Vicon, a major provider of computer vision and motion capturing (mocap) technologies, revealed it had struck a partnership with visual effects (VFX) solution provider Artanim.
Set to debut at the SIGGRAPH 2023 from 8 to 10 August, the partnership will see the former supply the latter with its markerless mocap technologies.
At SIGGRAPH, Artanim, Dreamscape Immersive’s research division, will unveil its machine learning (ML)-capable markerless technologies.
The announcement follows three years of research and development (R&D) in ML and artificial intelligence (AI) integration.
Vicon’s latest use case will leverage its mocap systems to build next-generational infrastructure for markerless mocap experiences. The new solution will allow users to deepen immersion with less gear and freedom of movement and exploration.
Vicon’s SIGGRAPH appearance will feature a six-person, markerless, multi-modal real-time demonstration. Dreamscape Immersive will unveil its VR-based immersive experience, “The Clockwork Forest,” with content and collaboration from Swiss luxury horology manufacturer Audemars Piguet.
The Oxford, UK-based company will also launch its ‘Pioneer Programme’ to invite mocap influencers, end users, technology partners, and evangelists.
Comments on SIGGRAPH Dreamscape Collaboration
Imogen Moorhouse, Chief Executive, Vicon, said the big reveal marked “the beginning of a new era for motion capture.”
Explaining further, he said,
“The ability to capture motion without markers, while maintaining industry leading accuracy and precision, is an incredibly complex feat. After an initial research phase, we have focussed on developing the world class markerless capture algorithms, robust real time tracking, labelling, and solving needed to make this innovation a reality”
Additionally, Vicon’s SIGGRAPH demo would signal the company’s “first step towards future product launches,” Moorhouse concluded.
Aaron Grosky, President and Chief Operating Officer, Dreamscape, stated that his company had “anxiously” anticipated when markerless technologies could move from concept to product.
Speaking further, he explained that his collaboration with Vicon was a “no-brainer” as it delivered “the highest standards” of mocap technology.
Additionally, Sylvain Chagué, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Artanim and Dreamscape, outlined how the solution provided optimal “virtual body ownership and immersion in VR.”
It achieved this with accurate tracking and “very low latency” technologies with “substantial” R&D efforts. For the company, it needed to evaluate the performance of ML tracking algorithms, adjust multi-modal tracking solutions, and implement the markerless mocap and VR headset tracking tools.
Mark Finch, Chief Technology Officer, Vicon, has taken over teams tasked with innovating the markerless mocap system.
In a statement, Finch urged innovators in the mocap space to boost collaboration “with all actors, in all relevant sectors.” He noted that the technology was not “just about Vicon,” but the entire mocap industry.
Sandbox VR-VICON Partnership
The news comes after Sandbox VR, a world-class provider of immersive gaming experiences, teamed up with Vicon in October last year. Sandbox will bring to the premier centre its next-level motion-capturing camera systems, bespoke hardware, full-body trackers, and haptic feedback systems.
With Vicon, the company launched a gaming experience for attendees using its free-roaming, sandboxed VR environment. Vicon’s location-based virtual reality (LBVR) technologies provide the facility with seamless, immersive experiences at over 26 locations.
The partnership comes after the company received $37 million USD in Series B funding from Andreessen Horowitz in 2021.
At the time, Steve Zhao, Sandbox VR’s Chief Executive, said Vicon’s support for its immersive entertainment technologies had been “incredible.”
At the time, Moorhouse forcasted the LBVR industry to top $20 billion in up to six years.
His comments come after Vicon unveiled its Valkyrie motion-capturing (mocap) system at last year’s SIGGRAPH event. Feautring its Origin technology complete with strobeless 7-megapixel camera resolutions at 380 frames per second, the unprecedented technological solution offers attendees massive levels of immersion for clients.
Hammerson Bullring and Grand Central Birmingham Debut
Finally, additional updates come after Hamerson’s Bullring & Grand Central in Birmingham recently revealed it had opened the United Kingdom’s largest Sandbox VR site outside of London.
Following the successful launch of its Holborn location in Central London, Sandbox VR opened doors to its largest venue in the world in the heart of the UK, with the huge 13,000 square-foot venue featuring Vicon’s technologies.
The news comes as Hammerson’s outlines its strategy to attract the world’s top companies, venues, and brands to Birmingham. Hammerson’s marketing strategy aims to entice visitors to the UK’s second-largest urban metropolis.
By opening the massive entertainment centre, Birmingham hopes to boost attractions across the city as it rapidly expands to compete with other major metropolitan regions like Manchester, Leeds, and London.
Toby Tait, Director of Asset Management, Hamerson, explained that the West Midlands held a “long history of technological innovations.”
He added:
“It’s fitting that Sandbox VR has chosen Birmingham’s Grand Central as the destination to take this pioneering experience even further. Pushing the boundaries of leisure and active entertainment, the launch of Sandbox VR’s largest site and first outside of the capital reinforces our commitment to diversifying and repositioning the destination”
Jake Wilmot-Sitwell, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Sandbox VR UK & Ireland, added that it “could not wish for a better location to launch our largest site and first location outside of London.”
He concluded: “This Grand Central site is our biggest investment yet and we are delighted to have opened our doors within the West Midlands’ best-connected retail and leisure destination.”
With Vicon and Sandbox VR, the markerless mocap industry aims to continue building entertainment and tourism solutions. Additionally, Vicon’s work with Dreamscape at SIGGRAPH will later expand to the life sciences and other related use cases, leading to a new age of immersive learning.
Furthermore, facilitating Sandbox VR’s vision of XR entertainment is set to rapidly increase adoption rates of the technologies for both clients and consumers.
