CinePlex v3 Manual - Plexon Inc

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2.9 CinePlex Studio Tracking Pane (if available)
As described in Chapter 1, the CinePlex Studio Tracking option can generate
tracking coordinates in one of three modes: Object Contour, LED, or Reflective
Colors. The Tracking tab is blank until a tracking mode has been selected.
CinePlex Studio uses Tracking Windows and Arena Definition to track objects
and reduce unwanted parasite objects. These elements are explained below.
2.9.1 Tracking Window
Tracking windows are used to reduce problems with unwanted parasite objects
(e.g. reflections) and to reduce the processor load by restricting analysis to a
small portion of the video image.
The size of the tracking window is set automatically to cover the whole object.
Each object (whole animal, LED, or marker) has its own tracking window. The
tracking window is repositioned automatically. A history of an object’s movement
is used to predict its next position. If the object disappears because of occlusion
by a cable or other means, its tracking window is moved according to the
speed and movement direction in its most recently detected frames. If the system
is tracking multiple LEDs or markers in single animal mode, the system will also
use the positions of the found LEDs or markers to predict the position of the one
that disappeared. If the object is not found after a certain number of frames, the
size of the tracking window will be increased. If the object is not found within
two seconds, the system switches to search in the whole frame (possibly
restricted by an arena - see below).
2.9.2 Arena Definition in the Areas Tab
The Arena Definition is also used to reduce problems with unwanted parasite
objects outside of the working area. If a reflection of other unwanted object
appears outside the arena, it will not be detected by CinePlex Studio.
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