Tools for a Gaze-Controlled Drawing Application – Comparing Gaze Gestures against Dwell Buttons

We designed and implemented a gaze-controlled drawing application that utilizes modifiable and movable shapes. Moving and resizing tools were implemented with gaze gestures. Our gaze gestures are simple one-segment gestures that end outside the screen. Also, we use the closure of the eyes to stop actions in the drawing application. We carried out an experiment to compare gaze gestures with a dwell-based implementation of the tools. Results showed that, in terms of performance, gaze gestures were an equally good input method as dwell buttons. Furthermore, more than 40% of the participants gave better ratings for gaze gestures than for the dwell-based implementation, and under 20% preferred dwell over gestures. Our study shows that gaze gestures can be a feasible alternative for dwell-based interaction when they are designed properly and implemented in the appropriate application area.