For those with high-level physical disabilities, communication, a very fundamental and essential need, is challenging. For many it can even be frightening if they have no way to express their most basic personal and medical requirements. For those with Locked-in -Syndrome (LIS) and those in the advanced stages of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), for example, eye movement is often the only communication alternative. These users cannot control a computer or augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device by other means including any other type of physical motion or speech. The provision of a repeatable user and caregiver friendly eye-tracking device therefore becomes of paramount importance. The proposed project aims to develop a dramatically improved eye-activated communication device for this user population. While the current VisionKey(tm) works well for many users who utilize the system for up to ten hours a day, there are several key enhancements necessary to add to the user's comfort; ease of use, set up and calibration; and functionality. The key areas of improvement are: ergonomic refinement, adjustability, adaptability, user-friendliness and icon-based capability. The objective of the final product is to provide an eye-activated device which offers dynamic, adjustable, handsfree communication for both AAC and full computer control purposes. The proposed device is based on the patented VisionKey eye-tracking input device from H.K. Eyecan Ltd. integrated with The MicroOptical Corporation's patented eyeglass-based display technology. The new device will be ergonomically superior to the current VisionKey product, and, most significantly, will incorporate a dynamically refreshable electronic display. The dynamic display allows the available selections to be modified in real time to reflect the current context, thereby, simplifying the use of the device and improving speed and accuracy. The new device will also offer an opportunity to incorporate a larger set of selections and make possible the use of icons in addition to the current text-based selection set. This coupled with the reduced cognitive load will make the device suitable to provide a communication alternative for a much larger target user community including pre-literate children and/or individuals with cognitive, language and developmental disabilities.
