Young Harvill

A hand gesture interface device

This paper reports on the development of a hand to machine interface device that provides real-time gesture, position and orientation information. The key element is a glove and the device as a whole incorporates a collection of technologies. Analog flex sensors on the glove measure finger bending. Hand position and orientation are measured either by ultrasonics, providing five degrees of freedom, or magnetic flux sensors, which provide six degrees of freedom. Piezoceramic benders provide the wearer of the glove with tactile feedback. These sensors are mounted on the light-weight glove and connected to the driving hardware via a small cable. Applications of the glove and its component technologies include its use in conjunction with a host computer which drives a real-time 3-dimensional model of the hand allowing the glove wearer to manipulate computer-generated objects as if they were real, interpretation of finger-spelling, evaluation of hand impairment in addition to providing an interface to a visual programming language.

Reality built for two: a virtual reality tool

Researchers have been working with head mounted displays and virtual reality (VR) since 1965 when Ivan Sutherland published his first paper on the subject1. This work has centered on a single user within virtual space. The literature has covered applications such as telerobotics, virtual control panels, architectural simulation and scientific visualization.Several factors now militate toward broadening the range of VR applications: developments in hardware and software, as well as a growing readiness in many fields to incorporate VR. User interface constraints of VR systems need to change in response to this changing user profile. Design of environments and behaviors in virtual worlds should be simple and accessible to experts in many fields. With the advent of multi-user systems, communications will become a major application of virtual reality.VPL has recently developed a system that allows more than one user to share a virtual space. The forms and behaviors of virtual worlds are specified graphically, so that non-programmers can design them. The system, called Reality Built for Two, will be demonstrated at the Symposium on Interactive 3D Graphics.

From DataGlove to DataSuit

The development of an interface system that captures, records, and renders to the movement of the human body is reported. Sensors on the DataSuit, a garment covering the body from neck to ankles, register the position and orientation of the joints of the body. An absolute positioning system tracks the movement of the individual in six degrees of freedom within the room is reported. Applications of the DataSuit include use as a user input device for teleoperation, telepresence, human performance modeling, and animation.<<ETX>>