PR: OptiTrack Enables Immersive VR at New Yorks New Museum

OptiTrack motion capture technology is being used by artist Daniel Steegmann Mangran in collaboration with ScanLAB Projects to fully immerse viewers into Phantom, one of the first virtual reality installations utilizing Oculus Devkit2 to be presented at an art museum in New York City. The New Museums 2015 Triennial exhibition, titled Surround Audience, features work from early-career artists around the world, and explores the impact of an increasingly connected world on personal identity and the role and evolution of art. Mangran s installation combines OptiTrack motion capture technology and Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) headsets to transport museum-goers to the rapidly disappearing rainforest in Brazil.

Mangran worked with ScanLAB Projects to produce detailed 3D scans of the Mata Atl ntica rainforest, which visitors can explore in startling detail as OptiTrack tracked their movement throughout the exhibition space. By supplementing the Oculus Rift with motion capture, the installation can be extended well beyond its native capacities, offering a far more immersive viewing.

Even more important than the visual aspect of this installation is the physical aspect, so incorporating movement and physical cues was a priority for me, explained Mangran . The physical 3D tracking provided by OptiTrack allows visitors to move through branches, crouch down and feel the rainforest floor, and really feel as though they are present in and interacting with this wondrous world. Motion capture enabled the most realistic rendering possible, based on the body's movements in relation to environmental data from the rainforest scans.

We chose OptiTrack because the Prime 13W's performance and discreet form make it perfect for maximizing compact VR setups while creating a seamless experience; users were almost totally unaware of the technologies active behind the scenes, said William Trossell, co-founder, ScanLAB Projects. OptiTrack continued to perform flawlessly once we explored implementation. Their simple and open developer tools hugely cut down on development and integration time, which enabled ScanLAB Projects to quickly prototype ideas and focus on creating a captivating experience rather than invest time resolving technical hurdles.

Often virtual reality strives to deliver presence through overpowering visuals; in its eerie stillness, Phantom demonstrates the immersion that can be created by instead elevating VR with highly responsive, 1:1 motion tracking, commented Seth Steiling, Marketing Director, OptiTrack. As a result, their work remains incredibly engrossing, while the technology that enables it recedes into the user's periphery.

For more information on OptiTrack products and pricing, please visit www.optitrack.com . For more information on the 2015 New Museum Triennial visit www.newmuseum.org .

About OptiTrack

OptiTrack creates the highest performing 3D tracking hardware and software available today and has become the largest motion capture provider in the world. By delivering the best 3D precision, simpler real time workflows, on-site manufacturing enabling the industry's lowest pricing, and free and open developer access, it has become the favorite of industry leaders in game and film production, university education and research, engineering, life science, sports performance and injury prevention, and many others.

The OptiTrack product line includes motion capture software and high-speed tracking cameras, contract engineering services, the GEARS golf training and club fitting solution, and affiliate commercial tracking products TrackIR and SmartNav.

Entertainment customers include: Activision, Electronic Arts, 343 Industries, US Army Game, Cloud Imperium, Square Enix, Ready at Dawn, TV Globo, NetherRealm, Ubisoft, Rockstar Games, Crytek, Remedy, Game On Audio, The Moving Picture Company, Animatrik Film Design, and other top studios and developers around the world. Engineering customers include: Boeing, KMel Robotics, NASA, Oculus VR, Lockheed Martin, John Deere, Mechdyne, Under Armour, Stanford University, Duke University, Laser Shot, Mitsubishi, and Dassault Systems.

About the New Museum

The New Museum is the only museum in New York City exclusively devoted to contemporary art. Found ed in 1977, the New Museum is a center for exhibitions, information, and documentation about living art ists from around the world. From its beginnings as a one-room office on Hudson Street to the inauguration of its first freestanding building on the Bowery designed by SANAA in 2007, the New Museum continues to be a place of experimentation and a hub of new art and new ideas. More info: newmuseum.org.

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