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Robert Chappell, President and C.E.O., EyeTech Digital Systems
Tags:Assistive Technology, Innovators, Profiles
Inquiries:
480-704-3158
http://www.eyetechds.com
Description of technology: Eye Tech’s hands-free eyetracking software and hardware systems permit alternative access to a full range of computing applications. Three models work with portable or desktop computers and the Eye Science software collects and analyzes gaze patterns.
Intrigued by: Robert is interested in seeing how important Eye Tech’s new and unique software features will be for consumers in the future.
Finding out about needs: Eye Tech obtains critical feedback primarily from trade shows and from user input “on the spot” during installations and through email. “They tell us different things they would like and we put these ideas together into a judgment of what kinds of things we should pursue. Then we make it into a design project.”
Seeing the world in new ways: “We knew that there were no eye trackers at the time that worked with Microsoft Windows and provided general purpose computer access. So that was [Eye Tech’s] starting point.” That was years ago.
On design principles: Eye Tech’s fundamental design principles are simplicity and ease of use. Robert says, “Our goal is for everything to be point and click, direct access… It’s all graphical based, no words on it, so it’s ‘universal language’ so to speak…” He indicates that “Eye trackers have traditionally been complicated, cumbersome beasts…tricky and finicky and all that… The last system we came out with improved on all those factors and we are working on making more progress, [products that are] more portable, more durable…”
On users: Robert has focused the company on serving individuals with the most severe neurological and physical disabilities, and works hard to develop systems that create the greatest degree of freedom possible with present technology. He even envisions persons who might be quadriplegic and on ventilators as being able to utilize the Internet, participate in distance learning, and “get their work done.”
On training and use: Paralleling Eye Tech’s design philosophy, Robert aims at making things easy for family members or others who may be assisting users, as well as users themselves: “Our outline is basically 1,2,3,4, right on the screen. People just step through it. We put the basic set steps and adjustment steps right on the screen so they don’t have to refer to another manual if they don’t want to.”
On the market: Eye Tech is a fully self-financed company, so a great deal of care must be taken to ensure products selected for development are “going to be popular enough to support themselves with sales.” Robert emphasizes that technological improvements related to ease of use and head movement are key areas, along with price, as eye trackers have “traditionally been the most expensive piece of assistive technology you can buy.” He foresees these improvements leading to an expansion of market, which, in turn, will bring prices down for consumers.
On new horizons: Eye Tech is now looking toward serving not only a market that “absolutely needs” eyetracking in order to interface with computer applications, but also those who are less severely disabled for whom “it would improve speed and ease of use in computing if they did use eyetracking.”
On challenges, information exchange, and research: There are limitations in the capacity of formal research and trade show and user feedback to inform smaller details of technical design. This is a challenge for companies like Eye Tech who seek to create innovative designs that meet the needs of the market.
Success indicators - making a difference: Appreciated positive feedback comes to Eye Tech at trade shows and through email, which Eye Tech posts on its web. Several testimonials corroborate Eye Tech systems’ ability to create access and easily calibrate its software to individual users. Speaking of user independence, Robert says, “Once it is up and running, users can really go off on their own and do what they need to do” on the computer.
Wants to know more about: Getting information on the basic importance of “portability” to end users is a critical area for Robert. Information on the benefits of various power source configuration alternatives (i.e. self-powered versus powered by wheel chair batteries) for end users would also be beneficial to inform development.
Provacative views & quotes: “We have found that the people who like eyetracking the most, and are most likely to buy it, are people who have used computers before, either before their disability or after. They’re people who like to use computers.” Persons who do not have these prior experiences typically do not purchase systems. Robert thinks this may have implications for families who may seek community-based training for less computer-savvy individuals who develop conditions and need eyetracking systems like those produced by Eye Tech for essential communications and other critical functions.
