Google took advantage of the Google I / O held yesterday to announce through a post on its blog the landing of Project Gameface on Android. With it, we will be able to control our smartphone through gestures made with our face. Without physically interacting with him. We tell you all the details.
Google announced in Google I/O 2023 Project Gameface. With it, we could use our computer’s cursor using only the movement of our head and different facial gestures. Initially, this project focused solely on the field of video games and was developed to work in the desktop environment. However, yesterday Google announced its landing on Android as well.
Gameface arrives at Android devices as an open source system that allows us to interact with our Android mobile phone without having to touch it. To do this, we only have to use a series of movements with our head, or make different expressions, to be able to carry out all kinds of actions, as the following video shows.
How does it work
To make it compatible on Android, Google has made use of an API facial landmark detection. With it, our smartphone can identify all types of gestures and movements using the front camera that our smartphone incorporates. Once each of our movements is recorded, the system itself translates them into a series of actions that can be performed on our device.
One of the peculiarities of the system is that, as Google announces, the catalog of actions is completely customizable. Therefore, each of them will be 100% adapted to the specific needs of each user specific. Covering a wide range of possibilities in this regard.
The API includes a total of 52 different values that reflect the expressiveness of 52 facial gestures. Some of the examples that Google cites are, for example, raising one of the two eyebrows to click and drag or opening the mouth to move the mouse cursor and move it to the other side.
In the hands of the developers
Google has made the decision to release Project Gameface code so that developers can start working with it and offer new resources to users, as stated in the published note: “Developers can now create apps where their users can configure their experience by customizing facial expressions, gesture size, cursor speed, and more”.
Initially, as we have already anticipated, Gameface was dedicated entirely to the field of video games. However, Google has reconsidered its decision and its goal is to impact all types of contexts. For this reason, it has partnered with Incluzza, a social organization in India, which is focused on aspects related to accessibility. The idea is to be able to expand its possibilities to all types of environments that can simplify the daily lives of people with mobility problems, extending the solution to work, school or any other social environment.
