Getting Started with Hands Motion Capture

Hands Motion Capture is seamlessly integrated into the Hands menu and Actor Calibration flow of MOVIN Studio. No extra configuration is required.

1. Please select MOVIN from the Hands options in MOVIN Studio

Open the Hands menu in MOVIN Studio and choose MOVIN. This enables the Hands Motion Capture feature using your TRACIN device.

2. Run Actor Calibration

With MOVIN selected in the Hands options, proceed with Actor Calibration as usual. When the actor stands in front of TRACIN and holds the calibration pose, Hand Tracking Initialization is automatically performed.

3. Check the Hands Motion Data

After initialization, you’ll see real-time tracking of finger bends, wrist rotation, and other fine hand motions.

Best Practices — Building an Optimal Hands Motion Capture Setup

Hands Motion Capture operates using the camera inside the MOVIN TRACIN device. When the following conditions are met, you’ll get the most accurate and stable hand data.

Distance & Field of View (FoV)

TRACIN’s camera is positioned about 85 cm from the ground, and hand tracking works within its Field of View. The ideal distance varies depending on the actor’s height, arm length, and typical hand position.

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FoV Display

MOVIN Studio provides a view that shows the camera’s FoV. This helps you quickly check whether the actor’s hands are fully within the FoV. Checking the FoV beforehand helps prevent tracking issues and reduces the need for retakes.

Hands Motion Capture performs most reliably within the following ranges:

Recommended distance: 1.5 m – 3.5 m
Trackable range: 1 m – 4 m

Because the camera looks upward from below:

Taller actors may need to stand slightly farther back so their hands remain within the upper FoV.
Shorter actors can stay closer while keeping their hands fully visible.

Hand motion capture may temporarily stop when the hands move outside the field of view (FoV) or become occluded by parts of the body. Common situations include:

Hands move out of the FoV when both arms are raised.
The hand becomes hidden when it is positioned behind the torso.
One hand becomes occluded when the other hand blocks it.
Both arms are moved behind the body, causing the hands to become hidden.

When the actor moves out of the camera’s FoV, the MOVINMan character’s body part will appear dimmed to indicate Tracking Lost. Tracking resumes immediately as soon as the hands return to view.

The left hand is positioned outside the FoV.

The right hand is positioned outside the FoV.

Hands move out of the FoV when both arms are raised

The hand becomes hidden when it is positioned behind the torso.

One hand becomes occluded when the other hand blocks it.

Both arms are moved behind the body, causing the hands to become hidden.

Lightening & Clothing

Because Hands Motion Capture is camera-based (not LiDAR-based), proper lighting and clothing are required.

Lighting

Human eyes adapt quickly to brightness, so a scene may feel “bright enough” to you while the camera still struggles to clearly recognize the contour of the hands. Tracking accuracy may degrade in the following environments:

When the overall ambient light is too low and the hand contour becomes blurry
When strong backlight, floor reflections, or polarized lighting cause the hands to be overly bright
When there is significant brightness contrast between the upper and lower parts

If tracking appears unstable, adjust the lighting or use curtains so that the hand contours remain clearly visible to the camera

Ideal

too dark

too bright

Ideal case

Ideal lighting

Hands and full body are clearly recognized

Lighting Conditions That Require Adjustment

Backlighting

Hands and full body appear too dark

Excessively bright lighting

Scenes where intense light causes reflections or glare

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Tip: If your setup is backlit, it’s best to use blackout curtains. Regular curtains don’t fully block light, so light can leak through small gaps and reduce the accuracy of Hands Motion Capture.

Backlighting

Even with curtains, backlight can still remain

Clothing

Since tracking depends on camera-based visual data, clothing colors can impact recognition accuracy. For best results, ensure that the hands, clothing, and background have clear visual contrast. Avoid wearing long sleeves that cover the wrists, as this can interfere with proper hand and wrist tracking.

Wrists hidden by long sleeves

Device Stability

If TRACIN vibrates, the camera’s perception becomes unstable. We recommend mounting TRACIN securely on a tripod. Avoid moving or rotating the device during capture, as it can change the FoV and calibration reference, reducing overall tracking accuracy.

Final Thoughts

Until now, MOVIN Studio has focused primarily on full-body motion capture, while detailed wrist and finger tracking required additional glove solutions such as Rokoko or Manus. Many creators either integrated third-party gloves for high-precision hand data or used Rest Pose-based hand animation when finger tracking was not essential.

With Hands Motion Capture (Beta), MOVIN TRACIN alone can now capture wrist and finger motion directly — no gloves, no pairing, no extra charging, and no additional calibration steps. By simply completing Actor Calibration, you can obtain real-time full-body and hand motion, making it easier for animators and developers to produce richer and more expressive performances.

For detailed option descriptions and step-by-step guides, please visit MOVIN Docs.

If you have any questions while using MOVIN Studio, feel free to reach out anytime on our MOVIN Discord channel.

Hands Motion Capture (Beta) — A New Feature That Captures Natural Hand Movements