US
software company Microsoft recently developed a new cost-effective sign
language translator that converts signs into spoken and written language – and
vice versa.
In collaboration
with researchers in China, Microsoft created the Kinect
Sign Language Translator, a prototype system that understands
the gestures of sign language and converts them to spoken and written languageand vice versa.
The
translator uses a computer and a Kinect camera that recognises signing gestures, then gives a spoken
and written translation of languages for people who can hear.
The system
captures a conversation both sides: the deaf person is shown signing, with a
written and spoken translation being rendered in real-time, while the system
takes the hearing person’s spoken words and turns them into accurate,
understandable signs. The system takes a person’s spoken wordsand
translate them into accurate signs carried out by an on-screen avatar.
The Kinect’s sensors read a user’s body position and movements and, with
the help of a computer, translate them into commands. The project was collaboration between the Chinese Academy of
Sciences, Beijing Union University, and Microsoft Research Asia.