The majority of my acquaintances considers that technology Motion Capture was born together with Mortal Kombat. What exactly Acclaim to the first was come to mind by idea to stick round actors wires and to force to dance in front of chambers, and the finished shooting material to translate then in a digital form and to insert into game. You too so thought, isn’t that so? No, children, all not so (copyright). And, if you for a long time play computer games most likely recollect magnificent файтинг firms Acclaim - Mortal Kombat. In Mortal Kombat’е Motion Capture for the first time has come to games - and at the technology is long and an interesting story, computers in which, by the way, присутсвуют it is far not from first days.
In the mid-seventies Walt Disney’s studio, for realistic animation of human characters began to use the technics named ротоскопия. Animators took fragments of a film and on the special machine tool перерисовывали from real actors of a figure of heroes of the future cartoon film. Represent, how many on it left forces and time? Then yet there were no enough powerful computers and artists had to draw each shot in manual (that is remarkable, in Soviet мультипликате for a designation of this process the term "eclair" was used - so the trophy German machine tool ротоскопии, got in the inheritance from the Germans mounting on it a propaganda newsreel) was called. So on light there was the very first "manual" Motion Capture.
In the beginning of 80 physicians at the American institutes began to apply computers to research of a human body. That Kalvert, the professor кинезиологии and computer sciences has suggested to use potentiometers, attaching them to various joints on a human body. The computer measured the data of devices and showed moving skeleton of the person on the screen. Калверт worked the invention for evident studying of kinematics of a human body, defects мускулатурной systems, and also for… Pas de deux demonstrations in choreographic classes.
A bit later, in 1982-83, the computer installations tracing movements of the person, began to use in the computer drawing. The first complexes Motion Capture were optical. The principle of their work was the following: on a body of the actor in places of joints and joints small bulbs or usual светоотражающие elements (like bicycle катафот) then figure movements acted in film on the chamber fastened. For reception of the volume image of the actor removed two chambers, under different corners. Combining the co-ordinates of the same bulb received from two chambers, it was possible to calculate precisely enough a point site in space. Such optical systems were rather slow and inexact. Besides, the finished shooting material demanded additional processing and a filtration.
In 1988 in bowels Silicon Graphics have thought up original enough way to operate a mimicry of the computer person, using for this purpose a puppet. So there was "Mike-stirring-head" - the computer character, capable to move lips, to blink eyes and to twirl by a nose. And it coped the special device which is put on fingers. Subsequently SGI has improved "Mike" and has created the present computer little man, capable to jerk legs, handles, and everything that only it can be jerked. The special device executed in the form of a mechanical hand, fastening to a hand human (to see, one fingers, was already insufficiently) operated it.
Eventually technologies Motion Capture were improved, became more convenient and more exact. Instead of light-emitting diodes began to use a magnetic field (the actor pasted over with small metal detectors), and even have invented special suits "exoskeleton", allowing to trace even the slightest movements of muscles.
In the nineties Motion Capture began to use not only in the computer industry. On the American TV during three and a half years there was children’s transfer Canaille Peluche. The Protagonist - kind reduction the Floor-mat - communicated with various actors and the invited visitors (to understand how it looked, recollect a film "Who has substituted Roger’s rabbit"). A floor-mat the whole command "the puppeteer" created, operating movements of the computer character using systems Motion Capture. On manufacture of seven-minute transfer left about six-eight business hours.
In 1992 company SimGraphics has developed system of tracking and processing of a mimicry of a human face. The first prototype has been shown at an exhibition of video of games where all favourite hero Mario communicated with public from the computer screen, answered questions, laughed and built eyes. Naturally all movements of a physiognomy of Mario the actor sitting at the screen operated. The special glove of "puppeteer" transforming movements of the actor in movements of a figure on the screen became the following invention SimGraphics.
And then… Then, in 1993 has appeared Mortal Kombat. Process Motion Capture carried out with use of the optical technology, six various chambers.
Now Motion Capture use all who feel like it. Three-dimensional файтинги a-lja Tekken, sexy movements попки a-lja Lara Kroft, a realistic facial expression a-lja Half-Life - all it, and is much another, - Motion Capture. The technology which has connected two greatest inventions of mankind - cinema and figure. And still to us, people to eat than be proud.
