Mexican students create a system to control electrical with a simple eye movement

Two Mexican university have created a system that will allow disabled people to control appliances with a simple eye movement and thus enable them to be more autonomous in their homes. Moncada studies, together with its project partner, Luis Eduardo Lara, 22, Biomedical Engineering at the Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, a race which, among other things, teaches students to design tools to make life easier for disabled.

"When someone suffers an accident, very strong in his own injury, is usually maintained eye movement and we took advantage for the patient to interact with home appliances," he told Efe Arturo Moncada, 21.

By its system students took first place in the academic competition NI University Challenge 2009, American contest in which there were a total of 17 projects.

Moncada and Lara in an interview with EFE showed the operation of his invention, which is based on the technique of electro-oculography.

Operation

The system works by using electrodes placed on the user's head and give a signal from his eye movements, which signal is processed and cleared electronically to pass then to the computer interface.

Moving his eyes, the patient may select a button on the computer screen corresponding to one share of each appliance.

Once you select the action, it is confirmed today with a button is pressed by hand, but that students may try to push it in the future otherwise, for example, pressing his head.

According to Lara, "the important thing is to understand that the human body is an energy machine" and therefore "move the eye when you generate a business."

Prototype

The student explained that what they have built "a very simple prototype" that needs many improvements and acknowledged that much still remains to be implanted directly into a home.

"You can continue to develop its software and hardware to become more compact, more portable and accessible to people who use it," he added.

Furthermore, if this system were to be implemented would require the patient to familiarize themselves with the machine, with the sensitivity of the motion, and each device would have to be custom, said the young man.

"The intensity of motion varies from person to person and even in the same subject signal changes depending on his moods, so that each system must be calibrated for each particular person," said Lara.

This idea, explained the young researchers, came as part of a school project for which they had to get moving the cursor on the computer screen with their eyes.

Although still a long way from his university a reality, the two young men still have the dream and the dream that one day may serve to make things easier for the disabled.

Source: Hoy Tecnología (spanish)

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