[Colloq] Talk: Thursday, Aug. 3 - Ron Metoyer - Oregon State University

[Rachel Kalweit]

College of Computer and Information Science Colloquium

Presents:
Ron Metoyer
Oregon State University

Who will speak on:
“Data-driven Motion Generation”

Thursday, August 3, 2006
12:00 pm
366 West Village H
Northeastern University

Abstract:
Data-Driven motion generation is a technique for creating animated 
motion given a library of motion data such as that obtained with motion 
capture equipment. Motion that is generated in this way is generally 
compelling because it contains the unique and subtle qualities of human 
motion that are difficult to generate procedurally. However, controlling 
the motion to achieve a specific task is often difficult.

We record motion sequences of an actor performing various tasks relevant 
to the application at hand. We then build a 'pose-graph' that can be 
searched offline or pre-processed further to generate spatially 
controlled motion in real time.

We have used this approach for creating controllable 3D character 
locomotion as well as for building 2D motion models for use in 
pedestrian simulations. In this talk, I will present our approach for 
building these real-time motion graphs, discuss its limitations, and 
demonstrate performance through several video sequences. I will conclude 
with a short discussion of future work in this area.

Bio:
Asst. Prof. Ron Metoyer joined the Computer Science Department at Oregon 
State University in the Fall of 2001 with a Ph.D. from the Georgia 
Institute of Technology where he worked in the Graphics, Visualization 
and Usability Center. His dissertation research involved modeling and 
visualizing the motion of pedestrians in urban and architectural scenes. 
Currently, Dr. Metoyer runs the Graphics and Imaging Technologies Lab 
(GAIT) along with his colleagues, Dr. Eric Mortensen, Dr. Eugene Zhange, 
and Dr. Mike Bailey. He and his students conduct research in creating 
interactive content for training and education. Research projects range 
from the development of believable character motion generation 
algorithms to the development of interfaces for novice users to create 
and interact with 3D content. One testbed application is the digital 
football playbook for coaches and football players to use as a training 
and visualization tool. His work is funded by an NSF CAREER award 
entitled, "Understanding the Complexities of Animated Content".

Host: Ravi Sundaram