Eye-Tracking: Control Your Computer with Your Gaze

Historically, exceptional situations always give innovations a nudge. When the pandemic hit, companies of all sizes and areas of business had to rethink the ways their workforce would work best in the 'new normal.'

Many companies have always been investing heavily in how their workforce can work best, whether they are developers, sales and services employees, or in administration. Each has individual needs, but what they all have in common is that they need access to a computer in order to fulfill their tasks. They use a keyboard, a mouse, and touch as the de-facto, standard interaction with the machine. This technology hasn't evolved much over recent years.

At offices, we are used to working according to ergonomic standards whereas in our home offices we may not have these standards available.

NextGeneration of User Experience - From 'Touch Less' to 'Touchless'

Did you know that, on average, 25% of a work day is spent using a mouse, accounting for thousands of clicks and scrolls? We switch between the keyboard and mouse up to 2,000 times per day. In an internal pilot at SAP with 35 users from different departments, almost 500 kilometers of mouse-movement distance was measured within six weeks.

This not only costs a lot of time but also causes stress-related diseases, such as repetitive strain injuries (RSI), also known as 'mouse arm.'

With the eye-tracking solution NUIA from SAP partner 4tiitoo GmbH Munich, it is possible to provide an innovative tool to employees, working to address their ergonomic situation, reduce mouse movements and mouse-keyboard swaps, and improve efficiency and appearance during customer calls.

All SAP colleagues can order this solution to use in the office and even their home offices.

Following its pledge to flex, SAP's future of work plans include monitors equipped with eye-trackers by default and the ability to download necessary software just by scanning a QR code.

Eye-Tracking Supports Accessibility

SAP supports individual accessibility needs above the standard functionalities with this interaction opportunity, which perfectly matches SAP's Valuable 500 commitment for an inclusive workplace.

'People are the most important resource we have in technology,' says Sabine Bendiek, chief people and operating officer and member of the Executive Board of SAP SE. 'Therefore, people have to be put at the center. It should always be about doing the right thing for people, empowering them to thrive.'

The User Experience EMEA Services Team has the eye-tracking expertise and works together with 4tiitoo. The team covers even more advanced use cases, such as completely touchless, gaze-controlled scenarios, and is ready to provide SAP customers with tailored services around this innovation topic. One of those is now live within SAP Labs Munich at Munich Urban Colab, working with the Technical University of Munich.

This story also appeared on the German SAP News Center.

Tags: Pledge to Flex, SAP Partner, user experience