The New Jersey facility records direct 3D movement and checks robots’ internal measurements, but performance gains remain to be tested.
Innodata has opened a robotics motion-capture laboratory in New Jersey to create training data and evaluate humanoid robots, according to The Robot Report. The announcement describes a development service, not a robot for consumers to buy.
Innodata developed the lab with Vicon, which continues to provide technical consulting. The facility uses Vicon infrared optical tracking cameras; Vicon says those cameras can measure movement down to the sub-millimeter level with millisecond latency.
That direct 3D capture records movement from human or mechanical bodies instead of estimating it from ordinary two-dimensional video. The difference could help engineers build cleaner training data for robots learning to handle objects and people.
Franklin Tanner, Innodata’s vice president of robotics and physical AI, offered a mug as an example. A robot could grasp the handle or the base, but the safer choice may depend on whether the mug contains hot liquid.
The lab can also compare a robot’s observed movement with its internal telemetry, or sensor readings. Innodata says customers will be able to buy packaged data, commission custom projects, or send robots for scripted evaluations involving people.
The company also says captured data can seed simulations, allowing engineers to vary conditions without recording every scenario in the real world. However, the announcement does not identify current customers, pricing, or measured improvements over video-based data.
For robot developers, the next useful step is independent testing: whether this more precise motion data actually improves training, testing, or safety results enough to justify its cost.