Don't touch that tablet: An evaluation of gaze-based interfaces for tablet computers

Abstract

Gaze-based interaction has been proposed as an alternative to touch-based interaction for tablet computers. In this paper, we present Kucker, a system that implements different methods for processing gaze-based interaction on a tablet. Using Kucker, we perform an empirical usability test to evaluate different gaze-based interactions and compare them to the classical touch-based interaction. Our evaluation uses both user feedback through standard questionnaires as well as objective metrics like efficiency and effectiveness acquired during the usability tests. The results show that the efficiency of gaze-based interaction is inferior to touch-based interaction. We found out that users prefer some kind of gaze-based interaction to others. A classical touch-based interface is more efficient than any of the implemented gaze-based interfaces. However, gaze-based input is still considered as acceptable by users and can be used in special application areas or for special user groups.