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KIST to Transfer Cutting-edge Motion Capture Technology (2018.09.21)
- Date : 2018-10-31
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KIST to Transfer Cutting-edge Motion Capture Technology
On September 20th, the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) and the Moiin Corporation signed a 300-million-KRW technology transfer agreement on licensing and research cooperation for a new optical fiber-based motion capture system to more accurately replicate physical movements in virtual reality.
With support from Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT, Dr. Jinseok Kim of KIST’s Center of Human-centered Interaction for Coexistence led his team in developing this new technology, resulting in a wearable, optical fiber-based motion capture system that uses fiber Bragg gratings (FBG)* to accurately measure 3D shapes in real time. And by combining various specialized FBG sensors, such as high curvature angle sensors, 3D shape sensors, and twist sensors, human movements can be recorded with a degree of precision previously unachievable.
* FBG: This type of sensor has an optical fiber core photo-inscribed by laser and is mostly used for measuring temperature changes and the twisting or deformation of buildings and aircraft wings.
Mainly used for games, movies, and cutting-edge medical purposes, the motion capture industry is currently experiencing annual growth of about 10%. Since the technology KIST agreed to transfer lacks the environmental/spatial constraints generally associated with motion capture, it is well-suited to accurately record precise physical movements (all the way down to individual joints in the hand), making it the first such technology to overcome the typical limitations of replicating physical motion in VR.
Dr. Kim expects this technology to reduce the “immersion gap” between users and their virtual environments, believing that research collaboration with Moiin will result in new technological breakthroughs.
On their end, Moiin CEO Ok Jae Yoon confirmed that the company has been hard at work on simulation technologies, claiming that it will continue to lead Korea’s VR market through collaboration with KIST.
In addition to the technology transfer, KIST and Moiin plan to cooperate on the development of a miniaturized, multichannel optical interrogator for further pushing the boundaries of motion capture. They also intend to introduce this kind of technology to the medical, sports, and robotics industries.