Projects > Motion Capture

A sample output frame from the software developed to detect the location of the head and hands.

For the spring 2004 Computer Vision class, David O'Neill and Luke Ehresman developed a realtime motion capture and tracking system. An inexpensive USB webcam was used to capture the video which was then fed into the motion capture program. A person could then stand in front of the camera and move around and the software would detect the location of the head and hands. This movement was captured in real time and then used to animate a stick figure on the computer screen.

The software also supported dynamic recalibration allowing one person to walk in front of the camera, make a few motions and then walk away. Another person could then walk in front of the camera and the software would correctly adjust itself to the new person and identify the new locations of the person's head and hands.