Download ppt - Interpretation of Geometric Shapes Miquel Prats Steve Garner The Design Group The Open University UK ETRA – Eye Tracking Research & Applications 22-24

Interpretation of Geometric Shapes

Miquel PratsSteve GarnerThe Design GroupThe Open UniversityUK

ETRA – Eye Tracking Research & Applications22-24 March 2010Austin, Texas

Project funded by:

Project partners:

Iestyn JowersAlison McKaySchool of Mechanical EngineeringUniversity of LeedsUK

Nieves PedreiraInformation and CommunicationsTechnologies University of A Coruña Spain

The Designing with Vision project

investigates the possibility of using eye-tracking technology as an interface for systems intended to support the creation, exploration, and development of shape alternatives in conceptual design.

Project funded by:

Project partners:


The Designing with Vision project

is interested in exploring the possibilities of using eye-tracking technology as an interface for systems intended to support the creation, exploration, and development of design shape alternatives in conceptual design.

Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


The Designing with Vision project seeks to:

– Understand how eye-tracking technology can be used to recognise different interpretations of shapes.

– Build a computational design system that supports fluid design reinterpretation and exploration.

Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


Computationalshape interpretation

The Designing with Vision project seeks to:

– Understand how eye-tracking technology can be used to recognise different interpretations of shapes.

– Build a computational design system that supports fluid design reinterpretation and exploration.


Computationalshape interpretation: recognition

Gross (2001)Back of an Envelope

The program has been trained to recognise ‘interesting’ shapes

The program has not been trained to recognise these shapes

Saund and Moran (1994)What You Perceive Is What You Get


Computationalshape interpretation: selection

Gesture-based shape selection


Computationalshape interpretation: generation

Jowers et al. (2008)Design Synthesis and Shape Generation

Based on the shape grammar formalism (Stiny and Gips 1972)


Eye tracking andshape perception

Yarbus (1967)Eye movements and fixations are influenced by the viewer’s intent


Our study

– Analyse eye movement data with the objective to determine when a shape is recognised.

– Analyse eye movement data with the objective to determine which shape is selected.

Main Goals


Our study

z– Analyse eye movement data with the obj the moment when a shape is recognised..

Main Goals

We call it ‘Now moment’


Our study

The experiment7 participants3 tasks

Task 1

Find the square Find the arrow


Our study


Task 1

Find the square Find the arrow


Our study


Task 1


Our study


Task 2

Say which shapes each image is composed of


Our study


Task 2

Extract of participants’ transcript


Our study


Task 3

Find this shape in the following figures


Our study


Task 3


Main conclusions

Our results…

… support previous findings that indicate the relationship between saccade amplitude and fixation duration in visual fixations (Unema et al. 2005, Velichkovsky et al. 2005).

… show that fixation duration and saccade amplitude can be used as indicators of shape interpretation.

… support the hypothesis that eye movements could be used to select shapes in a natural and non intrusive way.


Future work

– Evaluate the data by means of statistical analysis.

– Examine whether fixation duration and saccade amplitude are also indicators of shape recognition in ‘designerly’ tasks.

– Explore ways to determine which shapes are selected.

– Build a computational drawing system that uses eye movement data to recognise any shape interpreted in a design.


Future work

Experiments to determine which shape is interpreted

Development of Designing with Vision software

Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


Project funded by:

Project partners:


http://design.open.ac.uk/DV/