opentrack/opentrack

★ 4,788C++Audience · generalComplexity · 2/5LicenseSetup · easy

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Head pose tracking
      Game view control
      Input forwarding
    Input Devices
      Webcam tracking
      AI pose estimation
      VR accessories
      Arduino boards
      Android relay
    Output Targets
      Microsoft Flight Sim
      X-Plane
      FlightGear
      Virtual joystick
    Platforms
      Windows
      Linux
      macOS unmaintained
    Features
      Filter curves
      USB portable mode
      Network relay

mindmap root((repo)) What it does Head pose tracking Game view control Input forwarding Input Devices Webcam tracking AI pose estimation VR accessories Arduino boards Android relay Output Targets Microsoft Flight Sim X-Plane FlightGear Virtual joystick Platforms Windows Linux macOS unmaintained Features Filter curves USB portable mode Network relay

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Things people build with this

USE CASE 1

Use a standard webcam to look around the cockpit in Microsoft Flight Simulator without touching the mouse

USE CASE 2

Connect an Android phone over your network as a head tracker and forward its movement to X-Plane or DCS World

USE CASE 3

Build a custom Arduino-based head tracking device and feed its data into any supported flight simulator

USE CASE 4

Tune head tracking sensitivity and smoothness with custom filter curves before forwarding movement to MSFS via SimConnect

Tech stack

C++WindowsLinuxCMake

Getting it running

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 30min

macOS version is unmaintained, Windows users can download a pre-built installer or a portable USB version from the releases page.

Use freely for any purpose including commercial products, ISC license has almost no restrictions, similar to MIT.

In plain English

opentrack is a program that tracks where a user's head is pointing and sends that information to flight simulators and combat games. When you move your head left, right, or up, the software detects the movement and tells your game to shift the in-cockpit view to match, so you can look around without touching the keyboard or mouse. The project runs on Microsoft Windows, Linux, and Apple macOS, though the macOS version is currently unmaintained. Windows users can download an installer or a portable archive from the project's releases page, including a version that runs from a USB stick with no installation required. A wide range of physical devices can feed movement data into opentrack. Options include standard webcams using light-point or paper marker tracking, AI-based head pose estimation through a neural network, Wiimotes, Arduino boards with custom firmware, Intel RealSense cameras, Tobii eye trackers, and several VR headset accessories. There is also support for relaying data over a network from a second computer or from Android devices via a companion app. The breadth of supported hardware means most users can find an input method that fits their setup and budget. Once opentrack has the head position data, it can forward it to games and simulators through a matching set of output protocols. Supported targets include Microsoft Flight Simulator via SimConnect, FlightGear, X-Plane, FSUIPC for older Microsoft Flight Simulator versions, and virtual joystick outputs on Windows and Linux. A SteamVR bridge is available for Windows as well. The software lets users shape and filter the output, so you can tune how sensitive or smooth the head movement feels before it reaches the game. opentrack is open-source under the ISC license with almost no proprietary dependencies and no copyleft restrictions. The codebase began as a fork of an earlier project called FaceTrackNoIR, though it has been largely rewritten over time. Contributions are welcome through pull requests, and a wiki hosted separately covers build instructions for each platform and answers to common questions.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

Set up opentrack with my webcam to track head movement and send it to Microsoft Flight Simulator via SimConnect step by step

Prompt 2

How do I configure opentrack AI-based head pose estimation for use in DCS World without buying extra hardware?

Prompt 3

Connect my Android phone to opentrack on my PC to use it as a head tracker for X-Plane

Prompt 4

Configure the output filter curves in opentrack so small head movements map to large camera sweeps inside a flight sim cockpit

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