Real-Time "Eye-Writing" Recognition Using Electrooculogram

IEEE Trans Neural Syst Rehabil Eng. 2017 Jan;25(1):37-48. doi: 10.1109/TNSRE.2016.2542524. Epub 2016 Mar 15.

Abstract

Eye movements can be used as alternative inputs for human-computer interface (HCI) systems such as virtual or augmented reality systems as well as new communication ways for patients with locked-in syndrome. In this study, we developed a real-time electrooculogram (EOG)-based eye-writing recognition system, with which users can write predefined symbolic patterns with their volitional eye movements. For the "eye-writing" recognition, the proposed system first reconstructs the eye-written traces from EOG waveforms in real-time; then, the system recognizes the intended symbolic inputs with a reliable recognition rate by matching the input traces with the trained eye-written traces of diverse input patterns. Experiments with 20 participants showed an average recognition rate of 87.38% (F1 score) for 29 different symbolic patterns (26 lower case alphabet characters and three functional input patterns representing Space, Backspace, and Enter keys), demonstrating the promise of our EOG-based eye-writing recognition system in practical scenarios.

Publication types

  • Video-Audio Media
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Algorithms*
  • Communication Aids for Disabled*
  • Computer Systems
  • Electrooculography / methods*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Man-Machine Systems*
  • Pattern Recognition, Automated / methods*
  • Word Processing
  • Writing*
  • Young Adult