Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!wivax!decvax!yale-com!leichter From: leichter@yale-com.UUCP Newsgroups: net.micro Subject: Re: More keyboard bogosity On the subject of cursor keys, mice & men: Message-ID: <1700@yale-com.UUCP> Date: Sat, 2-Jul-83 08:53:11 EDT Article-I.D.: yale-com.1700 Posted: Sat Jul 2 08:53:11 1983 Date-Received: Sun, 3-Jul-83 01:03:09 EDT References: utcsrgv.1658 Lines: 29 Yes, the eye-tracking stuff is real, although I don't think it's all that widely used. The hardware involved is an infra-red laser and detector set mounted on the frame of a set of glasses or goggles; an infra-red beam is bounced off the eyeball. Here my knowledge of the details fades out; presumably, the beams aimed at the pupil aren't bounced back nearly as strongly as those aimed else- where. THe technology involved is well-understood and often used in psych labs. Yes, of course, eye movements are a problem. Eye-tracking motion is nothing like linear - it is done is continuous bursts of motion (called saccades [sp?]). At the very least, the system has to ignore eye position DURING saccades. What is actually done is to require the user to stare intently at the target for a substantial amount of time - substantial being with respect to the amount of time the gaze normally stays in one spot, which isn't very long. Just to be sure, some auxilliary input would presumably be used to actually trigger the action involved - so you don't have pilots inadvertently shooting all their rockets at the moonrise. There is a great tale about such a system that was put into fighters for a while. It triggered the emergency escape system; there was a big red cross pointed down on the floor beside the pilot - where he would not normally look. If you gazed at the cross for "a while", bingo, off into the wild blue yonder in your ejection seat. Now think about the situation: You are going to spend HOURS in the cockpit, and off there are your left is this big red cross that you MUST NOT LOOK AT.... Sure enough, no one could resist. The system was abandoned - a nice object lesson in the importance at considering the human being in your "technologically leading-edge" system. -- Jerry decvax!yale-comix!leichter leichter@yale