FreeTrack Forum

So, everything works but I can't seem to get a good result.

It works until I turn my head about 20 degrees and then it cuts out and refuses to register the LEDs. I can see them, but they don't work, the ambient light from my monitor is enough to drown them out. Any ideas? It seems to work sometimes and then not work at others.

I'm using a 3point clip system mounted on the side of my headphones btw. 3 red LEDs about 2mil across. They're powered by 2 "AAA" batteries.

I really want to be able to use this in games but ... well ... 300 dollars for TrackIR 5 is just a BIT much. I'd really like to get this working.

I've also tried using film, but I'm not sure it's the right sort. Some is developed (clear grey) and the other is not (more opaque grey). The film I've seen on the manual is a dark brownie-red though so I may be using the wrong sort. All it does is filter out ALL light, meaning my LEDs are picked up no better with than without.

Thanks in advance.

Edit: I actually can't use it at the moment because my headphones are slightly shiny

Do you see more than three lights "crossed" in freetrack?

Anyway,personally i didn't even have to put film in front of mine.I just changed the camera's options.It works fine even with the lights on.

Just check freetrack to see what are the other light sources.If nothing works use your imagination (for instance,if the source is indeed a reflection from your headphones you could use a black tape on them so they wont reflect the light...or buy new ones :P).


This is the whole deal about homemade markers,you have to be a bit creative.

Like Mirage suggests, try playing around with the camera controls in FreeTrack to find something that more reliably picks up your LEDs.

What you might also want to try is filing down your LEDs so that the beam they emit isn't so narrow.  Right now, they likely only emit a 40 degree wide beam or so.  By sanding the tip or each LED down to about 1-2mm above the internal metal components, the beam isn't focused and is now emitted in all directions.  If you do this, the LEDs will appear dimmer since they emit in all directions instead of focused in one direction.  You might have to adapt your circuit (more current through each LED while not exceeding their maximum allowable current) a bit if you notice this is a problem, but try it first and see.

Film filters won't work in your case since they only let infrared light pass through, which you're not using  Since you have the setup pretty much in place already, you might want to one day switch to infrared LEDs because their light is invisible, and through the use of a film filter they would be the only thing the camera sees, instead of you having to play with your camera settings to get your red LEDs to pick up over the monitor/room glare, etc.  It's *much* easier, and they can be really cheap if you look in the right places.

Good luck!

Maybe removing the IR filter in your webcam will solve your problem.