Nose-Steered Mouse Could Save Aching Arms
From: New Scientist - 09/16/2004
By: Celeste Biever

Dmirty Gorodnichy of Canada's Institute of Information Technology has created
the "nouse," a tool that enables PC users to navigate using the movements of
their nose and eye blinks. The nouse can navigate around 2D computer software
using a single Webcam and 3D software with two Webcams. The interface is
equipped with tracking software that observes the image captured by the
Webcam to determine where a user's nose is pointing, and produces signals
that drive the movement of the cursor; the nouse camera takes a picture of
the user at the beginning of a session, and from this image it extracts
approximately 25 pixels comprising the tip of the nose and reads each pixel's
luminosity levels. Meanwhile, motion detection software registers eye blinks
to trigger activations similar to mouse clicks. Earlier face-tracking
interfaces focusing on the user's eyebrows or mouth can run into trouble
because the tracking points can become distorted when the angle changes even
slightly, a problem the nouse does not have because the software can discern
the tip of the nose's distinctive pixel pattern from any angle, according to
Gorodnichy. In the journal Image and Vision Computing, Gorodnichy explains
that the technology could have applications in video gaming and virtual
environment navigation; he also envisions the nouse as a helpful tool for
disabled users. Cybernet System's Charles Cohen believes Gorodnichy's
invention will probably complement the traditional mouse and keyboard, while
Jupiter Research analyst Joe Laszlo doubts that users will take the nouse
seriously. 

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http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99996400