Synopsis

Pupil is an open source eye tracking prototype. The software is written Python and a low cost head mount prototype is made using consumer available parts and a custom printed mount. This project seeks to make eye tracking accessible and affordable, for a diverse range of experiments.

What is eye tracking?

In the case of Pupil, eye tracking is a process of measuring the movements of the eye and mapping those movements back onto the world. This is achieved by using two web cameras mounted to the subject’s head. One camera points toward’s a subject’s eye and captures the subject’s eye movements. A second camera points out, toward the “world,” capturing the subject’s field of vision. The software filters the eye capture to isolate the pupil, find the center of the pupil, and calibrate the space of eye movements with the space of the world.

Wikipedia entry on eye tracking.
A great essay by Sasha Archibald in Cabinet Magazine, titled “Ways of Seeing”, with a brief history of eye tracking and a detailed discussion of the work of Russian scientist Alfred Yarbus.

Collaborator: Moritz Kassner

Please see the google code project page for the source code and more information about the hardware.