RECOGNIZING GESTURES AND USING GESTURES FOR INTERACTING WITH SOFTWARE APPLICATIONS

An interactive display table has a display surface for displaying images and upon or adjacent to which various objects, including a user's hand(s) and finger(s) can be detected. A video camera within the interactive display table responds to infrared (IR) light reflected from the objects to detect any connected components. Connected component correspond to portions of the object(s) that are either in contact, or proximate the display surface. Using these connected components, the interactive display table senses and infers natural hand or finger positions, or movement of an object, to detect gestures. Specific gestures are used to execute applications, carryout functions in an application, create a virtual object, or do other interactions, each of which is associated with a different gesture. A gesture can be a static pose, or a more complex configuration, and/or movement made with one or both hands or other objects.