A Survey of Eye Tracking Methods and Applications

In the last decade, the development of eye tracking (ET) systems represented a challenge for researchers and different companies in the area of IT, medical equipment or multimedia commercial devices. An eye tracking system is based on a device to track the movement of the eyes to know exactly where the person is looking and for how long. It also involves software algorithms for pupil detection, image processing, data filtering and recording eye movement by means of fixation point, fixation duration and saccade as well. A large variety of hardware and software approaches were implemented by research groups or companies according to technological progress. The suitable devices for eye movement acquiring and software algorithms are chosen in concordance with the application requirements. Some vendors (e.g. SensoMotoric Instruments, Tobii or MyGaze) have invested in eye tracking technology, but their solutions are focused on commercial remote camera-based eye-tracker systems for which the light source and camera are permanently affixed to a monitor. Because these commercial systems including software and support are expensive some mobile and low cost devices for eye tracking were developed by some research groups. The eye tracking applications covers human computer interaction, brain computer interaction, assistive technology, e-learning, psychology investigation, pilot training assistance, virtual and augmented reality and so on. Corresponding author; e-mail: [email protected] Robert Gabriel Lupu and Florina Ungureanu 72