Eye Tracking + Architecture
Using DIY eye-tracking to understand spatial decision making
 

The Cloud Lab implemented the EyeWriter DIY eye tracking system to question and quantify the relationship between the eyes and the observed world. Using Processing.org to model and visualize the interaction between the eye tracking hardware and 3D scenes, the goal of this research is to understand the complex interplay between spatial information seeking and spatial processing.

"The vast majority of one’s eye movements (including tracking moving objects and saccades, occurring about three times per second) are made without anything like conscious decision or choice, and mostly in ignorance that one’s eyes are moving at all. Yet when tracked over time, saccadic eye movements reveal themselves to be organized around discernible goals, directed to solve visual disambiguation problems, and sensitive to attentional demands and task complexity."
from Brain Wise: Studies in Neurophilosphy, Patricia Smith Churchland

Research Areas and Projects:

• Heat mapping of architectural geometry
• Task motivation in eye movement
• Realtime design systems and formal elaboration based on realtime eye-tracking data

This research is being carried out as part of the "Brain Hacking" Studio, conducted at the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation.
 

Videos and Media

 

Research Subtopics and Resources