*Super-interesting. Seems to indeed be a gesture-control system that is extremely fast, tight, accurate, and even cheap.
*So the next question will be, what does it mean to possess and use a thing like that? What are the ergonomics of waving all ten fingers in midair? Will hybrid gesture-touch-click systems emerge, will gaze-tracking and face-recognition be added, what happens if it's got voice-recognition, etc etc... An exciting set of prospects. I look forward to covering a new category of LEAP hacks next year.
*I suggest moseying over to this WIRED Gadget Lab entry and checking out their video.
(...)
"Users of the Kinect and similar systems are accustomed to using sweeping arm movements to control game play. For example, on the Xbox 360, jumping from one interface tile to the next involves moving your entire arm in a fluid motion. It’s a big, sweeping gesture. But the Leap condenses this interaction into an eight-foot cubic space.
"Now, eight cubic feet may sound like a huge area, but it’s not. The result is a system that allows user control with much finer, less demanding gestures. Instead of sweeping your arm to get something done, you can sweep your finger. And movements like the simple flick of a knuckle can be used to navigate and interact.
"The system is is so precise, in fact, we were able to draw tiny circles within a one centimeter area. And at this level of precision, the system could even register our post-energy-drink jitters as we motioned in front of the screen. It wasn’t enough to detract from the experience, but we had to second guess our beverage choices.
"We also found that gesturing with only one’s fingers cuts down on all the fatigue that’s suffered in a system that requires large movements. That said, without something concrete to place one’s hands and fingers on, there’s the potential for fatigue after using the system for an entire day. To this end, the system seems more like an additional input device than a hardware controller replacement."
"During our hands-on testing, Leap Motion showed us a demo in which the system was able to track all the individual fingers of our hands. The system could even perceive the angles of our fingers in relation to the display as we pushed our hands into 3D space. Grabbing, poking, swiping — all of it was tracked by The Leap.
"The system can register and follow as many items as can be placed within the 3D space it tracks. We placed three hands (and their 15 fingers) into the tracked area, and all body parts were recognized by the system. An air hockey demo showcased a two-person gaming environment, but developers could no doubt come up with something even more impressive that pushes the limits of gaming.
"The Leap looks to be a clever, novel input device for gaming, design and 3D modeling. But even at its slated $70 price point, we can’t see it replacing the mouse and trackpad. It will be a secondary input device for most people, and a primary input device for just a few hardcore users.
"But this shouldn’t diminish the incredible technology powering The Leap, or the potential uses of the device once developers start building apps based on the device’s SDK, or use Leap Motion’s APIs to add Leap functionality to applications already on the market.
"In person, the pre-production version of The Leap is as impressive as the demo video. ..."
