Feel augmented reality with your hands via a revolutionary bracelet from Facebook

WASHINGTON – Social media giant Facebook has unveiled a prototype hand bracelet that can interact with the environment created by its ‘augmented reality’ glasses, soon to hit the market, through a combination of artificial intelligence and contribution of the nervous system of the wearer.

The company said in its blog post that bracelet wearers will be able to interact with the virtual world with the movements of their fingers.

But the biggest change will be the device’s ability to sense nerve signals to interpret complex hand gestures and movements.

The prototype AR console provides simple, gesture-based input equivalent to the click of a button.

This enables applications such as throwing a virtual bow and arrow, and with a wrist tap the device can come close to the feeling of pulling the bow string backwards.

And the portable augmented reality console, according to Facebook, will one day offer more advanced features, such as the ability to touch virtual interfaces and objects and capture virtual objects from a distance.

Ultimately, the technology will allow you to type on a virtual keyboard on a table or in your lap at a faster rate than is possible with a physical keyboard.

And Facebook has confirmed that the approach it uses with its wrist-based augmented reality controller is not the same as mind reading.

The command uses EMG, which uses sensors to translate nerve signals from the electric motor that travel from wrist to hand into digital commands that you can use to control device functions.

“What we’re trying to do with the neural interfaces is allow you to directly control the device, using the output of the peripheral nervous system – specifically the nerves outside the brain that move the muscles of the brain. hand and fingers, ”Facebook said.

And “Facebook” announced last September that it was about 5 to 10 years away from being able to bring to market “real” augmented reality glasses that would have imaginary capabilities, such as allowing people to see permanent shared virtual objects. . And to interact with it.

Today’s announcement is a step forward for Facebook in a fiercely contested race between tech giants such as Apple, Amazon and Google in an industry that believes glasses will completely replace smartphone functions in the long term. .