Viewport
This is the Viewport. This is the space where you will see the mocap skeleton.
- To navigate the viewport: press alt + left mouse button to pan, alt + right mouse button to orbit, and use the scrollwheel to zoom.
- Under View, you can change your layout so that you can view multiple camera angles at once if needed.
- There are 5 buttons in the center of the viewport's top border
- The checkered board button turns the grid on and off
- The camera button turns the follow cam on and off
- The person button turns the center of mass indicator on and off
- The square button turns shadows on and off
- The checkered board with the plus sign button turns the origin marker on and off
- There are another 6 buttons on the right border of the viewport
- First is the Record button, click this to start and stop recording.
- Next is the Connect button. You will use this to connect your suit to Axis Neuron Pro
- Third is the Disconnect button. You will use this to disconnect your suit from Axis Neuron Pro and to turn off the sensors.
- Fourth is the Posture Calibration button. Click this to begin posture calibration
- Fifth is the Zero button. Click this to reset the skeleton to the origin
- The sixth button toggles on and off the shutter function
Sensor Map
- This is the Sensor Map. It is used to monitor the quality of data being transmitted from the sensors.
- The dots on the map should remain green for the majority of the time. Some yellow or red is fine as long as it only lasts a short while.
- If there is a lot of red for more than a few seconds, run a magnetic calibration.
- If you hover over the dots, they should give you a percentage, this is your data quality and it should stay over 70% for best results. If it dips below that, you may be having internet connection issues or need a dedicated router.
- On the bottom bar, you can change the character's name, zero out their translation, and select a body size template.
Working directory
This is where you can view all your takes.
Model Alignment
You can use the Model Alignment menu to adjust the character’s placement on the floor
Parameters
You can use the Parameters menu to adjust various constraints before recording, between takes, or during editing. We will briefly cover what all the parameters do.
- Joint stiffness: tells the program how much to rely on the body size manager. The more accurate the body dimensions are to your actor, the higher this should be.
- Step stiffness: controls how quickly contact points will snap to the ground.
- Step constraint: controls the height at which the snap becomes activated.
- Anti- mag: This should only be used in environments with bad magnetic interference.
- Ground constraint(beta): keeps the actor constrained to the floor. Turn this off if the actor is moving up and down multiple levels, such as stairs.
- Ground height: helps prevent the actor clipping through the floor if ground constraint is turned off.
- Foot lock: Locks foot z axis forward
- Contact points: controls which points will always make contact with the ground. Feet, hands, and hips can be toggled on and off.
- Hip height: This should be adjusted if the hip contact point is active to prevent the hips from penetrating the floor.
- CoM acc threshold: This is the gravity influence. It is set to 0.8g as default as that is comparable to earth’s gravity.
Smooth Factor
The Smooth Factor window is used to clean up the data right before export. This should be the last step before export.
Data Visualizer
In the Data Visualizer tab, you can view a graph of your data. To do this, check the boxes for the sensors you want to view, the Displacement and/or Angle you want to view, and the press Play.
Body Size Manager
- Use the Body Size Manager to select a body size template and adjust individual dimensions as needed.
- The closer the dimensions of the character are to your actor, the more accurate the capture data will be.
- The PN Pro sensors are inertia based, meaning that they only record relative location and rotation. That’s why adjusting the body dimensions can help improve their accuracy.
- Make sure to select a body size template before performing posture calibration
Settings
To access the settings menu, go to File --> Settings
Output Format
When broadcasting to 3rd party software, you may need to enable or disable Displacement
Shortcuts
Shortcuts is where you can adjust your hotkeys
Broadcasting
These are the settings you will need to adjust when broadcasting data to 3rd party software.
Export
To export a file, go to File --> Export
This is where you can adjust your export settings. Make sure the take you want to export is selected.
- Frame: Choose the frames you want to export
- Directory: Choose where you want to save the exported file
- File Name: Name the file you are exporting
- Rotation: Choose the rotation order
- Displacement: enable or disable displacement
- File Type: Choose your file type. Most 3D programs are compatible with FBX binary
Window
Under Window, you can adjust your Layout and choose which Panels you want visible
Tools
Under Tools, you can switch the frequency of the sensors and transceiver as well as run a Compass calibration on the sensors.
Working Body Reference Diagram
To access the Working Mode Reference Diagram, go to Help --> Working Mode Reference Diagram
This chart will show you which sensors are required and which ones are optional for the various working modes available in Axis Neuron Pro