en.Wedoany.com Reported - OptiTrack, a U.S. motion capture system manufacturer, announced a multi-year technology partnership with Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) to deploy advanced motion capture systems equipped with 92 high-performance cameras across two research facilities within its newly inaugurated Robotics Innovation Center (RIC).
This collaboration brings together two leading institutions in their respective fields. Carnegie Mellon University holds an international reputation for fundamental and applied research in robotics, automation, and artificial intelligence. Its Robotics Institute, established in 1979, was the first university robotics department in the world. Since its founding in 1996, OptiTrack has specialized in the engineering of motion capture systems, trusted by thousands of research institutions globally.
The Robotics Innovation Center (RIC) officially opened on February 27, 2026. Located in the Hazelwood Green area of Pittsburgh, the facility occupies the historic site of the Jones & Laughlin Steel Mill. Spanning a total of 150,000 square feet, the center includes a 50,000-square-foot robotics testing area, an aquatic research laboratory, a motion capture studio, and a 6,000-square-foot outdoor drone cage. The center aims to showcase Carnegie Mellon's leadership in robotics, physical AI, and cutting-edge technologies, while facilitating the transition of technology from the lab to real-world deployment.
The indoor motion capture studio is equipped with 28 PrimeX41 cameras and 4 Prime Color reference cameras, providing micron-level precision within its 2,800-square-foot space. The outdoor drone cage features 60 VersaX120 cameras, OptiTrack's highest-resolution outdoor model, with IP66-rated protection, covering the entire cage up to a ceiling height of 38 feet. Both systems utilize OptiTrack's proprietary ActiveIO tracking technology, enabling simultaneous unique identification and tracking of hundreds of targets.
These systems will support multiple research projects at the RIC, including autonomous aerial robotics and multi-robot coordination through CMU's AirLab, robot imitation learning and human activity modeling led by Associate Research Professor Kris Kitani, and research related to the university's recently announced Physical AI Accelerator. The Physical AI Accelerator is a state-supported expansion project integrating robotics, perception, and intelligent systems.
Additionally, OptiTrack has joined Carnegie Mellon's Extended Reality Technology Center (XRTC) as a sponsor. Established in 2023, the XRTC aims to bring together researchers, industry, and consumers to advance virtual reality, augmented reality, and other extended reality technologies. XRTC researchers plan to use OptiTrack equipment at the RIC to reconstruct motion in virtual worlds.
