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IKTRIX Impulse -
Off-the-shelf Solutions for Pre-visualisation & Motion Control
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Pre-visualisation not only allows for
more efficient productions but when combined with motion control
allows shots to be achieved that would simply be impossible
otherwise.
No pre-visualisation is complete without
checking the actual moves are physically possible. For example,
without a helicopter one cannot move the camera 100 metres
vertically, and without breaking the laws of physics, no camera
operated by machine or human means can start or stop instantly,
while in a 3D graphics environment these are all easily done. For
this purpose most pre-visualisation software requires a model
of the camera rig and its physical limits to enable the visual
supervisor or graphics artist to check if the motion control rig
that will be shooting will be able to achieve the shot. Some
production companies have developed their own proprietary
motion control pre-vis software, but many others require
an off-the-shelf product.
Now IKTRIX provides that
solution. Developed in collaboration with Aardman
Animations, Avid and Bristol
University is IKTRIX Impulse. It has an
ingenious inverse kinematics solver that finds the
best solution for achieving any kind of shot with a motion control
rig. What really separates the IKTRIX solver from other pre-vis
solutions, is its ability to overcome problems associated with
complex moves that would ordinarily require some user intervention
to solve, due to the multiple solution for any camera position. Below
you can see the XSi version of IKTRIX Impulse in operation:
 
Pictures Courtesy of IKTRIX
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