Found on Contagious - Mouse No More - 22/04/2008The bizarre technologies of Minority Report are becoming increasingly likely every time we look up. Microsoft’s Surface technology was followed quickly by its miniature parallel the iPhone and now even musical loon Björk is touring with a reacTable. This kind of advanced interactivity is now coming to websites, thanks to UK design agency Clusta who have developed what they claim is the first ever commercial website to be navigated and controlled by movement, picked up via webcam.
The technology has been developed for Publicis and Hal Riney (www.hrp.com) with a demo hosted at http://hrp.clusta.com. The site is controlled by waving your hands to virtually touch or swipe the screen, connecting with ‘hotspots’ to navigate through different areas of the site.
Matthew Clugston, creative director at Clusta told Contagious: ‘Clusta is trying to create a more immersive and engaging experience for users - this is obviously something very valuable to both brands and businesses. Hal Riney were brave enough to utilise a technology ordinarily only seen in the games community - but the publicity and the immersiveness we managed to create for the user has paid off for them.’
Clusta hopes that the site could put an end to Repetitive Strain Injury or even lead the way for a computer interface based entirely around gestures and movements. The next step for the technology is to recognise speed of movement and then develop the grabbing and dropping of objects around the screen.
Clugston continues: ‘From there, we’re moving into the realms of virtual shopping where consumers will conceivably be able to virtually walk around a fully functioning digitally created music store to pick up their latest 3D movies. Such technology is closer than many people think and we’re working hard to make that day a not-too-distant reality.’
Philip K. Dick would approve.
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