Toshiba chip has game possibilities

The processor recognizes gestures in real time and can display kinetic, 3D objects on a PC. Toshiba says, "The motion processor's ability to recognize and detect the movements of hand images points the way to a more natural, gesture-based interface between people and computers."

Toshiba sees the first commercial applications of this processor in easing computer access for the handicapped and creating an interface for children that is easier to use than the keyboard.

The crux of Toshiba's technology is that its motion processor can detect a hand against any kind of background, however complex, and display it in real time as a moving 3D image. That means, perhaps, no more need for motion-capture studios or wires and sensors attached to gloves.

Toshiba's sensor uses infrared light to detect the movement of a hand (or other object).

Toshiba says that its prototype motion processor "consists of eight light emitting diodes (LED), a lens, a C-MOS image sensor, and a dedicated LSI that synchronizes transmission and reception of the light signal. It delivers a seven-bit, 64x64 pixel image to the PC, at a rate of 30 or 50 frames a second. The processor has an object range from 30 to 90cm and covers an area 40 centimeters square."

The company has already tested the processor by playing a game of rock, paper, scissors against a computer, and in a virtual conductor game, in which different hand movements generate various sounds.