Organic Motion’s Motion Capture System Inspires Research Into The Science Of Dance

June 13, 2011 - PRLog -- NEW YORK – June 14, 2011 - Organic Motion, a New York based leading computer vision company, announced today that its Stage markerless motion capture system will be used to track and record the movements of hundreds of dancers as part of a massive public science experiment.
Bang Goes the Theory, the BBC’s highly acclaimed reality science TV show, will collect motion data from hundreds of volunteer dancers at open air science festivals throughout the UK over the coming months.  Each individual dancer’s movements will be mapped in real-time to a gender-neutral avatar to prevent any physical attractiveness bias.  The public will later vote via the internet to select which of the dancing avatars has the ‘best moves’.  Researchers at the University of Northumbria will compare the favored moves with a rigorous biomechanical analysis of the dancers’ 3D motion data.
This experiment is only feasible by utilizing the world’s first full 3D precise markerless motion capture system - Organic Motion’s Stage. Unlike traditional motion capture, which requires a subject to wear a special tracking suit or markers, Stage tracks people wearing their regular clothing, without any attached devices. This enables anyone to effortlessly jump in and instantly become an avatar, making Stage uniquely suited for this type of large-scale live public event.  At the first science festival, held in Edinburgh, Scotland on April 14-15th, Stage captured the moves of a large number of people, far surpassing the expectations of the researchers who developed the science behind the dance project.   The event was operated by Inition, distributors of Stage in the UK.
The University of Northumbria’s School of Life Sciences is set to analyze the data collected as part of a larger study http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/browse/ne/uninews/maledance. The motion data from Stage has been integrated with leading biomechanics analysis software The MotionMonitor, from Innovative Sports Training. The team at University of Northumbria will analyze the dance motion data according to voters’ preferences to scientifically identify the kinematic patterns that make dancers attractive.
“This event presents a great opportunity to showcase the power of people engaging with highly advanced technology that completely removes interface barriers and relies solely on human motion,” said Andrew Tschesnok, CEO, Organic Motion. “By removing these constraints a completely natural experience can generate robust scientific data for many purposes.”
BBC One plans to air the Dance Experiment and its results in the Fall line-up on its popular Bang Goes the Theory show.
About Organic Motion, Inc.
Organic Motion is a leading computer vision software company and maker of highly advanced markerless motion capture systems. The company’s Stage and BioStage systems serve a large number of leading global customers and enable applications ranging from entertainment to education, public events to life sciences. Organic Motion received the 2009 Wall Street Journal Innovation Award for Computer Systems.  Visit Organic Motion online at www.organicmotion.com.
About Inition
Inition is a unique company that sells and develops a wide range of hardware and software for motion capture, stereo filming and display, 3D printing and scanning, augmented and virtual reality and mass interactive games. The company provides equipment and services for nearly all UK and EU universities, blue-chip companies, military firms, and high-end brands with their hands on approach to creating special installations and systems. Learn more about Inition at http://www.inition.co.uk.
About Innovative Sports Training
The MotionMontior® is a totally integrated 3D acquisition, analysis and visualization system for use in clinical, biomechanical, neuro-control, and sports medicine applications involving the analysis of complex human motion. Worldwide clients include university research centers who appreciate The MotionMonitor’s support for the broadest range of biomechanics related hardware. Complete details on the company and its products can be found at http://www.innsport.com.



Contacts:
Cecilia Panozzo
VP Marketing, Organic Motion
(212) 776-6100, Ext. 120
cecilia@organicmotion.com

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Organic Motion is a leading computer vision software company and maker of highly advanced markerless motion capture systems. The company’s systems enable applications ranging from entertainment to education, public events to life sciences.