grant opportunities[collaborative spaces]
a Digital Media Commons program to fund student research on the use of rich media in collaborative learning
Cave Capture: An Immersive Motion Sketch Pad
Project Description
We see the future of VR technology as a synthesis of content exhibition with content creation. Virtual environments such as the CAVE can function as canvases for media-rich, creative expressions. Until now, the missing component in this fusion has been motion. Simple head and wand position tracking have become commonplace, but the CAVE’s newly acquired motion capture system allows for tracking the location of the entire body. The ability to capture kinesthetic expression with such depth and precision of detail, using this new technology, is yet untapped. The objective of our project is to develop and explore a method of motion content creation in the CAVE based upon motion capture. An actor in the CAVE wearing motion capture equipment will be subject to content exhibition from the CAVE’s computers. During this time, the actor will be mapped to an avatar in the virtual environment through the motion capture equipment. The avatar’s motions will not only influence the dynamic state of the virtual environment - they will also be recorded for later replay. If desired, a virtual environment with many avatars could be constructed. We envision a human actor recording his motions onto a specific avatar and then repeating the process to record motions for other avatars. In this method, a CG animation can be constructed to express a narrative, bypassing many of the inherent complexities in constructing 3D animations.
Our collaborative team views the CAVE and motion capture equipment as a technology with the potential for use as a medium for creative expression. Our goal in this project is to study how people can use the technology at hand to create content - not to explicitly create new technology. In this pursuit we hope to design a system which uses existing technology (CAVE projection and motion capture) to create and modify content in a virtual world.
Team Members
Jim McCann, Undergraduate, Computer Science and Math
Michael Samples, Undergraduate, Computer Science and Math
Ronit Slyper, Undergraduate, Computer Science and Math
Advisor: Christian Matjias, Assistant Professor, Department of Dance
Archived Resources
GROCS is a program of the Digital Media Commons and is sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Contact grocs.info@umich.edu