It certainly seems as if hand-tracking it going to play a big part in the future of virtual reality (VR) input. Both Oculus VR and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) have purchased companies specialising in this field over the past few years in both Nimble VR and SoftKinetic respectively. Leap Motion, however, is undeniably one of the leaders in this type of technology. Today, the company is announcing Orion, a new software and hardware initiative that aims to deliver the fastest, most accurate hand-tracking yet to VR systems. A new video for the concept can be seen below.
On the hardware side, Orion will include new embeddable tech for VR and augmented reality (AR) head-mounted displays (HMDs). When it comes to software, however, it’s set to offer faster tracking that can read hands from a greater distance and lower latency in replicating movements. It’s also more sensitive, and Leap Motion has strived to create a system that more easily separates hands from background objects. A software Beta is going live for developers today so that they can try these new features for themselves, while the company is working with OEMs to integrate its new hardware with HMDs.
“Orion software represents a paradigm shift in how we do hand tracking,” David Holz, Leap Motion Co-founder and CTO said. “It’s built from the ground up specifically for VR. It’s radically smoother, faster, more reliable, and far more capable than even the best of what’s existed before.”
“Because this shift is so stark, we’re making Orion software available on our peripheral starting today so developers can begin exploring a totally new generation of experiences in virtual reality.”
The video below showcases Leap Motion’s Block demo, now enhanced with Orion software that enables players to quickly, effectively interact with and create blocks.
For the latest updates on Leap Motion’s work with VR, keep reading VRFocus.
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