Armscor affiliate Ergotech has a new tool to boost research into human cognition, perception, performance and behaviour.
The technology in the Biopac eye tracker allows for precise, quantitative measurements of eye movements and fixations. It resembles the frame of normal spectacles, making it minimally invasive and can be easily integrated with other clothing and equipment. The lenses are fitted with miniature eye cameras, which can view each eye, allowing data to be recorded during task execution.
The newest addition to the research equipment arsenal at Ergotech’s Highveld Park, Centurion, laboratories and offices will make available information not previously accessible. Data collected can be used to monitor and measure cognitive workload and fatigue. This is an advance in technology as previous eye tracking devices consisted of a full head mounted set-up, the latest Armscor newsletter reports.
The SA National Defence Force (SANDF) is Ergotech’s primary client and will, the newsletter has it, benefit from the new acquisition. In line with the swords to ploughshares analogy, Ergotech sees the eye tracker and its technology going into the wider workplace where personnel execute mentally demanding and other complex duties such as system operators or drivers.
Ergotech is a research institute and consultancy servicing the defence and commercial sectors with ergonomics research, design and development of human-machine systems and evaluation of environmental stressors. Its services cover ergonomics and occupational health and safety, striving to optimise human performance and wellbeing, reduce work related risks as well as improve overall safety and productivity.
