Eye Position Distribution Depends On Head Orientation

Yu Fang (fangyork@riec.tohoku.ac.jp)1, Ryoichi Nakashima2,3, Kazumichi Matsumiya2, Rumi Tokunaga2, Ichiro Kuriki2, Satoshi Shioiri2,3
1Graduate School of Information Sciences, Tohoku University 2Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University 3Japan Science and Technology Agency, CREST

BACKGROUND RESULTS
Eye and head movement ※ The frequency of eye position in each head orientation and velocity was calculated (Data from all trials were analyzed).
Our visual field is limited, we need to move our head and body to The eyes oriented more in the direction of the head orientation.
obtain visual information from the word. Head orientation Head velocity The eyes oriented in the direction of the head motion.
Right/left of the head direction when the head directed right/left side.
Although the cooperation between eye and head movements has -27 ° -18 ° -9 ° 0° 9° 18 ° 27 ° -27 °/s -18 °/s -9 °/s 0 °/s 9 °/s 18 °/s 27 °/s
been reported(Zangmeister et al., 1982; