Digitize your dog into a computer game

Date:
June 16, 2020
Source:
University of Bath
Summary:
Researchers have developed motion capture technology that enables
you to digitize your dog without a motion capture suit and using
only one camera.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Researchers from the University of Bath have developed motion capture technology that enables you to digitise your dog without a motion capture
suit and using only one camera.


==========================================================================
The software could be used for a wide range of purposes, from helping
vets diagnose lameness and monitoring recovery of their canine patients,
to entertainment applications such as making it easier to put digital representations of dogs into movies and video games.

Motion capture technology is widely used in the entertainment industry,
where actors wear a suit dotted with white markers which are then
precisely tracked in 3D space by multiple cameras taking images from
different angles. Movement data can then be transferred onto a digital character for use in films or computer games.

Similar technology is also used by biomechanics experts to track the
movement of elite athletes during training, or to monitor patients' rehabilitation from injuries. However, these technologies -- particularly
when applying them to animals -- require expensive equipment and dozens
of markers to be attached.

Computer scientists from CAMERA, the University of Bath's motion capture research centre digitised the movement of 14 different breeds of dog,
from lanky lurchers to squat pugs, which were residents of the local
Bath Cats' and Dogs' Home (BCDH).

Wearing special doggie motion capture suits with markers, the dogs were
filmed under the supervision of their BCDH handlers doing a range of
movements as part of their enrichment activities.



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They used these data to create a computer model that can accurately
predict and replicate the poses of dogs when they're filmed without
wearing the motion capture suits. This model allows 3D digital information
for new dogs -- their shape and movement -- to be captured without markers
and expensive equipment, but instead using a single RGBD camera. Whereas
normal digital cameras record the red, green and blue (RGB) colour in
each pixel in the image, RGBD cameras also record the distance from the
camera for each pixel.

PhD researcher Sine'ad Kearney said: "This is the first time RGBD images
have been used to track the motion of dogs using a single camera, which
is much more affordable than traditional motion capture systems that
require multiple cameras.

"This technology allows us to study the movement of animals, which is
useful for applications such as detecting lameness in a dog and measuring
its recovery over time.

"For the entertainment industry, our research can help produce more
authentic movement of virtual animals in films and video games. Dog
owners could also use it to make a 3D digital representation of their
pet on their computer, which is a lot of fun!" The team presented
their research at one of the world's leading AI conferences, the CVPR
(Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition) conference on 17 &18 June.

The team has also started testing their method on computer-generated
images of other four-legged animals including horses, cats, lions and
gorillas, with some promising results. They aim in the future to extend
their animal dataset to make the results more accurate; they will also
be making the dataset available for non-commercial use by others.

Professor Darren Cosker, Director of CAMERA, said: "While there is a great
deal of research on automatic analysis of human motion without markers,
the animal kingdom is often overlooked.

"Our research is a step towards building accurate 3D models of animal
motion along with technologies that allow us to very easily measure
their movement.

This has many exciting applications across a range of areas -- from
veterinary science to video games."

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by University_of_Bath. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


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Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200616135741.htm

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