1. P16051 – Robotic Eye Motion Simulator
Problem Statement: Currently eye trackers have no agreed upon standards for evaluating the quality of their collected data.
Goal: To create a robotic eye to mimic human eye movement for use in verifying eye trackers’ stated specifications.
An eye tracker is a device that tracks human eye movement and estimates gaze position. Eye trackers are used for a variety of purposes ranging from psychological to marketing research. However, there is currently no standardized test method for evaluating the quality of data collected from eye trackers. A robotic eye that imitates human eye movement would eliminate biological variance and establish a standard for eye tracker testing. The goal of this project is to develop a robotic eye to mimic human eye movement such as smooth pursuit and, saccade, the slow and fast motions of the eye. The model eye used in the device is called an OEMI-7 and it has the same internal structure as an actual eye.
Our device has a servo motor that utilizes a belt and pulley system to provide 1-dimensional rotation while improving the resolution of the motor through the gear ratio. Additionally, we designed a mechanism to provide vertical angulation, which allows for manual adjustment of the vertical gaze position, which gives us a second dimension. Our Graphical User Interface allows the user to either upload a script of predetermined movements, or to manually input desired movements in real time. In order to make this device compatible with a majority of eye trackers, a second eye is needed. However, this second eye does not need to be dynamic, as it is solely used as a reference point by binocular eye trackers. This device will be the first step in developing a standard for determining eye tracker accuracy.