Eye Tracking (Tobii Eyex), Elite: Dangerous

[CMDRBuxton]

In the video from Obsidian Ant (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojGBo9sLqYk) he goes over the setup software and seems to suggest it works with glasses. Skip to 2:35 to see where it's configured during calibration.

[TorTorden]

It does work in Elite, even though I am using both glasses, a curved screen that is a hair to wide.
(I recommend cleaning the glasses before playing but I would recommend that regardless. For you know, to see clearly)
I did however had to move my screen quite a bit forwards and even if my armrests are bumping into my Hotas I still loose tracking whenever I fully lean back.

The screen used to be on the wall shelf..

They do a lot of normalizing and easing from tracking in game so even if it for me would be unusable for desktop work I am starting to like having this in game now.

I have a quick vid from a few days back, I have been tweaking settings a bit since then as well.
This is how I actually play, so it will be all over the place at times, oh, and it didn't record in 60fps or youtube dropped framerate, that doesn't help.
https://youtu.be/h2qk8LSjveY

A ship with a more open cockpit is simply great, like the courier, vulture or hell, I'm even liking the view from the Asp now..

It feels sometimes precognitive in how it works, I might be looking in one direction off my cockpit and I wonder what's on the radar and poof I'm looking at the radar.
Same with the menu panels, I disabled camera locking entirely and use the tracker to look at the panels.
I still use buttons to open them so they don't pop out when I don't want them.

[Loriath]

From what you have experienced and show, I don't see a benefit over my ED Tracker Pro.

It is more expensive and somewhat limiting in the position one is when playing.

I will stick to what I have that works, although when the oculus and Vive are at v.4 it may be cheap enough for me to consider.

[TorTorden]

yeah, I might be getting used to it, and does add something to gameplay but any more than ANY other headtracking ?
No I don't think so, it was an impulse get on my side and with the discount and what not I'm ok with it, but it certainly doesn't have much going for it in regards of gaming devices and even less as mouse replacement unless you have severe disabilities.

It's a reason why most of their forum are from devs working on tools for paraplegics, since they really need it and for that I'm sure its fine and a hell of a lot more affordable than previous implementations of the tech.

But for guys like myself who isn't disabled (apart for my brain and the aspergers :p) it has limited use at best.
It does work. but my only other attempt at head tracking was when I stole my nephews shitty low res web cam and tried facetrack noIR, which went completely bonkers after five minutes.

I need to find some food so I'm off for a few hours or so.

[HazCat]

Having played with the EyeX for a week now, I figured it was time to share my experiences.

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF): Your mileage may vary, but mine has been pretty good. If you don’t already have a head tracker, have a little spare cash, and want an intuitive way of dealing with POV – it’s worth the investment IMHO.

System Specs:
CPU: Intel Core i7-4770 @3.40 GHz
OS: Windows 10 Pro
RAM: 16 GB
GPU: Sapphire Dual-X R9 270X 2G D5
Monitors: Acer XR341CK (34” curved); Asus PA248
Software running in parallel with ED: A command window w/ Trade Dangerous; ED Market Connector; PangoBright (nifty little app that lets you drop the screen brightness in a multi-monitor environment so that second screen isn’t too bright); VoiceAttack.

Installation:
Installation was straight forward, and Tobii even provides a spare mounting clip if you need it. I mounted the EyeX on my curved (main) monitor using double-stick foam tape underneath the mounting bracket. This moved the bracket out far enough that the curve wasn’t an issue and kept the “permanent” adhesive on the bracket off my monitor so if I remove it later there won’t be damage.

Software was downloaded as per the user instructions, installed with default settings, and works fine with Windows 10. The device immediately asked to upgrade its firmware and the software immediately advised me of an upgrade (why the main download file wasn’t the upgrade I don’t know) so I let the system update itself fully.

The Infinite Screen Extension had no problems figuring out where ED was installed, but some folks seem to have had problems with that as there’s an FAQ on the Tobii web site to help change the path. If you want more details or are having issues, a good place to start is over on the Frontier Forum where there’s a thread about the EyeX.

After installation, the software walks you through calibration, which is quite simple.

Operating Environment:
Generally low light, with no direct light striking the sensors. I wear glasses, but it’s a minor prescription so I was able to test with and without them.

Performance:
With or without glasses, the tracker worked well. However, you definitely need to have a calibration file (it handles multiple calibration profiles; just create and select the appropriate one). Most of the time, I’m about 25”/64cm back from my monitor. When playing ED, I drop a control board onto the keyboard tray and push back to about 31”/79cm. The EyeX consistently lost calibration using the original “near” distance… but once I calibrated it to the greater distance it never lost calibration.

You don’t need to worry about holding your head still – it doesn’t care what moves, so long as it can track where your eyes are pointing. And at 31” there were two really nice surprises – the headbox was large enough that I could move and look around at will AND the entire screen was detected. Yes, the EyeX tracked across all 34” of the screen. Tobii says that 27” is the maximum, but that’s based on a “normal” user-screen distance. A little extra space and it works fine with a wider monitor.

Game play was awesome! I’d been using a hat switch to control POV. Having a more natural “see what you look at” environment greatly improved immersion. Especially in combat, where you can keep eyes on your opponent whenever he’s anywhere inside the cockpit canopy. It does take a bit to get used to this, as you’ll have a few “where’s my radar” moments at first. But once you get used to it, you’ll no longer even think about it. With a few hours play it becomes totally natural.

One place where you need to adjust your control settings is how ED handles menu screens. I wound up locking out the focus on vision setting (which was fine – I use keys to access the menus anyway), and created a VoiceAttack and keyboard function to disable EyeX when in a station using Station Services. That stopped the menu from shifting around while I read/navigated it.

