Only a couple of month after the release of iDriver, an application created by AutoNOMOS Labs to control and drive the autonomous car Spirit of Berlin, the latest prototype for alternative motoring is released in cooperation with SensoMototric Instruments (SMI).
The eyeDriver software is a solution that enables the driver to steer a car using their eye only.
Following the huge press coverage of iDriver, SMI provided the Freie Universität Berlin with their latest eyeTracking-Device, the HED4. The eyeDriver software interpretes the gaze-direction of the driver, which is supplied by the HED4, to adjust the steering wheel of the Spirit of Berlin accordingly.
Two modes for running eyeDriver are supported: Freedrive and Routeselection.
In Freedrive-Mode, the gaze-direction is linked with the steering wheel. The more the driver looks to the left or right, the more the steeringwheel is moved to that direction. That way, the driver will always steer the car towards his current focus, making it easy to follow other objects like cars or pedestrians without using any other body part than the eyes.
The Routeselection-Mode is designed as a user interface for the autonomous car Spirit of Berlin, giving the passenger at certain waypoints (like crossing for example) the option to choose the next route. The car will drive along the chosen route by its self until the next waypoint is reached.