoscoping. Nowadays a multitude of techniques related to motion capture bring new potentials to music and dance performance, athletics, sign language, gesture recognition, rehabilitation and medicine, biomechanics, special effects for live-action films, computer animation, engineering and ergonomics. Specific techniques vary depending on the application, but in general we can capture movement through the placement of sensors or markers on a moving subject. For some applications we may include force data from impacts on special plates installed in a floor bed. Specialized software then records the angles, velocities, accelerations and impulses of relevant components, providing an accurate digital representation of the movement. When translated with sensitivity and skill, the data can result in spectacular dynamic imagery. |
Sequential images captured via high resolution high frame rate video:
UNCSA dancer with location markers:
Progression of data from visual to wire frame:
Data extraction and analysis derived from motion capture techniques:
Motion capture on location:
What is Motion Capture? Methods for MoCap Applications for MoCap CDI experiments with MoCap We're working with collaborators in higher ed and the broader community to develop workflows for capturing, analyzing, interpreting and visualizing motion data. Watch this site as dynamic imagery, workshops and other aspects of CDI's MoCap capability continue to emerge. High Speed Motion Capture Workshop CDI experimented with Super Bowl techniques for high-speed motion capture. Funding for the Spring 2010 MoCap/DataViz effort was provided by the Piedmont Triad Partnership through a grant awarded under Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) as implemented by the U.S. Department of Labor. |