Eye-tracking software for mobile phones on the anvil

It is hard sending a text message with arms full of groceries or while wearing
gloves. Voice control is one alternative to using one's fingers, but researchers
are also working on other hands-free ways to control mobile devices.

In a not so distant future, when one would only need to gaze intently at a
mobile message for it to open, to watch a video clip apart from making basic
mobile calls. Mobile handset giant,
Nokia is developing a technology in which
eye is the critical factor. Type the text to be displayed">Apple, too, is developing what it calls 'gaze
vectors', which will let users navigate using eye movements. This patent
application will possibly be available with Apple iPads and
i phone
.

Apple has shown historical interest in eye-tracking technology, most recently
evidenced by the purchase of units from Tobii, a Swedish company specializing in
eye-tracking technology. The technology allows users to accurately browse and
navigate websites and user interfaces without physically touching the screen,
and no goggles are required too!

Nokia is also working on a mobile that operates with the gaze of an eye.
Called the Gaze Tracker, a prototype of this cutting-edge technology product has
already been developed and is on display in the company's headquarters.
According to company officials, one only needs to put on an arm band and place
the ear piece in the ear. Then, one would be able to read the messages in the
Gaze Tracker. Furthermore, this mobile phone needs to be calibrated to one's eye
so that it reads eye movements.

Recently, an eye tracking software has been developed by researchers at
Dartmouth, entitled 'EyePhone'. The software promises to improve accessibility
to smartphone technologies for those who have poor fine motor control. The
software package, currently developed for use on a Nokia 810 smartphone, uses
the front-facing camera to take a constant video stream of the user's face,
which it then analyzes to find the location of the eyes. Picking a particular
eye to track, the EyePhone software then attempts to calculate what section of
the screen is currently being viewed.

This information is then used to highlight an icon or menu option. If the
software has made the wrong choice, users simply adjust their gaze in the
corresponding direction until the selection they were after is highlighted.
Triggering the selection-to launch a program, for example, or make a call to a
chosen contact-is as simple as blinking.

Interestingly, the software takes an oblique approach to the task, rather
than tracking the angle of the eye, ie where it is looking. EyePhone tracks the
relative position of users' eyes to the screen, meaning that in order to move
their selection around the display, users actually moves the handset, not their
eyes.

However, developing the correct 'gazing' technology is a difficult feat.
Existing algorithms were highly inaccurate in mobile conditions, even if one is
standing and there is a small movement in the arm, users would get a large
amount of blurring and error, which would prevent the software from correctly
tracking the eye movement. Moreover, tracking a user's gaze will be more
challenging on a mobile phone. This is because the eye barely moves when a
person's gaze shifts between items close together on a small screen Therefore, a
lot of research and trials and errors need to be conducted before the perfect
tracking device is developed. With Nokia and Apple both being tight lipped about
a commercial launch of the application, it is sure to become a useful thing once
launched.

Madhura Mukherjee

madhurak@cybermedia.co.in