Elon Musk, the founder of private spaceflight company, SpaceX, released a video earlier this week displaying a new 3-D modeling system that could be the future of space rocket design. Like many of Musk’s big projects, NBC  News reports that the software is still a work in progress. However, considering the high-tech nature of the system and the detailed level of interaction it allows designers to share with their models, Musk’s latest innovation could someday be the way that spaceflight scientists around the world create new engines and other key components for spaceflight.

In the video, which Musk posted to the web on Wednesday, the billionaire entrepreneur manipulates a computer-aided design (CAD) software with a newly-released device called Leap Motion. For those who spend a fair amount of time watching sci-fi-grounded movies like Iron Man or Minority Report, the Leap Motion concept should already be familiar. The device uses infrared light to track the movement of the operator’s hands, so when Musk hooked it up to his autoCAD software, he was able to manipulate a 3-D design by grabbing or turning it – or zooming in and out – with his hands.

For ages, CAD experts have been somewhat held back by the point-and-click nature of computer design programs. Quite simply, the mouse and keyboard control arrangement can be too limiting when it comes to trying to build virtual structures on the computer. Leap Motion makes everything easier and more intuitive, allowing users to bridge the gap between real-world tactile building and virtual design.

Of course, the Leap Motion device will have to be improved, overhauled, and specifically optimized for design programs before scientists everywhere are going to want to adopt it for everyday use, but Musk’s video showed the unlocked potential that the device has for making computer operations more simple and enjoyable. Right now, the device is neither precise nor powerful enough to stand up to the demands of a professional CAD expert – certainly, most scientists would get annoyed if the Leap Motion device repeated misinterpreted their movements and grabbed the wrong part of the design structure – but with a little bit of tinkering, Musk thinks the device could be a natural addition to all computer design pursuits.

Who will take on that tinkering remains to be seen, but chances are good that it won’t be Musk. The entrepreneur has been a busy man as of late, focusing on two groundbreaking companies – SpaceX and electric car manufacturer, Tesla Motors – and his availability to take on new projects may well be nonexistent.