Skip to content

README.md

Latest commit

 

History

History
183 lines (118 loc) · 4.19 KB

README.md

File metadata and controls

183 lines (118 loc) · 4.19 KB
Raw

🎨 AI Virtual Painter — Draw in the Air With Computer Vision

✨ Story & Motivation

I’ve always wanted to be an online educator — someone who can explain ideas visually, not just with words. While teaching (and learning) online, I noticed a gap: drawing naturally in the air, the way teachers do on a physical board, is still awkward with a mouse or stylus.

So I built this AI- Powered Air Canvas.

This project lets you draw on a virtual canvas using just your hand, tracked in real time by state of the art AI models through a webcam. No touchscreen. No stylus. Just intuitive hand gestures.

The goal wasn’t just to build a cool computer vision demo — it was to create a teaching-friendly, interactive tool that makes explanations more natural, visual, and engaging.

🚀 What is Air Canvas?

Air Canvas is a real-time computer vision application that allows you to:

  • ✋ Track your hand using a webcam
  • ✍️ Draw in the air with your index finger
  • 🎨 Switch colors using hand gestures
  • 🧠 Use gesture logic (fingers up/down) to control drawing
  • 🖥️ See everything live on a virtual canvas

It’s inspired by the idea of turning human gestures into digital interaction — especially for education, presentations, and creative expression.

🛠️ Tech Stack

  • Python 3.11
  • OpenCV — webcam input, drawing, UI
  • MediaPipe (0.10.29) — real-time hand landmark detection
  • NumPy — array & image operations

📁 Project Structure

Air-Canvas/
│
├── HandTrackingModule.py     # Reusable hand detection + gesture logic
├── VirtualPainter.py         # Main Air Canvas application
├── Header                    # Project image headers
└── README.md                # Project documentation

✋ How It Works

  1. Webcam captures frames

  2. MediaPipe detects 21 hand landmarks

  3. Finger states are inferred using landmark positions

  4. Gesture logic determines:

    • When to draw
    • When to switch colors
    • When to clear canvas

  5. OpenCV overlays drawings in real time

This modular approach makes the system easy to extend for:

  • Gesture-based controls
  • Teaching tools
  • Interactive whiteboards

⚙️ Setup Instructions

1️⃣ Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/AaronTide/AI_Virtual_Painter_With_ComputerVision.git
cd AI_Virtual_Painter_With_ComputerVision

2️⃣ Create a Virtual Environment

python -m venv .venv

Activate it:

Windows

.venv\Scripts\activate

macOS / Linux

source .venv/bin/activate

3️⃣ Install Dependencies

⚠️ Important: Must use Python 3.11 and these specific versions since newer Python versions are not yet supported by mediapipe.

Install compatible versions:

pip install numpy==1.26.4
pip install opencv-python
pip install mediapipe==0.10.29

4️⃣ Run the Application

python VirtualPainter.py

Make sure your webcam is connected and not in use by another app.

🖐️ Controls & Gestures

Gesture Action
Index finger up Draw
Two fingers up Select mode
All fingers down Idle
Use Eraser from header Erase

(Gesture logic can be customized in HandTrackingModule.py)

🎓 Use Cases

  • Online teaching & tutoring
  • Explaining math, physics, or diagrams
  • Interactive presentations
  • Gesture-based UI experiments
  • Computer vision learning projects

🌱 Future Improvements

  • Save drawings as images
  • Integrate with screen recording tools
  • Convert to a web-based or tablet-friendly version

🤝 Why This Project Matters

This project sits at the intersection of:

  • Education
  • Human–Computer Interaction
  • Computer Vision

Air Canvas is not just about drawing — it’s about making digital teaching more human.

📌 Author

Built with curiosity and purpose by Arifa Rahman Aspiring educator • Computer Vision enthusiast • Software Builder

Stars are my fuel, pls leave a star if you think this was cool <3