Sony Move, Microsoft Kinect accelerate wider use of gesture control
Gesture control, featured in the Sony Move and Microsoft Kinect video game systems launched at the 2010 E3 conference, are just the start of gesture-based interfaces, say researchers and industry professionals.
E3 2010 conference attendees play with the gesture-based Kinect on the Xbox 360 on Tuesday in Los Angeles.
Vince Bucci/AP
Los Angeles
E3 鈥� the video game industry鈥檚 annual confab 鈥� is over. And while Sony and Microsoft debuted their new hands-free gaming systems, "Move" and "Kinect," hoping to win bragging rights before they go on sale in the fall, the real message for the rest of us is that the age of gesture control is officially
upon us.
And that age has arrived not just for the gaming enthusiast eager to control entire virtual worlds with a real-life kick or punch, but for, well, everyone, say analysts, industry professionals and researchers. Whether it鈥檚 an emergency body sensor that sends paramedics to a security guard who collapses on duty, a bridge repairman who guides tools through a complicated fix without ever touching them, or a movie fan who stops at a digital movie poster to 鈥渢hrow鈥� digital fireballs at the film鈥檚 star while he waits for a bus, it鈥檚 hands-off time all over.
With even some of the most powerful, sophisticated, and expensive technology on the planet, buttons and wires are fast becoming passe. Forget the remote,
the controller or even the simple on-off button. Dance lessons may help more. It鈥檚 all about the wave of a hand, the crook of a finger, or the jaunty kick of a leg.
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鈥淭he demand for this technology is just blossoming into the mainstream,鈥� says Wayne Meyer, MEMS Marketing and Applications Manager for Analog Devices, Inc., a manufacturer of the tiny chips that run everything from farm equipment to iPhones. The type of products doesn't seem to matter, he says, adding, 鈥渆veryone wants to be able to say they have this application somewhere in their system.鈥�
Motion-sensing technology has been around in tailored applications such as airbags for decades. But the recent success of gesture-run software in gaming systems such as the Nintendo Wii and the now-familiar 鈥減inch and spread鈥� smart phone navigation feature has propelled it into the mainstream, says researcher Mark Bolas of the University of Southern California鈥檚 Institute for Creative Technologies, where his work is funded by the Department of Defense. Microsoft funds his work as an associate professor in the Interactive Media Division of the University's Cinema School.
The adoption pattern is similar to that of many other new technologies, he says.
鈥淲e are in the early phases of a new technology,鈥� he says. Most of the new gesture-driven games on display at this past week鈥檚 E3 simply replace the actions once taken by analog buttons with arm waves and leg jabs. This is typical, he says.
What the video game industry lends to the evolutionary curve is economies of scale, points out Steve Birnhak, CEO of the firm Inwindow Outdoor, which creates gesture-controlled outdoor displays not unlike the famous 鈥�.鈥� Passers-by can direct elements in the display without touching any part of it. The company founder says his systems use essentially the same camera at the heart of the new Microsoft Kinect setup, but his low-volume creations can cost thousands apiece. The software giant will buy in massive quantities that will drive prices down and encourage new uses for the technology.
At the same time, gaming enthusiasts are prodding Microsoft and Sony to refine their own applications. Lag time is critical when you are, say, hoping to shoot or bomb the bad guy, points out social media entrepreneur Alex Huf. Traditional game controllers had driven that critical gap between pressing a button and realizing an impact onscreen to a nearly imperceptible level. With the new gesture-recognition technology, he adds, the companies are struggling with as much as a quarter second gap.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 really not acceptable,鈥� says Mr. Huf, adding that the pressure from a $35 billion industry to get that right will inevitably lead to an innovation curve that trickles down to other applications. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e spending as much as $60 million to launch a single game, you will do what it takes to get that right,鈥� he adds.
The next phase, in which a critical mass of investment and sheer 鈥渦biquitousness,鈥� will help push the innovation pace, 鈥済ets interesting,鈥� says Mr. Bolas, "when the artists come in and begin to dream up things that we never thought of doing before.鈥�
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