Implementation of a human avatar for the MARG project in networked virtual environments

Abstract

The objective of the ongoing MARG project is to animate human motions captured by 15 MARG sensors in wireless networked virtual environment (NVES). Three avatars were developed previously, but none of them met all the desired requirements. The first one was overly simplistic and did not implement H-Anim standards. The other two were created using laser-scanned data and followed the H-Anim standards, but one had its adjacent joints broken and the other was capable of rotating only one joint. Therefore, the cartoon-type humanoid, Andy, was developed to meet the needs of the MARG project. The humanoid Andy implements H-Anim standards using built-in X3D humanoid nodes and is capable of controlling all its 15 joints in NVES. Another need of the MARG project was a wireless network interface for real-time data streaming. A concurrent client-server program implementing multicasting using TCP and UDP protocols was developed for this purpose. Using WiSER2400.IP serial adapters between the MARG sensors and the server program adds a wireless capability to the project. The server program converts the raw MARG sensor data to quaternions using the Quest algorithm. Multiple clients are supported by the system. Each client program receives the motion data and updates the humanoid Andy.