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Leap motion, the very nifty hand gesture tracker for computers has just announced its future VR plans.

I tried the Leap Motion some time ago and although it is a really great tool, I ended up not using it very often.

I use my laptop in the most unusual places, on the floor, on the daybed, on the balcony, but almost never at a desk and I either spend time typing or in Second Life, so for me it was not something I was going to use a lot.

However I did immediately spot the potential and have always felt that this is where the future for VR is.

Having to wave controllers or other plastic toys around while being attached to a bunch of wires just isn’t the way forward.

I imagined 3D scanning devices that would simply scan your movements, hand, body, everything and translate that into VR.

You can have your hands, all 5 fingers, work inside VR, why would you need anything else?

Today Leap Motion’s co-founder David Holz posted a blog on their website talking about a series of development especially for Virtual Reality.

They brilliantly stuck their sensor to an Oculus Rift and continued working on the options and possibilities this offers.

They are also using infrared images the sensor picks up and combine these with what you see in VR.

I won’t bore you with just copying everything that was written on the blog, I just invite you to read it yourself here.

But a very interesting video accompanied the blog and I couldn’t resist sharing it;

Tracking is moving along rapidly, I think that eventually we will end up with a tiny device such as the Leap Motion that will translate all our hand but also body movements into VR, but will also register the movements of our mouths and even eyes, so it can translate facial expressions.

Something like what what the people at High Fidelity are experimenting with.

We won’t need to carry, hold or wear anything but the headset and a small sensor, no suits, no gloves, no controllers, nothing.

Although perhaps a small omnidirectional treadmill might be desired.

I wonder if perhaps with the new technology, the Leap Motion can eventually also track your leg movements and posture, that would create a lot of new possibilities.
You could pretend to walk and actually walk in VR, regardless of how dangerous this could be if you don’t make sure you don’t bump into stuff, it could make walking in VR a lot easier.

Can you imagine the potential this has in a massive virtual world such as Second Life?

No more having to click to use items, just push that door, turn that handle, flick that switch, slap that rude man in the face!

leap motion