motion capture

American  

[moh-shuhn kap-cher] / ˈmoʊ ʃən ˌkæp tʃər /

noun

1. a data collection technique in which the movements of people and objects are tracked, recorded, and rendered to create animations, as for a video game.

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motion capture British  

noun

1. a process by which a device can be used to capture patterns of live movement; the data is then transmitted to a computer, where simulation software displays it applied to a virtual actor

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Etymology

Origin of motion capture

First recorded in 1980–85

Example Sentences

During their first two visits, participants received a baseline MRI and walked on a pressure sensitive treadmill while motion capture cameras measured the mechanics of their gait.

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

The motion capture system used to prescribe each person's walking change is expensive and time consuming.

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

On the pitch, it benefits from new graphics, based on work with women's footballers in the motion capture studio, and a perhaps unlikely source: VAR.

From BBC • Nov. 1, 2025

Ray points out that voice actors had the option of taking work outside of video games, but the strike was especially hard for actors who specialise in motion capture.

From BBC • Jul. 10, 2025

In 2016’s “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin was recreated through a mix of motion capture, CGI and archival material, decades after Cushing’s death.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 29, 2025