News Summary:
Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) designated an area within its new Robotics Innovation Center (RIC) as the "Drone Cage OptiTrack" for unmanned aerial vehicle experiments on August 3, 2026, deepening its collaboration with OptiTrack in forward-looking robotics and physical AI research. OptiTrack supports various CMU labs, including its AirLab for autonomous drone and multi-robot research, Kris Kitani's research group focused on robotic simulation and human activity modeling, and the university's Physical AI Accelerator program. The company also backs CMU's Extended Reality Technology Center (XRTC). Previously, on July 22, OptiTrack launched ActiveIO, a new active motion tracking platform. This hardware ecosystem, further detailed on July 21, integrates a proprietary two-way RF communication protocol, IMU sensor fusion, and intelligent marker identification to enhance tracking accuracy and scalability. It targets demanding real-time applications in robotics, virtual production, location-based VR, live events, and tactical training. This followed OptiTrack's July 9 announcement of a multi-year technology partnership with Carnegie Mellon University to equip two research facilities at the newly opened RIC with advanced motion capture systems. By July 13, OptiTrack installed 92 cameras, including 28 PrimeX41 and four Prime Color cameras for an indoor studio, and 60 VersaX120 outdoor cameras for a drone cage, to support the university's robotics and physical AI research.
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