Meta and Shopify Launches New Hand-Tracking Innovations

As January comes to a close, it’s been a great month for extended reality (XR) advancements, particularly following the CES 2023 conference. As we move into February, companies like Shopify and Meta are unveiling new hand-tracking technologies for their users, furthering the progression of XR remodeling.

The hand-tracking technologies from Meta and Shopify utilize the Meta Quest line of VR headsets, specifically the Quest Pro and Quest models. These headsets are designed with cameras that track the user’s gestures and software duplicating them in a fully immersive domain.

Meta Launches Hand-Tracking Version 2.1

On Thursday, Meta rolled out an update to their hand-tracking technology, version 2.1, as part of the OS v47 update. This update brings significant improvements to the system, such as reducing the number of tracking losses, shortening recovery times, increasing the accuracy of positional prediction, and enhancing the overall connectivity of the device.

The update enhances Quest’s ability to monitor sharp movements in apps like fast-motion games and fitness. It also enhances interactions based on hand tracking and navigation for its users. It utilizes machine-learning tech to refine the platform’s interactions based on a pinch, making it more responsive and intuitive. This makes it easier for users to interact with virtual environments more naturally.

To ensure even greater accuracy in hand-tracking, Meta advises that Quest users take advantage of the Interaction SDK. This SDK contains an in-built library of elements used for controller-based and hand interactions, allowing users to create a fully customizable experience.

With this new update, v2.1, Meta also improves the pose prediction feature, allowing the Quest headset to recognize more intricate hand gestures. The update will be released in April 2023, and Meta will automatically update all Quests when the update becomes available.

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Shopify Launches Open-Source Handy Tool

Recently, eCommerce giant Shopify also released a hand-tracking update for Meta Quest users. They introduced an open-source tool called Handy that enables Quest users to monitor and input hand-motion info. The update simplifies and hastens the process of recording hand-tracking data for developers.

Handy allows users to import their captured data into Blender for animating models. It also utilizes Unity to generate alembic files that can be imported into Blender, creating a pragmatically animated hand model. This update is an excellent addition for developers and animators who want to make more realistic and immersive virtual experiences.

The featured image in this article was taken from PYMNTS.COM