The Eye-Tracking Butterfly: Morphing the SMI REDpt Eye-Tracking Camera into an Interactive

Device.James Cunningham & James D. Miles

California State University, Long Beach

Introduction Collecting and Using Eye Tracking Data

References

• We evaluated alternative uses for gaze information from eye-tracking systems as real-time input

• Novel uses for real-time eye-gaze information:

• Research: using gaze data to control interface components, basic perceptual research, HCI evaluative research on embedded eye-tracking systems, i.e. Tobii’s iBeam tablet.

• Commercial: HCI opportunities; monitoring time spent looking at ads in real time, visual feedback information.

• Tracking eye-gaze by using infrared light

• Measure the movement of the pupil center; darkest part of eye…

• Measure its pupil center relation to the corneal reflex; brightest part of eye.

• Tracking eye-gaze to collect the scan path

• Scan path - The combination of saccades, fixations, and blinks.

• Allows eye tracking as another source of data and analysis in technology and research.

SetupThe Eyetracker: REDpt by SMI

•Portable, light-weight, infrared-light emitting camera

•Rotates in the X and Y axis letting it continue eye-tracking through small movements of the head.

•Connected to any serial capable host computer for communication of commands and captured gaze data.

•Uses an s-video connection to send captured video to Falcon video-grabber PCI card.

Easy Networking

•A dedicated secondary computer was connected serially to the host computer and set-up to control the camera through E-Prime, a programming language for developing research tools.

Summary

Calibrated REDpt tracking eye-gaze (pink cursor)

Real-time communication of the two computers and the REDpt camera allows E-Prime to control a host of new functions

•Manipulating camera position

•Calibration of the REDpt

•Formatting the data stream to show different variables

• Pupil position

• Corneal reflex position

• Gaze position

• Timestamps of eye-gaze events

• SensoMotoric Instruments, Inc (August 2011). iView X System Manual Version 2.8. Retrieved from http://www.smivision.com

• Psychology Software Tools, Inc. (2013). E-Prime Knowledge Base. Retrieved from http://www.pstnet.com/eprime.cfm

• We have made the SMI REDpt eye-tracking camera emulate a control device by making the gaze data available as online, real-time variables.

• The small size of the camera and the ease of networking allow the eye-tracking system to become portable and easily integrated into different settings

• EXAMPLE: When the REDpt is used in conjunction with a projector, the scan path of a subject’s run through a driving simulator can be parsed into their fixations, saccades, and blinks.

• The real-time data from the camera can be used future research design and new technologies

• Moving a cursor in real-time using a person's gaze

• Obscuring a person's vision to focus their attention on their periphery

• Using a person's gaze to create targeted visual feedback on a display

The real-time stream of data from the camera can be modified into real-time variables and used to control object’s in E-Prime.

Networking allows the secondary computer to be used as the main computer for all testing functions

•Experiments are run through one computer

•E-Prime is the “central executive” for setup and running of experiments

•The REDpt can be calibrated through E-Prime

•Data is saved to a single location

•Data computing is split between computers.