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Technology giant Hewlett-Packard and motion control software and hardware specialist Leap Motion announced a collaboration to bring 3D motion control to certain HP devices, starting with Leap’s controller bundled with select HP products and eventually expanding to HP devices embedded with Leap Motion’s technology.
Leap’s proprietary technology, invented by company co-founder David Holz, can track the movement of both hands and all 10 fingers with what the company claims is up to 1/100th millimeter accuracy and no visible latency. The technology is designed to let users employ natural movements to interact with a computer, browse the Web or use motion-control applications.
“Our focus at Leap Motion is to fundamentally improve how people interact with their devices, and offer as many ways as possible to achieve that vision,” Leap Motion co-founder and CEO Michael Buckwald said in a statement. “The possibilities for innovation are incredible, when you think about what will come from this collaboration between two respected global leaders in their fields—HP, the world’s largest technology company, and Leap Motion, creator of the world’s most powerful 3D motion-control technology.”
Leap Motion-enabled HP devices will come preloaded with Airspace, Leap’s application store, which will offer a range of software across gaming, music, education, art, productivity and other fields. The device itself is 3 inches long but provides 8 cubic feet of interactive, three-dimensional space above it, and it offers a wide 150-degree field of view and a Z-axis for depth.
“Your canvas is as big as your vision. Build 3D models with your hands. Sketch, draw, and paint with your finger. Sculpt as easily as you would do with clay,” the Leap site proposes. “You can even use real pencils and paintbrushes. The Leap Motion Controller is the best way to create just about anything, because you create everything by hand.”
The controller also knows the difference between fingers. It can tell an index from a pinky from a thumb, and when the user switches between them. It even understands when users bend, flip or fold their hands, according to the company’s Website.
It will begin shipping to consumers on May 13, and a company release said shipping will be prioritized by preorder date. It will launch exclusively in the United States at Best Buy stores on May 19. The platform will support operating system interactions with Microsoft Windows 7 and 8, and Apple’s Mac OS X 10.7 and 10.8 editions.
“Customers want to go to the next level when creating and interacting with digital content,” Ron Coughlin, senior vice president and general manager of consumer PCs at HP, said in a statement. “Leap Motion’s groundbreaking 3D motion control combined with HP technology and amazing developer apps will create incredible user experiences.”