Finger mouse and gesture recognition system as a new human computer interface

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a new human computer interface which offers an alternative to traditional mouse and direct manipulation interfaces. This interface enables a user to specify commands and additional parameters by drawing single intuitive gestures with his finger. Most gesture-based interfaces researched so far have needed a mouse or stylus pen as a gesture input device. However, we believe that the idea of making gestures with a human finger appeals more to not only experienced users but also novice users who are usually not accustomed to using computer devices. This paper describes the finger mouse system (FMS) and finger gesture recognition system(FGRS). FMS emulates the functions of a mouse by capturing the image of a hand and analyzing its motion and shape. FGRS provides the user with the capabilities of command input and direct manipulation by recognizing the gesture input by FMS. We utilized Kalman filter-based tracking and syntactic pattern recognition techniques for implementing FMS and FGRS. In addition, we introduce an example drawing program in order to demonstrate the practicality of our approach. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.