A computer that responds to the wink of an eye, rather than the click of a mouse, has been developed in Japan.
Researchers at Shizuoka University have named their invention a "pupil mouse." Their prototype enables users to operate a personal computer by moving their eyes. The eye movement is detected with infrared beams and a camera.
To move the cursor, the user gazes at a specific point on the monitor. To click the cursor, the user winks. Users can also write by choosing characters from a pallet on the screen with this method.
Professor Yoshinobu Ebisawa, of the university's engineering faculty, said the device was the first of its kind in the world, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported Wednesday.
The system could be good news for computer-savvy disabled people, as it does not require sensors attached to their bodies, as do existing operating systems designed for the disabled.
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