EyeDraw: Enabling Children with Severe Motor Impairments to Draw with Their Eyes

EyeDraw is a software program that, when run on a computer with an eye tracking device, enables children with severe motor disabilities to draw pictures by just moving their eyes. This paper discusses the motivation for building the software, how the program works, the iterative development of two versions of the software, user testing of the two versions by people with and without disabilities, and modifications to the software based on user testing. Feedback from both children and adults with disabilities, and from their caregivers, was especially helpful in the design process. The project identifies challenges that are unique to controlling a computer with the eyes, and unique to writing software for children with severe motor impairments.