Amazon has revealed that it is working on hand-based checkout terminals that it is going to sell to other stores, such as coffee shops or fast-food restaurants having a lot repeat customers.

Researchers develop accurate hand recognition in VR using 'deep learning'

Headsets may be one of the main features of virtual and augmented reality, but your hands play quite a big role too.

That’s why Purdue University researchers have developed a new system, DeepHand, that uses deep learning to represent the human hand in VR, understanding its complex joint angles and contortions in real time.

The researchers behind the project say there will be a need for improved hand recognition for computer systems that allow people to interact with virtual environments in future virtual and augmented reality.

DeepHand uses a depth-sensing camera to capture the user’s hand and specialised algorithms then interpret hand motions.

“It’s called a spatial user interface because you are interfacing with the computer in space instead of on a touch screen or keyboard,” Dr Karthik Ramani of the School of Mechanical engineering says.

  Information can now be obtained by reading gestures. Although when you read a person’s gestures you may not be able to get an accurate idea about what is their mind, gesture recognition software can still prove to be very useful. Gestures are now considered to be more than a means to highlight or accentuate parts of speech. They are now considered to be a language.

Researchers have been able to use gestures to control a device. They have developed gesture recognition software which can make computers do certain things based on the gestures made by the computer user. This new technology has unlimited and very useful possibilities. Gesture recognition software can be used in various applications and in particular can be very useful for people who suffer from different disabilities.

If a person is unable to use their hands or certain parts of their bodies then they can with the help of gesture recognition software make a computer respond in the proper way. Computers are designed to read the eye movement of the user and they can also read a person’s lips. A camera helps to make the computer recognition software effective. The camera will generate info which the computer can then interpret. Different gestures can be used to make the computer do certain things.

Gesture recognition software is also very useful in other ways including in the medicine field. Doctors as well as surgeons can use this software to access information in real time. However, they have to use very specific gestures in order to gain access to the information. Such an ability to gain access to information through gestures is also invaluable because it is a major advancement in terms of sterility. Since the doctor will be relying on gestures and not on having to touch a touch-screen or keyboard they will not be contaminating their hands and hence will be able to perform their duties in a more sterile manner.

Gesture recognition software can also be used in the entertainment business and it is also a means to communicate in a better way. An example of gesture recognition software can be seen when you see the weatherperson on TV making gestures which will instantly make the weather map change. Similarly, this software is also used in immersive video games in which players can interact with the game through gestures instead of with the help of a joystick or controller.