Leap Motion’s Interaction Engine makes it easier to hold objects in VR

Leap Motion’s Interaction Engine will make it easier to grasp objects in virtual reality.

Leap Motion, which is know for its Leap Motion Controller for PCs, etc, has created a new Interaction Engine to make hold objects in virtual reality easier and more natural. The engine will also let users control, interact with VR objects. In a blogpost announcing the same, Leap Motion says they’ve built “a more human experience. One where you can reach out and grab something – a block, a teapot, a planet – and simply pick it up. Your fingers phase through the material, but the object still feels real. Like it has weight.”

The Interaction Engine is still in beta mode and will be available for some early developers. Leap Motion says the engine will be an add on for the Unity Game engine, which is supported by most virtual reality headsets. The idea is to make “object interactions work in a way that satisfies human expectations”, and according to Leap Motion, they’ve implemented an “alternate set of physics rules that take over when your hands are embedded inside a virtual object.”

The engine is design to handle object behaviour and can also detect when a user grasps an objects, which in turns makes it possible to pick up things in the virtual world. A user can also move the object, modify the properties of an object which has been picked up.

Interaction Engine will make handling objects in the game feel more easy and natural, says the company. For now there’s a project on GitHub of the Interaction Engine which supports Oculus Rift and Vive headset, which can be tested by developers. The early beta works with objects in the shapes of cubes, spheres, around 1-2 inches in size.

Leap Motion says “game objects of differing shapes, sizes, and physics settings may have different results,” when being used in the system.