August 11, 2008

PhaseSpace Captures Audience

PhaseSpace, maker of optical motion-capture systems and technology, enables attendees to try out a system in their motion capture studio. Suited-up attendees can perform and see the results in real time with PhaseSpace's systems. They can then take their moves home on a DVD. Phasespace is exhibiting across from the Autodesk booth in the Studio on the exhibition floor. The 24-camera motion-capture studio in PhaseSpace's booth is identical to ones in major video game design and research labs around the country. Attendees can sign up for time slots where they can experience the latest in mocap technology.

As the attendees move their bodies each nuance is sent to an ordinary PC with PhaseSpace's software. On this PC, in real time, a variety of computer animated characters--from rhinos in their underwear to characters running native in the Unreal 3 engine--mirror every move. The attendees' motions will be seamlessly transferred. The raw data and the animated avatar will be then be given to the attendee on a disk for them to use later. If patrons went to a Hollywood studio to get this same disk, it would cost upwards of $1000 per minute per character.
 
The PhaseSpace system uses active LED markers which blink a unique ID for each marker. This allows the computer to do cleanup that older systems required doing with sophisticated software or by painstaking hand labor. The Impulse system is real time, and doesn't require the smoothing and filtering that older technologies need.