Kinect for Windows Features
Kinect for Xbox 360 changed the way people play games and experience entertainment. Now, Kinect for Windows is transforming how people interact with computers, kiosks, and other motion-controlled devices. From healthcare and physical therapy to retail, education, and training, Kinect for Windows is making it possible for computers to work for us instead of the other way around.
Kinect for Windows sensor
The Kinect for Windows sensor is optimized for use with computers and devices running Windows 8, Windows 7, and Windows Embedded-based devices. Features of the sensor include:
Near modeEnables the sensor’s camera to see objects as close as 40 centimeters in front of the device without losing accuracy or precision, with graceful degradation out to 3 meters.
Support and software updatesThe Kinect for Windows sensor includes a one-year warranty, support, and access to software updates for both speech and human tracking.
Kinect for Windows software development kit (SDK)
The Kinect for Windows SDK and toolkit contain drivers, tools, APIs, device interfaces, and code samples to simplify development of applications for commercial deployment. We frequently update the SDK, adding improvements for more control and deeper access to sensor data; new tools, such as Kinect Fusion; and samples, such as best-in-class user interfaces, to feed the creativity and needs of our customers.
Human understandingThe Kinect for Windows SDK has a deep understanding of human characteristics, including skeletal and facial tracking, and gesture recognition. Voice recognition adds an additional dimension of human comprehension, and newly released Kinect Fusion reconstructs data into three dimensional (3-D) models.
Doing more with dataThe Kinect for Windows SDK exposes an array of sensor data and provides developers with effective tools to optimize their use of that data: developers can access extended depth data and the sensor’s IR emitter, and can control the custom color camera settings. Kinect Studio, a record and playback tool, enables developers to optimize the controls for a fine-tuned application.
Hardware flexibilityThe Kinect for Windows SDK supports up to four sensors on one computer, and can be used on any virtual machine whose native operating system supports running Windows. This flexibility allows businesses and developers the freedom to implement what works best for their application requirements.
New featuresThe latest update to the Kinect for Windows SDK adds new Kinect Interactions that comprehend natural gestures such as “grip” and “push,” and includes Kinect Fusion, a tool that creates 3-D reconstructions of people and objects in real time. In addition, resources such as the Human Interface Guidelines, and new samples—such as OpenCV and MATLAB—help developers build advanced Kinect for Windows applications by using industry standard libraries.