Using Eye-Tracking Data and Mouse Cursor Location To Examine Visual Alerting in a Multi-Display Environment

Abstract

A study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of visual alerting during a task that required full attention and that used multiple displays. Alert detection time was collected, and eye-tracking data was recorded to determine where participants were looking, particularly when an alert appeared. Results showed that a full border around the display was detected faster than a short bar at the top of the display. This finding is in contrast to previous work in our lab, where the bar alert has always been superior for detection. Previous findings had inferred that the bar alert can be included in a spotlight of attention created during the task. The new findings suggest that the spotlight was expanded in the current experiment as a consequence of limitations in head movement imposed by wearing the eye-tracking equipment. As a result the bar was not captured and detection time was slower. The eye-tracking data was also used to validate mouse cursor location as a reasonable indication of where eyes are looking. The data showed a relatively strong correlation between eye and cursor and indicated that for the task used the cursor is a suitable tool for collecting data on where an individual is looking.

Keywords: alerting, workload, attention, visual, cursor, eye-tracking

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe100621