Yesterday, Google organized its I/O event to presentmany new features. A few days before, Alphabet announcedmaking “Gameface” available to Android developers.
The project was presented in 2023 by Google, and was initially intended for PC gamers. This is a controllable mouse with the face:
A new open source hands-free gaming mouse allows users to control a computer's cursor using head movements and facial gestures.
For example, she cantrigger a click when you blink, or allow us tomove the cursor when you open your mouth. Everyone chooses the parameters that suit them best.
Gameface was inspired by videographer Lance Carr, who lives with muscular dystrophy, a debilitating disease that severely weakens muscles. Which prevents him from fully enjoying video games with traditional equipment, but the man had found a solution.
In order to control the on-screen cursor, he used a head-tracking mouse. But unfortunately for him, his house burned down in 2021, while he was live on the Twitch platform. The flames destroyed all of his equipment, including the head-tracking mouse, which is very expensive.
Google says that after learning about the story, they “worked with Lance to co-design Project Gameface, a hands-free gaming mouse that uses open source solutions from Google MediaPipe.»
Now open to Android apps
To expand Gameface's capabilities, the Mountain View firm has partnered with Incluza, an Indian social enterprise specializing in accessibility. The objective of the partnership is to discover howGameface can help disabled users on a daily basis,whether at school, at work, or at home.Google ad :
We are launching a new way to start using an Android device. Based on the positive feedback on the Gameface project, we realized that developers and users liked the idea of moving a cursor with head movement and taking action via facial expressions.
Gameface can now be integrated into Android applications, as Google has just announced:
Now, we're making more code from the Gameface project available to help developers create Android apps and make every Android device more accessible. Using the device's camera, it seamlessly tracks facial expressions and head movements, translating them into intuitive, personalized control.
The code is freely available ongithuband developers can now use it.
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By : Keleops AG
