Will Gesture be the User Interface of the Future?

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By David Sternis, Business Development Japan and Asim Muhammad: Marketing Manager Europe, Panasonic Electric Works.
 
 
Digital signage all too often consists of a slide-show or video feed, almost like a static poster replacement. Yet companies and brands are always looking for that WOW effect to stand out, create awareness and engage their customers’ with their digital messages. Enhancing brand experiences and building relationships with customers can only happen when you add value to their experiences. The future of digital signage is about creating rich, immersive and interactive user experiences and future user interfaces will be focused on gesture and touch.
 
Panasonic’s D-IMager has been designed to usher in a new era of interactivity in digital signage. D-IMager is a time-of-flight (ToF) sensor which is able to capture precisely and in real time the scene’s depth information by measuring with high precision pixel by pixel distance data. Processing this 3D data and performing accurate motion capture can enable state-of-the-art gesture controlled applications for digital entertainment. The unit is capable of resolving 160x120 pixels (up to 30 frames per second).
 
The core technology of the product is composed of a patented CCD device. It uses advanced, near-infrared LEDs to emit light into a given area, which is reflected by objects and detected by the CCD. When an object draws nearer or moves away, the delay between when the light is emitted and detected changes. By comparing such image data on a pixel-by-pixel basis, the D-IMager ascertains changes in distance precisely and in real time.
 
In addition, a proprietary background light suppression feature was developed, in order to operate the sensor in strong ambient light conditions, and even under direct sunlight. The current type can withstand 20,000 Lux illumination, but up to 100 KLux models are in final development stages. The subtraction of the ambient light is done ‘in-pixel’.
 

 
Consider the scene in a shopping mall. Displays in a shop window showing the brand and retail offerings are connected with the D-Imager. As soon as a passerby walks close to the window a message bubble follows them in real time with a message saying ‘Special 20% Discount today, come in and find out’. This message will grab the person’s attention far more than a static sign reading ‘20% Discount’ would, because it is interacting with them. If more than one person is walking by at the same time, they will each get their own message bubble. Audience engagement could not be better.
 
Recently, Ford launched an outdoor augmented reality campaign in the UK using the D-IMager. Ten units are employed in this innovative and interactive campaign to promote the new Ford Family car ‘C-MAX’. Created by a digital production company Grand Visual, the campaign allows potential customers to explore Ford’s Grand C-MAX using natural body movements. Users can interact with the car, choose colour, open doors, fold seats, turn the car 360 degrees and select demos of the car’s key features such as Active Park Assist.
 
Ford displayed them in selected shopping malls for a duration of 2 weeks. This was the UK’s first ever outdoor augmented reality campaign using 3D depth imaging technology. No markers or controllers were used. The user interface, based on hand gestures, allowed any passerby to start interacting with the content immediately. The technology precisely measures the user’s real-time depth output and Inition’s augmented reality software merges the lifelike footage with the Grand C-MAX on screen.
 
We are bound to see more and more digital signage projects employing technology such as this to create a truly interactive immersive experience which will drive business for customers.