FaceTrackNoIR as a free view system

[IronRain]

I planned to buy a face tracker device. But now this.. Thanks! :lol:

 

[elliottj85]

could somebody please post the settings they use in the new version? I cant get a good set-up working. thanks.

 

[Hielor]

I tried this with FSX. Interesting toy, and certainly has a lot of potential, but at this point it's no replacement for the TrackIR. The face-tracking is either too slow to keep up with me, or too jittery. With the TrackIR, I can have it quickly track my movements and also be stable when I'm not moving.

 

[Ripley]

FTNOIR performance depends/relies heavily on the fps you can get from your webcam and its overall quality.

From its site:

The performance of the web cam not only depends on the make and model. There are a few things you have to consider:

* Proper lighting is important. Web cams are known to 'throttle back' in fps, when lighting is not sufficient.
* On some web cams, exposure is linked with fps. If you think the framerate you get is too low, try adjusting exposure settings.
* Try connecting an USB web cam to a port that is not used by other USB devices (like through a HUB).
* Some users have reported that the 'software-suite' that comes with some web cams, may interfere with the face-tracker. Try to disable or remove it, if you experience problems.

 

[Hielor]

FTNOIR performance depends/relies heavily on the fps you can get from your webcam and its overall quality.

From its site:

The performance of the web cam not only depends on the make and model. There are a few things you have to consider:

* Proper lighting is important. Web cams are known to 'throttle back' in fps, when lighting is not sufficient.
* On some web cams, exposure is linked with fps. If you think the framerate you get is too low, try adjusting exposure settings.
* Try connecting an USB web cam to a port that is not used by other USB devices (like through a HUB).
* Some users have reported that the 'software-suite' that comes with some web cams, may interfere with the face-tracker. Try to disable or remove it, if you experience problems.

What fps should I be getting from the webcam for an optimal experience? I'm getting 30 with my current setup.

 

[Ripley]

...I'm getting 30 with my current setup.

30 should be obviously enough.
Is your webcam listed as tested/compatible on their site?

Are you in a dark room?
Ok, it's not nice to have a spotlight right in the face, but of course the brighter the better (in this case).

 

[Fabri91]

In a few days I'll be able to report on how this compares with TrackIR (when it arrives). First impressions are very positive, although without any smoothing or filtering it is quite jittery, and adding smoothing results in lag. My room however is not very well lit, so that might be an issue. The program has issues tracking my face at yaw angles in excess of about 25/30 degrees, or is very jittery in doing so, but unless you have to look that much on one side, it is very usable. Obviously takes some time getting used to.

 

[Hielor]

30 should be obviously enough.
Is your webcam listed as tested/compatible on their site?

No, it's the LifeCam Cinema, the newer version of some of the Microsoft webcams they have listed. The tracking works fine, it's the translation from what it's tracking to what's going on in the game that's bad. It's either too jittery or too laggy.

Are you in a dark room?
Ok, it's not nice to have a spotlight right in the face, but of course the brighter the better (in this case).

The room is very well lit, and like I said, it has no trouble tracking my face according to the little video screen in the FTNOIR window.

 

[Fabri91]

In the ftnoir window you can also see the raw coordinates of the input. Do you see steady numbers or are they jittering aroung? I've seen that just watching the overlay doesn't really tell if the tracking is really steady.

Regarding filtering, I used a smoothing setting of 8 and ewma filtering on all axes at about 40.

 

[Hielor]

In the ftnoir window you can also see the raw coordinates of the input. Do you see steady numbers or are they jittering aroung? I've seen that just watching the overlay doesn't really tell if the tracking is really steady.

Regarding filtering, I used a smoothing setting of 8 and ewma filtering on all axes at about 40.

I'll look at it tonight when I get home.

---------- Post added at 21:47 ---------- Previous post was at 11:52 ----------

In the ftnoir window you can also see the raw coordinates of the input. Do you see steady numbers or are they jittering aroung? I've seen that just watching the overlay doesn't really tell if the tracking is really steady.

The numbers are jittering within .1-.2 degrees on the rotational axes, but this translates to a fairly big jitter within the game.

Regarding filtering, I used a smoothing setting of 8 and ewma filtering on all axes at about 40.

Using that setting makes it decently smooth, but causes it to take over a second to catch up with me if I move my "virtual head" from 90 degrees left to 90 degrees right. That is unacceptable lag and completely destroys the experience, given that TrackIR takes no time at all.

 

[Fabri91]

That's why I ordered a trackir myself...the one thing you can do is to progressively lower smoothing and/or filtering by small amounts and test it ingame, hopefully to find a sweet spot where it is decently responsive and doesn't shake your virtual head to smithereens.

 

[Hielor]

That's why I ordered a trackir myself...the one thing you can do is to progressively lower smoothing and/or filtering by small amounts and test it ingame, hopefully to find a sweet spot where it is decently responsive and doesn't shake your virtual head to smithereens.

I tried...it starts becoming shaky long before it's sufficiently responsive. I'm sticking with the TrackIR for the time being.

 

[Ripley]

These are the settings that Worstplayer (the youtube Orbiter video maker linked in the OP) uses.

Let's see if they help (of course let's keep in mind that each webcam, each lighting conditions, etc, are different)


[Tracking]
Smooth=2
NeutralZone=2
sensYaw=300
sensPitch=300
sensRoll=300
sensX=10
sensY=10
sensZ=0
invertYaw=false
invertPitch=true
invertRoll=true
invertX=true
invertY=false
invertZ=false
useEWMA=true
redYaw=80
redPitch=80
redRoll=80
redX=85
redY=85
redZ=90

[GameProtocol]
Selection=4

[PPJoy]
Selection=1

 

[Ripley]

From NEWS page:
http://facetracknoir.sourceforge.net/news/news.htm

2011-01-22: We are very busy making the next update, which we aim to release at the end of this month or the beginning of the next. It will contain:

* Improvements for the FSX and FS2004 protocols;
* A fix for some older games and EZCA is implemented;
* An improved filter-algorithm, that will enhance filtering and improve response;
* Improved user-interface;
* Server-client ability (using the UDP-protocol);

 

[Carmen A]

This is nice - I don't intend to use it because I usually fly in pitch darkness, but a fun, innovative concept nonetheless.

 

[Linguofreak]

Dang, they say it's Windows only. I might have to try it out on Wine in the next few days...

 

[Hielor]

From NEWS page:
http://facetracknoir.sourceforge.net/news/news.htm

2011-01-22: We are very busy making the next update, which we aim to release at the end of this month or the beginning of the next. It will contain:

* Improvements for the FSX and FS2004 protocols;
* A fix for some older games and EZCA is implemented;
* An improved filter-algorithm, that will enhance filtering and improve response;
* Improved user-interface;
* Server-client ability (using the UDP-protocol);

I'll give it a try in FSX when it's released--hopefully "enhance filtering and improve response" means that it'll actually be usable this time around.

 

[Ripley]

New website is up for FTNOIR.

http://facetracknoir.sourceforge.net/home/default.htm

 

[-Apollo-]

THANK YOU MAN!!!!! YOU MADE MY WEEKEND!!!:bighug:

 

[streb2001]

I get "Application failed to initialise" error. Good start...

ed. XP SP3