Wednesday, 2 May 2007

Eye Tracking: An Assistive Technology


The development of eye tracking systems have allowed for the creation of an assistive technology which can aid users with special needs in performing tasks on a computer. The following is an example of an eye tracking assistive technology:

VisionKey

VisionKey combines a viewer mounted on a pair of standard frames with a small control unit. An eye tracker and a microcomputer measure the position of the eye and when a selection is made, it appears on the control unit LCD and on the computer. Users look at a specific word, letter or character on the chart in front of their eye and "type" by holding their gaze until a selection is confirmed by a green highlight and a beep.

More Detailed Description

Eye tracking devices can be a powerful alternative for individuals with no control, or only limited control, over their hand movements. The device follows the movement of the eyes and allows the person to navigate through the web with only eye movements. Special software allows the person to type, and may include word-completion technology to speed up the process. These systems can be expensive—usually in the thousands of US dollars—so they are less common than the less sophisticated devices, such as mouth sticks and head wands.

1 comment:

pratishtha said...

This is especially destructive in online learning, eye tracking web usability where the cognitive dissonance disrupts the learning experience.