Apple has made efforts to accessibility is one of the main advantages of your devices, and this has also recently been demonstrated with innovations such as door detectors for the blind or on-the-fly transcriptions in videoconferences. But this effort also has another effect: that third-party companies are also working to improve this integration.
One such effort was recently seen at Irisbond, a Basque company that can boast of being the first to receive Made for iPad certification in its eye-tracking system so you can use iPadOS with just your eyes.
You can use an iPad even when you can’t move
The system, named Hiru, consists of a sensor bar that is placed under the iPad and that allows us to move the iPadOS cursor with the movement of our pupils. The cursor follows this movement and can even click if we keep the cursor stationary for a few moments. The AssistiveTouch button is very useful in this case, as it gives us access to certain system functions traditionally reserved for touch keys.
Hiru needs to be calibrated before it can work on all devices, but in the case of iPads calibration is easy. Simply follow the cursor to the corners and center of the screen while the sensors pick up the movement of our eyes.
This system becomes a real gift for those with mobility limitations, such as those who cannot move their arms or who have to lie down on a bed. This is precisely the system used by Dulce, the protagonist of a Xataka report where we saw firsthand how she uses a device even with motor paralysis.
The precision of this technology has earned Apple MFi certification, as well as there are already plans for expansion in the United States. Boston Children’s Hospital is already testing eye tracking on its patients, where they have already been “thrilled” according to the company’s press release.
