Trigger motion and interface optimization of an eye-controlled human-computer interaction system based on voluntary eye blinks

ABSTRACT

Eye-controlled human-computer interaction (ECHCI) attracts attention for its human-centered, natural and direct operation characteristics. The most common ECHCI trigger motion is “gazing,” which causes Midas Touch problems, lowering usability and operation experience. This paper innovatively proposed using motion combinations based on blinking as the trigger of interactive objects (IOs). Trigger motions and IO design parameters were explored on the platform consisting of Tobii eye-tracker and computer vision kits. In the motion experiment, it was concluded 2-blinks could bring a low task load and high success rate of 95%. In the IO size experiment, the larger the IO diameter, the shorter the users’ response time and the higher users’ interaction success rate, and 55.5 mm was the optimal setting. Based on this, it was found a larger spacing could bring higher operation efficiency, and 33.3 mm was taken as the recommended value. Based on the conclusion above, an eye-controlled multimedia player prototype was built for usability evaluation, which showed an equally high efficiency compared to mouse-controlled HCI. The findings in this paper overcame Midas Touch issues and avoided the interference of unavoidable involuntary blinking, which brought a significant increase in system robustness and has a wide range of potential applications.

KEYWORDS:

• Eye control
• HCI
• ergonomics
• eye blink
• Midas contact
• user interface

Acknowledgments

This work was supported jointly by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 72171044, 71801037); Aerospace Science Foundation of China (No. 20200058069002); ZhiShan Scholar Program of Southeast University (2242022R40004); and Singapore Maritime Institute Grant (SMI-2021-MA-03).

Supplementary data

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/07370024.2023.2195850

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [72171044,71801037]; National Aerospace Science Foundation of China [20200058069002]; ZhiShan Scholar Program of Southeast University [2242022R40004]; Singapore Maritime Institute Grant [SMI-2021-MA-03]

Notes on contributors

Guo-Rui Ma

Guo-Rui Ma, Ph.D. student majoring in industrial design, and his research interests are human factors, human-computer interaction, UI/ UX, aviation safety, and design ergonomics.

Jia-Xin He

Jia-Xin He, master student majoring in design, and his research topics are HMI design and development.

Chun-Hsien Chen

Chun-Hsien Chen, Professor, and his research interest are design informatics, human factors, smart product service system, and industrial engineering.

Ya-Feng Niu

Ya-Feng Niu, Associate professor, and his research interest are design ergonomics, digital interface evaluation and product design.

Lan Zhang

Lan Zhang, PH.D. student majoring in industrial design, and her research topics are human-computer interaction, human factors and design ergonomics.

Tian-Yu Zhou

Tian-Yu Zhou, Lecturer, and his research topics are user interface design and product design.