ReTracker Sensor
This first week has been very exciting and fresh. I got to learn the basics of some cool virtual production tools: Aximmetry, Unreal Engine, and Realsense tracking. The first half of my week was spent learning the basics of Aximmetry and Unreal. They both have a number of great resources which I found extremely helpful in the first few hours of learning. After I got the basics down I went on to create my own scene in Unreal with the goal of importing it into Aximmetry and using the T265 intel Realsense sensor to record a scene. Figuring out how to set up the sensor in Aximmetry then became the main task for my final stretch of the week. I am going to use this post as documentation for future reference on how to setup the Realsense T265 tracking sensor with Aximmetry.
How to use the T265:
- If not already done on the current machine, follow the steps found at this github
https://github.com/mrassi/REtrackerDEMO
to get the intel Realsense viewer, serial number, and key for the REtracker demo. If we have licenses for the full version then you can still follow the rest of the tutorial and will likely not need a serial number or key.
- Plug the T265 sensor into the machine you are using and open the intel Realsense viewer to make sure the computer recognizes the device correctly. Make sure to close the viewer before you start the retrackerdemo or actual retracker software.
- Once you have made sure the sensor is working, run the executable for the demo or retracker software. A window should appear displaying all the data being captured by the device.
How to import a Unreal Scene to Aximmetry:
- Open Unreal for Aximmetry
- You can open a project previously made or create your own.
- You can follow this tutorial for more details on all the settings, but if you are creating a new project Unreal for Aximmetry will have already enabled all the required settings. https://aximmetry.com/learn/tutorials/for-aximmetry-de-users/ue4-how-to-install-and-work-with-the-unreal-engine-based-de-edition/
- Once you have enabled the settings you must add a camera for Aximmetry, if you are going to use the T265 you should add a tracked camera into the scene.
- You can then save the project and cook the file which will prepare it to be dropped into Aximmetry.
How to use Aximmetry with your unreal scene and Tracking camera:
- Open Aximmetry DE Composer
- Before you continue to the composer go to the device mapper settings in the startup configuration that will appear. In the device mapper settings you must set the OSC Server to the local host adapter. You must also set OSC out UDP to the same local host ip but change the port from 7000 to 8000. Once this is done you can apply the changes and start the composer
- Open the Retracker unreal billboard example as your compound.
- You can then Drag your unreal project into where the example has its unreal project in the compound.
- Make sure the tracking camera is connected to the out port in the compound and disconnect the camera offset compound.
- At this point the REtracker sensor should be working in your Unreal designed scene in Aximmetry
If any of the above steps were confusing you can watch the following playlist which greatly helped me in the setup process!
The ReTracker software is very simple and easy to use. It takes just a few minutes to setup and does a great job of capturing the movement applied to the sensor. Compared with the Axibo I think Retracker might be a more accessible fit for our current goals.
-Nick