KEY AREA | INTERACTION DESIGN
CASE:
EYE-TRACKING TECHNOLOGY COMES TO LIFE Dirty hands and computer devices don’t mix, especially if you work as a maintenance engineer in the oil industry. So, how can operators retrieve digital information when something needs to be fixed? One advanced solution is to use eye-tracking technology and a gestural camera.
H
ow will human/machine interaction in the processing industry change over the next decade? Are there alternatives to the traditional way of doing things? This was the assignment abb Corporate Research gave Interactive Institute. Using eye-tracking technology and a camera that recognizes bodily movements, operators can navigate on the computer screen by both using just their eyes and hands. With inspiration from the games industry Interactive Institute has built a prototype for abb Corporate Research, which does exactly that. IT’S ALL IN THE EYES
“We’ve been working together with abb for several years, building prototype concepts for the future, and we keep track of current technology,” explains Ru Zarin,
Interaction Designer at the Interactive Institute. “abb already had connections with the Swedish company Tobii and abb knew that we were interested in exploring the use of Microsoft’s Kinect Camera.” Kinect uses a 3d camera that detects 3d movements and makes it possible to steer objects on the screen. Tobii Technology has developed eye-tracking technology, which enables users to interact with computers using just their eyes. MAKING HANDS-FREE NAVIGATION A REALITY Interactive Institute’s prototype consists of two flat screens, placed a couple of meters in front of the operator. On the right-hand screen, a 3d representation of an oil rig is shown. By swiping vertically with the arm, the operator can navigate through different levels of
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