For the first couple flights, I kept AMD’s System Monitor running on the side as well and honestly could not detect a difference in system performance when Infinite Screen was running. It has to be sucking up some processor time but I couldn’t see it and never noticed any issues.
I can’t compare the EyeX to a head tracking setup, as I don’t own one. (Not being entirely enthralled with wearing a ball cap whilst playing, and not wanting to give the spouse any ammo… I just couldn’t bring myself to drop the $100-$150 USD.) I’d be interested in hearing what folks think as a comparison.

Cautions:
The EyeX requires USB 3 – and does NOT play well with ASMedia USB 3.0 ports. If you’re thinking of ordering, check your ports. There’s an explanation of how to do this over on the Frontier Forum in case you need it.

As noted, make sure you calibrate at the distance you are going to play.

And, if you order… make sure you use one of the codes from a sponsored review! The 30% savings offsets the UPS Global shipping fees nicely.

Have fun, fly safe, and I’ll see ya’ll in the Deep Dark some time!

[Mouse]

I may need to buy a USB 3 card..

[oddjodd]

Hi Commanders,

I am working at Tobii and have been looking here to see if we can help in any way. It is really important for us to get the EyeX and Infinite Screen Extension to provide the best experience possible in the galaxy. We are also working on improving the Infinite Screen Extension based on any useful feedback we can find here.

We do not have an exact date for an update, but since we have been working on it, there should be one in reasonable time. We are sold out for February due to our backlog of orders but we are working hard on improving shipping times once new stock comes in.

Some quick troubleshooting based on the comments here:

Mounting the EyeX: http://www.tobii.com/xperience/support/ ... obii-eyex/
Position of EyeX: http://www.tobii.com/xperience/support/ ... obii-eyex/
Bigger screens: http://www.tobii.com/xperience/support/ ... commended/
Safety Issues: http://www.tobii.com/xperience/support/ ... -tracking/

Also to address the issue with wearing glasses: The Tobii EyeX was developed after 15 years of eye tracking experience with people with disabilities and market research, so it is meant to work with or without glasses, contact lenses, and for individuals of all ethnicities and in different lighting conditions.

In the meantime, please direct any other issues to us here and we will give you personal support! http://www.tobii.com/xperience/support/contact/

John/Tobii

[Schmobius]

I'll let you know that I'd probably buy one if it worked from the couch. I think it's about 10 feet from my TV to the seatback of my couch, where I have my HOTAS set up. I could get the face tracking on the facetracknoir software, though I'd usually have to lean forward for it to initially lock on to my face, then I could lean back... it's just VERY shaky, and loses calibration easily, so it feels like I'm drunk.

Yes, I realize that may be a tall order, but if it is in fact an easy change and you just didn't give it that capability because you assumed nobody would need it, I'm telling you that you'd get another sale. (I also use a 40" TV that I am considering upgrading to 60", not sure if that throws another wrench in.)

[GlobusDiablo]

I'll let you know that I'd probably buy one if it worked from the couch. I think it's about 10 feet from my TV to the seatback of my couch, where I have my HOTAS set up. I could get the face tracking on the facetracknoir software, though I'd usually have to lean forward for it to initially lock on to my face, then I could lean back... it's just VERY shaky, and loses calibration easily, so it feels like I'm drunk.

Yes, I realize that may be a tall order, but if it is in fact an easy change and you just didn't give it that capability because you assumed nobody would need it, I'm telling you that you'd get another sale. (I also use a 40" TV that I am considering upgrading to 60", not sure if that throws another wrench in.)

Count me in as another couch potato.

[TorTorden]

Hey oddjodd, and welcome.
I have a few admissions to come with.
Firstly this takes a bit getting used to, especially to begin with eye-fatigue was a big issue for me but after learning to relax again and just letting the in game camera move as it will it's no longer an issue.

Mounting the device has a little snag, well in fact two snags for me but nothing Tobii can be blamed for anyways.
They have assumed for a straight frame, while my samsung screens frame is both curved (yuck) and it's beveled at almost a 45 degree angle towards the screen, so the tracker ends almost pointing at the ceiling if you mount it as securely as one would think.

I now have mine kind of dangling off the magnet strip (still sits fairly secure) and it finds my eyes easier and gives me more range.
I intend to swap the magnet strip with blu-tack or something generic like that (preferably black)
Again this is something I blame Samsung for, not the eyex.

As for calibrations and use, well I guess I was both expecting a bit much and fussing a bit to much over it.
(I tend to do this, for instance I was very disappointed and still am of the PS4, I am still on a plasma tv and I want another two subwoofers for "proper" bass response)
So now that I both gotten used to it some more and stopped fussing with the calibrations and what not.
I'm really liking it and not having it on feels rather stifling.

I would say it takes as much getting used to if not more than moving from mouse and kb to a proper throttle and stick setup, I was initially not so keen on my rudder pedals as well, but I wouldn't fathom playing without them now.

Would I recommend it, well, that depends it is a frivolous device takes some getting used to but I would probably rate it on par with what people say about the TrackIR (which at least with the coupon is almost twice as expensive) and unlike the trackir doesn't require wearing a hat or other headgear to work.
The PR department almsot had me believing it would replace my mouse for windows use, but I guess that's not really feasible or a fair expectation (you might want to tone that down) and for the R&D I would really recommend trying to develop a version that would work in couch\tv setting your main group is the house hold dad now, not teenagers.

We own big tv screens and comfortable couches and giving up on those is a hard sell