Although it was a long line to get “free coffee,” no one had an explanation for how to use their eyes to order coffee. The most amazing aspect of the first coffee machine with ‘Eyetracking’ is not its proposal, but how intuitive it is.

It’s the same as the ones we use for touch screens or to consult our voice; gaze tracking is intended to become the next natural way to interact with devices. It is a way to control actions and products located within the non-contact current caused by the pandemic, which is more accessible to people with reduced mobility.

Choose our coffee with your eyes

The machine is a Vitro M5 model from Azkoyen. A coffee machine with the ability to serve different types of coffee and a touch screen. However, this screen is not used in this case. Instead of ordering the drink we want by hand, Azkoyen has teamed up with Irisbond to create a prototype of a coffee machine that is completely controllable with the eyes. This has been achieved thanks to the introduction of the Three Devices, developed by the Spanish company.

Eduardo Jauregui, CEO and founder of Irisbond, explained that this is a project to study the commercial feasibility of monitoring the gaze. "We've been testing and operating our technology in the area of ​​accessibility for a few years now. We want to expand now," says Jauregui. The company intends to move its ‘eyetracking’ platform to new devices and sectors, from commercial solutions like this coffee machine to the fields of eHealth and telemedicine.

The operation of the coffee machine is very simple. We are in front, looking in the middle of the screen, the ‘eyetracking’ device perceives where we are looking and from then on we just have to hold down the icon of the drink we want. We will know that we are doing well because a circle appears. We need to complete that “click” circle. In other words, pressing and choosing a drink is like looking at the same place for a few seconds.

Once we have chosen the drink, we will have to look at “accept”, although we can also look at “canceled”. Again the same mechanics, we keep our eyes on for a few seconds and the machine will understand what we want. Once we have chosen and accepted the drink, we just have to have coffee. That is, we should only use our hands to pick up the drink at the last minute.

The Irisbond system is based on a small stick device about 30 inches long, although the company’s platform also functions as an app. In the case of the coffee machine, the device was chosen to follow the same look, although the makers explained that it could be integrated into the body of the machine.

“We have pixel accuracy,” Irisbond describes. And the truth is that its operation is more than compelling. Watch and wait a few seconds. The time in the coffee maker was about three seconds, but that could have been shortened. In this sense, the company’s goal is to achieve a good balance in terms of usability. Fast enough to be practical, and easy enough to keep the user from getting overwhelmed and to understand where they are looking.

Irisbond’s technology is based on infrared and does not require any data, as no personal information is stored in the process. The user in the queue is in front, pointing with his eyes as if he were pressing a button and that’s it.

“We would like this product to reach beyond companies and be developed for home use as well,” Jáuregui explained. Irisbond has companies like Tobii among its competitors, and tracking their gaze allows us to find out, for example, how a Formula 1 driver sees it.