Gestural Technology: Moving Interfaces in a New Direction [Technology News]

Gesture-based interfaces - which let users control devices with, for example, hand or finger motions - are becoming increasingly popular. These interfaces utilize gesture-recognition algorithms to identify body movements. The systems then determine which device command a particular gesture represents and take the appropriate action. For example, moving a hand sideways might mean that a user wants to turn a page on an e-reader screen. Proponents say gesture recognition-which uses computer vision, image processing, and other techniques-is useful largely because it lets people communicate with a machine in a more natural manner, without a mouse or other intermediate device. Although the technology has long been discussed as a potentially useful, rich interface and several gesture-control products have been released over the years, it has never achieved mainstream status.