Google develops app that allows user operates gadgets with gestures

Called Project Soli, the system identifies subtle finger movements using radar built into tiny microchips. And leading researcher Ivan Poupyrev told MailOnline his team’s breakthrough will be a complete “game changer.”Mr Poupyrev heads up the a team of designers and developers at Google’s secretive Advanced Technology and Projects lab in San Francisco. He said: “Using […]

Called Project Soli, the system identifies subtle finger movements using radar built into tiny microchips.
And leading researcher Ivan Poupyrev told MailOnline his team’s breakthrough will be a complete “game changer.”
Mr Poupyrev heads up the a team of designers and developers at Google’s secretive Advanced Technology and Projects lab in San Francisco.
He said: “Using a tiny, microchip-based radar to track hand movements we can now track the minutest movements and twitches of the human hand to interact with computers and wearable devices.
“The whole world is becoming a gadget that we interact with, with software everywhere, which raises the question how can we react with the entire world?”
The Russian inventor’s reply is to track our finger movements creating virtual dials, touchpads, and more.
Project Soli uses invisible radar emanating from a microchip to recognise finger movements.
In particular, it uses broad beam radar to recognise movement, velocity and distance.
It works using the 60Ghz radar spectrum at up to 10,000 frames per seconds.  
These movements are then translated into commands that mimic touches on a screen.
The chips, developed with German manufacturer Infineon, are small enough to be embedded into wearables and other devices.
The biggest challenge was said to be to have been to shrink a shoebox-sized radar – typically used by police in speed traps – into something tiny enough to fit on a microchip.
Inspired by advances in communications being readied for next-generation Wi-Fi called Wi-Gig, leading researcher Ivan Poupyrev’s team shrank the components of a radar down to millimetres in just 10 months. 
Camera-based sensors are already available, such as Leap Motion, that can capture gestures, but these are cumbersome and require additional hardware, pointed out Mr Poupyrev.
The beauty of Google’s system is that it uses invisible radar emanating from a chip that can be embedded into just about anything.
The team said its biggest challenge was to shrink a shoebox-sized radar – typically used by police in speed traps – into something tiny enough to fit on a microchip.
Inspired by advances in communications being readied for next-generation Wi-Fi called Wi-Gig, Mr Poupyrev’s team shrank the components of a radar down to millimetres in just 10 months, while working with German chip maker Infineon.
Such radar-embedded chips are now ready for mass production, continued Mr Poupyrev.
“It is incredible how simple Soli is, there are no camera tracking; you can put it anywhere you want,” he said.
“It can be part of furniture, part of cars, a wearable computer, a watch, toys – anywhere people want to connect with devices it will be useful.”
Soli technology could also help people to interact with the objects in virtual reality (VR) worlds and games.