Microsoft Tech to Control Computers with a Flex of a Finger
From: Read Write Web - 07/30/2012
By: Mark Hachman 

Controlling computers through finger movements is the focus of Microsoft's
development of electromyography (EMG) controlled computing technology. The
company recently applied for a patent on a wearable electromyography-based
controller, claiming that an EMG sensor is a universal technique for
controlling any computing device. Such a sensor can detect electrical
impulses generated by motor neurons, and the Microsoft patent proposes to
interpret these impulses without requiring a physical interface. The EMG
sensors could be incorporated into devices or garments, and Microsoft's
application aims to tackle the problem of calibration. Since muscles, fat,
and skin can interfere with signal detection, either a single sensor has to
be well positioned or a network of sensors must engage with each other to
interpret the signals. The sensors would link wirelessly to a central
controller or hub that would function as the point for communicating with
external devices. Microsoft suggests this hub could be something similar to a
smartphone or an integrated device such as a wristwatch. The company's
favored EMG controller is an armband outfitted with a ring of vibrating
elements around the edge, which would buzz to signal the acceptance of a user
command. 

Read the entire article at:
http://www.readwriteweb.com:80/archives/microsoft-tech-to-control-computers-with-a-flex-of-a-finger.php

Links:
Real-Time Camera Tracking Using Depth Maps - Patent
http://appft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PG01&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=%2220120196679%22.PGNR.&OS=DN/20120196679&RS=DN/20120196679

Enabling Always-Available Input with Muscle-Computer Interfaces (2009 video 2:40)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1agrUM4KYs