Leap Motion Technology

The Leap was introduced by Leap Motion Inc. in May 2012 and is set to potentially revolutionize the way we interact with our computing devices like desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. This touch-free, motion sensing technology has been four years in the making and is set to become mainstream.

We have seen motion-sensing technology used in gaming systems like Microsoft's Xbox 360, as well as, Ninendo's Wii which help gamers use hand gestures to control these gaming devices, hands-free. However, the Leap goes beyond hand gestures and differentiates user's fingers and thumbs. This allows pinpoint accuracy, within 1/100th of a millimeter, giving the user higher precision in controlling computing devices.

On this web page, you will learn the details about the Leap? How the Leap works? How to set up the Leap? Uses of the Leap, and much more.

The Leap is a motion-sensing, touch-free device, the size of an iPod, which was developed by co-founder David Holtz. As per Leap Motion, the Leap is 200 times more sensitive than similar current motion-sensing technologies. Given that the Leap is accurate to within 1/100th of a millimeter, this device is great for controlling your desktop or laptop with touch-free natural hand and finger gestures.

This level of precision allows users to control computing devices with gestures like pinch-to-zoom, drag-and-drop, scrolling, grabbing, and the like. The Leap can track all ten fingers of the user as well as distinguish between fingers and thumbs including handheld writing instruments like a pen or a pencil.

The uses of the Leap are as far as your creativity can take you. Currently, the Leap is being used for basic computing tasks like navigating desktops and laptops, surfing the internet, virtual 2D and 3D art, working with virtual 3D models, playing computer games, and the like. Essentially, the Leap device allows you users to turn their desktop or laptop screen into a touch-screen like display.

As developers embrace this technology, we can expect to see an increased number of leap-based applications like use in the heath-care industry, robotics, CAD (computer-aided design), creating real virtual environments, simulation - when it comes to the Leap, the possibilities are endless.

Priced at $70, it will make this practical technology affordable to consumers.

The video below shows the Leap motion-sensing device in action while the user controls and navigates a desktop computer using natural hand and finger gestures including using a pencil to draw and write.

To set up the Leap, you have to plug it into a USB port. Once connected, the Leap can be calibrated according to the user's preference.

This allows flexibility to customize the device in controlling computing devices with natural hand and finger movements. Also, given that the Leap is precise, users can fine-tune the device's sensitivity settings in order to customize their own natural hand and finger movements.

Once the Leap has been set up, it creates a 3D interaction space of approximately 8 cubic feet. As indicated earlier, the Leap motion-sensing device is so precise that it senses all ten fingers of the user including differentiating between thumbs and fingers as well as tracking movements of writing instruments like pens and pencils.

Currently, the Leap is compatible with systems operating Windows 7, Windows 8, or Apple's Mac OS X. It also supports native touch emulation in Windows 8. As per Leap Motion, the device will include support for the Linux operating system in the future.

^{Images on this web page are copyrighted by Leap Motion Inc. and used with permission.}