| Research
Eye-tracking leaders share
technology, research breakthroughs
 Researchers
turn the tables on technology: Instead of paying attention to multiple
devices like computers, cell phones and PDAs, those devices will
pay attention to you, thanks to advances in eye-tracking technology
that give gadgets “eyes.”
Clemson
University researcher Andrew Duchowski, associate professor in computer
science, joined approximately 100 experts and researchers from around
the world at the Eye Tracking Research & Applications Symposium
this spring in San Antonio, Texas. Eye-tracking technology follows
a person’s gaze, allowing computers to make assumptions about
a user’s behavior.
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Participants at the Eye
Tracking Research & Applications Symposium caught a glimpse
of cutting-edge, next-generation, eye-tracking technology,
which replaces bulky helmets and wired sensors with digital
cameras fitted in flat panel displays. |
“The
computer will be able to interact with you based on where your attention
is. It’ll know not to be disruptive if you are busy, or to
alert you because you should be paying attention,” said Duchowski.
In
other words, the computer is paying attention to the user. This
application of eye tracking is known as an attentive user interface
(AUI) and can be used to give electronic devices, such as cell phones,
“a sense of etiquette” by managing how these devices
seek attention - reducing unwanted interruptions. An MIT study found
that one in three adults rank cell phones as the most-hated invention.
Duchowski
and colleague Roel Vertegaal of Queens University, Kingston, Ontario,
started the Eye Tracking Research & Applications Symposium as
a platform for researchers, developers and vendors to explore eye-tracking
developments.
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