About the axiiio nano Camera Motion Control System

The axiiio nano system is the first truly flexible, multi-function system of components for building camera motion rigs to automate tasks in photography and film-making.

What is axiiio nano?

We've been working on the axiiio nano camera motion control system for over six years now and we think it's pretty cool.

It's a bit different to anything else you may have seen or used before because we've created it from the ground up as a set of three main components which when combined with standard rigging components, lets you build and automate many different types of shooting scenario.

It consists of a receiver, motion pancake and motor. The motor's form factor is the same as a standard focus motor you'd use with a traditional remote follow focus system but with the use of our slide lock technology on our motion pancake, you can transform that motor into linear motion or rotational motion for photographic and filmmaking tasks. You can control up to 4 motors with one receiver and it has many options for connecting things like focus thumbwheels and external joysticks to it.

With the same components you can:

  • Create a fully featured FIZ rig.
  • Automate sliders for dolly shots.
  • Create tilt, pan, and roll axes.
  • Combine one or all of these different types of motion in programs.
  • Create frame accurate motion for composite shots at different frame rates using the same program.

This is just a small sample of the automation tasks that you can perform. We've used the system on many different types of visual effect shots both for ourselves and on set in professional working environments, so we have paid close attention to the rigors of set life both from a time-saving and durability perspective.

Example axiiio nano-powered rigs

Speed and Efficiency

What we're trying to do with this system is avoid the need for lots of different types of rig when you go on set. Or, if you are taking multiple rigs, you just take one set of electrical control components (the motors and receiver). You can prebuild the different mechanical rigs (using our nano motion pancakes), and, when you have finished one shot, you just unplug the control components from that rig and plug them in on the next one. If you have saved the rig configurations in the ProMoCo software, getting the new rig working is as simple as loading your preset rig and hitting auto-calibrate, the receiver does everything else.

If you're working your way through a shot list and you're jumping from a parallax slider shot to focus pulls to a panning timelapse, you only need one piece of software (ProMoCo) and one nano receiver to do all of these shots. If you have an assistant working with you they can be setting up the next shot while you're filming the previous one.

The ProMoCo software uses a very simple premise for creating a motion shot. Set a start point (including lens control, focus, iris and zoom) set an endpoint, set your ease-in and ease-out and hit go. It literally takes a few seconds to create a program. This leaves you free to do the important stuff which is framing and lighting that shot. You can run that program in one of several modes (video motion, timelapse and stop motion). If you doing composite's, each mode leaves you with a clip that when processed will be exactly the same length and motion across all modes. This makes making composite shots much simpler than any other system.

Core Philosophy

At its core is the philosophy that a motion control system should be flexible enough to do all the things that you can imagine. Controlled with the ProMoCo mobile app, axiiio nano enables more creative possibilities for film makers and photographers than any other motion system. Whether you're into time-lapse photography, stop motion animation, chromakey composite shots for visual effects, a focus puller, or just need a second camera running in the background, the axiiio nano system can help you.

Axiiio nano isn't just another motion control robot. It's a system. With components that give you control over all the creative possibilities you can imagine. How you use it is defined not by rules, conventions, or a manufacturer's intentions, but by you, and we believe that's what filmmaking should be.

Core Components

The axiiio nano receiver is the hub that allows you to control up to 4 motors wirelessly. It has power input, a multi I/O port for connecting external devices, a communications port that has a USB interface for camera control, and 4 motor control ports. Yet, it's small enough to be mounted directly to your camera's hot shoe. Learn more...

The axiiio nano motor is custom designed from scratch to be light and powerful. Able to easily move a 10KG payload quickly and accurately, It comes with 2 interchangeable gears for varying speed and weight capacity. Learn more...

The axiiio nano motion pancake is a deceptively simple device, that allows a nano motor to control camera motion on any axis; rotation or linear. Learn more...

Use a receiver, single motion pancake and motor for controlling and automating pans. Use an L-bracket to create a tilt, pitch or roll control rig. With the addition of an interface plate, the motion pancake can be connected to a slider (both timing belt and capstan versions are available). Build a FIZ rig. Use a standard cinema rod mount for lens ring control using a receiver and 1, 2, or 3 motors. It's light enough to be used as a complete second operator solution.

A render of the core axiiio nano components