While technologies are already available that can help severely disabled people communicate with their eyes, such solutions are too expensive for many locked-in patients. Now an Israeli team of engineers based in Tel Aviv has developed a cheap prototype eye tracker and accompanying software that lets users type by simply looking at letters on a screen, and now they’re raising funds on Indiegogo to sponsor the commercialization of the device into a real product.
The system includes an infrared camera that can track the movement of the pupil and software that is calibrated for the user’s unique needs. It can be used to issue a general alarm, call up pre-written sentences (“my nose itches”) or to type original text letter-by-letter.
The device performs automatic calibration, so as soon as the glasses are on, the system is ready to go. It currently works with English and Hebrew, and more languages are soon to be integrated. The developers hope to be able to offer it for around $250 as opposed to similar currently available systems costing closer to $5,000.
