A Study on the Gaze Range Calculation Method During an Actual Car Driving Using Eyeball Angle and Head Angle Information

Car operation requires advanced brain function. Currently, evaluation of the motor vehicle driving ability of people with higher brain dysfunction is medically unknown and there are few evaluation criteria. The increase in accidents by elderly drivers is a social problem in Japan, and a method to evaluate whether elderly people can drive a car is needed. Under these circumstances, a system to evaluate brain dysfunction and driving ability of elderly people is needed. Gaze estimation research is a rapidly developing field. In this paper, we propose the gaze calculation method by eye and head angles. We used the eye tracking device (TalkEyeLite) made by Takei Scientific Instruments Cooperation. For our image processing technique, we estimated the head angle using the template matching method. By using the eye tracking device and the head angle estimate, we built a system that can be used during actual on-road car operation. In order to evaluate our proposed method, we tested the system on Japanese drivers during on-road driving evaluations at a driving school. The subjects were one instructor of the car driving school and eight general drivers (three 40–50 years old and five people over 60 years old). We compared the gaze range of the eight general subjects and the instructor. As a result, we confirmed that one male in his 40s and one elderly driver had narrower gaze ranges.

A pilot study assessing the spiritual, emotional, physical/environmental, and physiological needs of mechanically ventilated surgical intensive care unit patients via eye tracking devices, head nodding, and communication boards

Background

Mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) are unable to communicate verbally. We sought to evaluate their needs via a communication board (CB) and a novel eye tracking device (ETD) that verbalizes selections made by gazing.

Methods

This was a pilot prospective study conducted in a tertiary care surgical ICU. Continuously mechanically ventilated adult surgical ICU patients with a Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale score of −1 to +1, without cognitive impairment, were eligible. We asked patients four yes-or-no questions to assess basic needs regarding presence of pain, need for endotracheal suction, satisfactory room temperature, and position comfort. Patients were then asked if there was anything else that they wanted to communicate. All responses were confirmed by head nodding.

Results

The median accuracy of the CB (100% (IQR 100%–100%)) for basic needs communication (yes/no questions) was comparable with that of the ETD (100% (IQR 68.8%–100%); p=0.14) in the 12 enrolled patients. Notably, 83% of patients desired to communicate additional information, ranging from spiritual (eg, desire for prayer/chaplain), emotional (eg, frustration, desire for comfort), physical/environmental (eg, television), to physiological (eg, thirst/hunger) needs.

Discussion

The majority of patients desired to communicate something other than basic needs. Unless specifically assessed via an assistive communication device (eg, CB or ETD), some of these other needs would have been difficult to discern.

Level of evidence

IV therapeutic care/management.