Device and method for determining gesture and operation method of gesture determining device

• US 9,317,744 B2
• Filed: 07/02/2015
• Issued: 04/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PixArt Imaging Incorporated
• Original Assignee: PixArt Imaging Incorporated
• Inventors: Huang, Yu-Hao, Kao, Ming-Tsan, Huang, Sen-Huang, Chen, Nien-Tse, Hsu, En-Feng, Chen, Yi-Yuan
• Primary Examiner(s): FUJITA, KATRINA R
• Application Number:
  US14/791,231
• Publication Number:
  US 20150310266A1
• Time in Patent Office: 292 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30196 Human being; Person
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/113 Recognition of static hand signs
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/20 Movements or behaviour, e.g. gesture recognition recognition of facial expressions G06V40/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/28 Recognition of hand or arm movements, e.g. recognition of deaf sign language static hand signs G06V40/113

Abstract

A device for determining a gesture includes a light emitting unit, an image sensing device and a processing circuit. The light emitting unit emits a light beam. The image sensing device captures an image of a hand reflecting the light beam. The processing circuit obtains the image and determines a gesture of the hand by performing an operation on the image; wherein the operation includes: selecting pixels in the image having a brightness greater than or equal to a brightness threshold; dividing the selected pixels; and determining the gesture of the hand according to a number of group of divided pixels. A method for determining a gesture and an operation method of the aforementioned device are also provided.

Claims

1. A device for determining a gesture, comprising:

a light emitting unit configured to emit a light beam;

an image sensing device configured to capture an image of a hand reflecting the light beam; and

a processing circuit, electrically connected to the image sensing device, configured to obtain the image and determine a gesture of the hand by performing an operation on the image;

wherein the operation comprises steps of;

selecting pixels in the image having a brightness greater than or equal to a brightness threshold, wherein the image of the hand is composed by a plurality of areas different in brightness due to these areas have different distances relative to the light emitting unit;

dividing the selected pixels into a number of group of divided pixels; and

determining the gesture of the hand according to the number of group of divided pixels.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the processing circuit sorts the selected pixels along a first coordinate axes or a second coordinate axes of the image or according to the brightness of the selected pixels.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines that the hand has a first gesture if the selected pixels are divided into one group.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines that the hand has a V-shaped gesture if the selected pixels are divided into two groups.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the processing circuit determines that the hand has a five-open-finger gesture if the selected pixels are divided into at least three groups.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to output a corresponding gesture information after the gesture of the hand is determined.

7. An operation method for a gesture determining device, the gesture determining device comprising a light emitting unit and an image sensing device, the operation method comprising:

configuring the light emitting unit to emit a light beam to illuminate a hand;

configuring the image sensing device to capture an image of the hand reflecting the light beam;

selecting pixels in the image having a brightness greater than or equal to a brightness threshold, wherein the image of the hand is composed by a plurality of areas different in brightness due to these areas have different distances relative to the light emitting unit;

dividing the selected pixels into a number of group of divided pixels; and

determining a gesture of the hand according to the number of group of divided pixels.

8. The operation method according to claim 7, wherein the selected pixels are sorted along a first coordinate axes or a second coordinate axes of the image or according to the brightness of the selected pixels.

9. The operation method according to claim 7, wherein the gesture is determined as a first gesture if the selected pixels are divided into one group.

10. The operation method according to claim 7, wherein the gesture is determined as a V-shaped gesture if the selected pixels are divided into two groups.

11. The operation method according to claim 7, wherein the gesture is determined as a five-open-finger gesture if the selected pixels are divided into at least three groups.

12. The operation method according to claim 7, wherein the gesture determining device outputs a corresponding gesture information after the gesture of the hand is determined.

13. A method for determining a gesture, comprising:

emitting a light beam to illuminate a hand through a light emitting unit;

capturing an image of the hand reflecting the light beam;

selecting pixels in the image having a brightness greater than or equal to a brightness threshold, wherein the image of the hand is composed by a plurality of areas different in brightness due to these areas have different distances relative to the light emitting unit;

dividing the selected pixels into a number of group of divided pixels; and

determining a gesture of the hand according to the number of group of divided pixels.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the selected pixels are sorted along a first coordinate axes or a second coordinate axes of the image or according to the brightness of the selected pixels.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the gesture is determined as a first gesture if the selected pixels are divided into one group.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein the gesture is determined as a V-shaped gesture if the selected pixels are divided into two groups.

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein the gesture is determined as a five-open-finger gesture if the selected pixels are divided into at least three groups.