What is motion input? 

Plus three disciplines in which motion input is being used.

Many of today’s computers, mobile devices, and game devices support motion input. With motion input, sometimes called gesture recognition, users can guide on-screen elements using air gestures. Air gestures involve moving your body or a handheld input device through the air. With motion input, a device containing a camera detects your gesture and then converts it to a digital signal that is sent to a computer, mobile, or game device. For example, a gamer can swing their arm or a controller to simulate rolling a bowling ball down a lane toward the pins.

Until a few years ago, the idea of controlling a computer by waving your hands was seen only in Hollywood science fiction movies. Today, the entertainment industry (such as for gaming and animating movies), the military, and the medical field have found uses for motion input. 

Entertainment - Motion-sensing devices communicate with a game console or a personal computer using wired or wireless technology. The console or computer translates a player’s natural gestures, facial movements, and full-body motion into input. Although these devices originally were intended for gaming, developers are working on adapting them or using similar technology outside of the gaming and entertainment industry. Motion-sensing game controllers enable a user to guide on-screen elements by moving a handheld input device through the air. Examples include handheld devices that enable gamers to use sweeping arm movements to simulate sports activities such as a tennis swing, balance boards that judge stability and motion when holding yoga poses, and remote control attachments, such as a steering wheel used to guide a car along a race course. 

Some controllers track peripheral motion within a specific area. With these devices, users can move their finger to draw or move their whole body to dance or exercise. Some use a device that can track small finger gestures, enabling users to be more precise in their movements. 

Facial motion capture converts people’s facial movements into digital format while they talk, smile, and more. Animators, for example, use the digital data to simulate facial movements to create realistic gaming avatars, or computer-generated characters in movies. Facial movements, however, are more subtle and difficult to detect. Thus, the technology used for capturing facial motions requires more precision and a higher resolution than that required by gaming devices. 

Military - The Military uses of motion input include training, such as flight simulation or weapon usage. To ensure safety, trainees maneuver a helicopter or other device using motion input from a remote location. Motion input also aids in physical rehabilitation for wounded soldiers by providing a method for conducting physical therapy exercises outside of a military hospital. Another use of motion input is to assist in recovery from post-traumatic stress disorder. Sufferers of this ailment can use avatars and simulators to work through scenarios in a comfortable environment. 

Medical Field - The medical field also uses motion input for training. For example, surgeons can practice new technologies in a simulated environment. Using motion input that enhances movements, surgeons also can operate using less invasive open surgeries. Surgeons even operate remotely, enabling experts to manipulate surgical devices and share their expertise to save lives around the world.