Have you ever tried moving objects with your . . . eyes?
If you’re at Devcon you can, just pop by the Tobii booth. Granted the objects you’ll move will be photos and words, but I promise you’ll feel as if you’ve been given a new super-power.
The market for eye tracking software and devices is interesting, and the proof, Tobii’s business is growing by gallops every year. Who’s using it? There are four main industries soaking up the stuff:
Market research and usability
This is interesting for website and software usability, online marketing . . . package design and shelf placement, and sponsoring and product placement. And although just starting to peep its head out of the egg (so to speak), Dassault Systèmes is now exploring using eye tracking with its 3DVIA Virtual Shopping solution. Lifelike baby!
Scientific research
If yours eyes are the windows to your soul, Tobii is going to get pretty intimate with your subconscious. Well, the psychologists will at least. Psychology and vision researchers are mixing eye tracking into their lab kits. There are some neat things happening in terms of infant research, for example. The babes can’t talk, but you can figure out what’s happening in there by studying their gazes. Other examples of research fields cracking for eye tracking include psycholinguistics and neuropsychology.
Assistance technology
Eye tracking allows disabled people to manage artificial intelligence interfaces with their gaze. They can browse the web, write messages, and in some cases “speak” for the first time. Unassisted.
OEM technology
This is where it gets interesting for traditional product innovation. What if you could integrate an eye tracking device into medical instruments and vehicles? Imagine the lives that could be saved if all cars contained an eye tracking device that would detect driver drowsiness and then set off some sort of alarm to jolt your system into alertedness . . .
The possibilities are endless, up to us to invent them. If you were to invent an eye tracking innovation, what would it be?
A demain!
Best,
Kate
P.S. Here’s a moving video about a professor with ALS using eye tracking to get his life back on track.
