User:Briannachew/sandbox

ADDING TO GESTURE RECOGNITION PAGE (Gesture recognition)

 Touchless interface

Touchless user interface is an emerging type of technology in relation to gesture control. Touchless user interface (TUI) is the process of commanding the computer via body motion and gestures without touching a keyboard, mouse, or screen. For example, Microsoft's Kinect is a touchless game interface; however, products such as the Wii are not considered entirely touchless because they are tethered to controllers. Touchless interface in addition to gesture controls are becoming widely popular as they provide the abilities to interact with devices without physically touching them.

Types of touchless technology

There are a number of devices utilizing this type of interface such as, smartphones, laptops, games, and television. Although touchless technology is mostly seen in gaming softwares, interest is now spreading to other fields including, automotive and healthcare industries. Soon to come, touchless technology and gesture control will be implemented in cars in levels beyond voice recognition. See BMW Series 7.

Future of touchless technology

There are already a vast number of companies all over the world who are producing gesture recognition technology, such as:

Intel Corp.

White Paper: Explore Intel's user experience research, which shows how touchless multifactor authentication (MFA) can help healthcare organizations mitigate security risks while improving clinician efficiency, convenience, and patient care. This touchless MFA solution combines facial recognition and device recognition capabilities for two-factor user authentication. Read here.

Microsoft Corp. in the U.S.

The aim of the project then is to explore the use of touchless interaction within surgical settings, allowing images to be viewed, controlled and manipulated without contact through the use of camera-based gesture recognition technology. In particular, the project seeks to understand the challenges of these environments for the design and deployment of such systems, as well as articulate the ways in which these technologies may alter surgical practice. While our primary concerns here are with maintaining conditions of asepsis, the use of these touchless gesture-based technologies offers other potential uses.

Elliptic Labs

Elliptic Labs software suite delivers gesture and proximity functions by re-using the existing earpiece and microphone, previously used only for audio. Ultrasound signals sent through the air from speakers integrated in smartphones and tablets bounce against your hand/object/head and are recorded by microphones, also integrated in these devices. In this way, Elliptic Labs’ technology recognizes your hand gestures and uses them to move objects on a screen, similarly to the way bats use echolocation to navigate.

While these companies stand at the forefront of touchless technology for the future in this time, there are many other companies and products that are currently trending as well and may also add value to this new field. Here are some of many examples:

Tobii Rex: eye-tracking device from Sweden

Airwriting: technology that allows messages and texts to be written in the air

eyeSight: allows for navigation of a screen without physically touching the device

Leap Motion: motion sensor device

Myoelectric Armband: allows for communication of bluetooth devices