Kinect Launching a Surgical Revolution

Manipulating virtual images in no touch environments:

 " .... virtual images can be difficult to retrieve and manipulate. A surgeon can't use a mouse or keyboard, because they are unsterile and pose a risk of infection. A surgeon can give instructions to someone else, who then can operate a mouse or keyboard, but the surgeon must break concentration to say, "Right ... right ... up a little ... OK."

" ... Now, a team at Microsoft Research Cambridge consisting of social scientists, computer scientists, and designers has used the Kinect for Windows hardware and SDK to simplify this process. It enables doctors to use simple hand gestures to change, move, or zoom in on CT scans, MRIs, and other medical images. In initial development, the Kinect for Windows-based system has thrilled surgeons who have seen it and who believe it could help make surgery faster and more accurate. 

The hope is that these systems will deliver better outcomes to patients when fully field-tested and approved.  The project, called Touchless Interaction in Medical Imaging, to bring Kinect for Windows into surgical suites has been guided by Helena Mentis, a Philadelphia native and a postdoctoral researcher with the Socio-Digital Systems group at the Cambridge lab. ... "