Robotic camera control via motion capture

Abstract

A motion capture setup records the movements of an operator, and a control engine then translates those movements into control signals for controlling a robot. The control engine may directly translate the operator movements into analogous movements to be performed by the robot, or the control engine may compute robot dynamics that cause a portion of the robot to mimic a corresponding portion of the operator.

1 . A computer-implemented method for controlling a robot, the method comprising:
 generating motion capture data based on one or more movements of an operator;   processing the motion capture data to generate control signals for controlling the robot; and   transmitting the control signals to the robot to cause the robot to mimic the one or more movements of the operator.   
     
     
         2 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein generating the motion capture data comprises tracking at least one of head, body, and limb movements associated with the operator via a motion capture setup. 
     
     
         3 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein processing the motion capture data to generate the control signals comprises:
 modeling a first set of dynamics of the operator that corresponds to the one or more movements;   determining a second set of dynamics of the robot that corresponds to the one or more movements; and   generating the control signals based on the second set of dynamics.   
     
     
         4 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements of the operator comprises actuating a set of joints included in the robot to perform an articulation sequence associated with the one or more movements. 
     
     
         5 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 4 , wherein the robot comprises a robotic arm that includes the set of joints. 
     
     
         6 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements comprises adjusting a speed of at least one motor coupled to a propeller. 
     
     
         7 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 6 , wherein the robot comprises a flying drone. 
     
     
         8 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements comprises causing only a first portion of the robot to mimic only a subset of the one or more movements. 
     
     
         9 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , further comprising capturing sensor data while the robot mimics the one or more movements. 
     
     
         10 . The computer-implemented method of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more movements comprise a target trajectory for a sensor array coupled to the robot. 
     
     
         11 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium that, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to control a robot by performing the steps of:
 generating motion capture data based on one or more movements of an operator;   processing the motion capture data to generate control signals for controlling the robot; and   transmitting the control signals to the robot to cause the robot to mimic the one or more movements of the operator.   
     
     
         12 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein generating the motion capture data comprises tracking at least one of head, body, and limb movements associated with the operator via a motion capture setup. 
     
     
         13 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein processing the motion capture data to generate the control signals comprises:
 modeling a first set of dynamics of the operator that corresponds to the one or more movements;   determining a second set of dynamics of the robot that corresponds to the one or more movements; and   generating the control signals based on the second set of dynamics.   
     
     
         14 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements of the operator comprises actuating a set of joints included in the robot to perform an articulation sequence associated with the one or more movements. 
     
     
         15 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements comprises adjusting a speed of at least one motor coupled to a propeller. 
     
     
         16 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein causing the robot to mimic the one or more movements comprises causing only a first portion of the robot to mimic only a subset of the one or more movements. 
     
     
         17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , further comprising capturing sensor data while the robot mimics the one or more movements. 
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of  claim 11 , wherein the one or more movements comprise a target trajectory for a sensor array coupled to the robot. 
     
     
         19 . A system for controlling a robot, comprising:
 a memory storing a control application; and   a processor coupled to the memory and configured to:
 generate motion capture data based on one or more movements of an operator, 
 process the motion capture data to generate control signals for controlling the robot, and 
 transmit the control signals to the robot to cause the robot to mimic the one or more movements of the operator. 
   
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 19 , wherein the processor is configured to execute the control application to:
 generate the motion capture data;   process the motion capture data to generate the control signals; and   transmit the control signals to the robot.