Gaze-Controlled Digital Signage for Public Health Education during Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

For more than a decade, digital signages have been used in health facilities and public environment to provide fun and interactive approach of education. Unfortunately, interacting with conventional digital signage during Covid-19 pandemic raises a concern on its hygiene. Thus, touchless interaction is preferable to avoid direct contact on the touch screen. Here we present a novel study on effectiveness of gaze-based interaction in a digital signage for public health education. Instead of touching the screen, the users engage with the content by gazing at a dynamic button that moves in horizontal or vertical direction. Experimental results show that gazing at faster dynamic buttons (angular speed of 60.28°/s) than its slower counterpart (angular speed of 30.14°/s) requires shorter time to complete a three-steps task (T = 84, Z = −1.977, p < 0.05). Our study provides a scientific proof of concept for further development of touchless digital signage that complies with health protocols of the World Health Organization during Covid-19 pandemic.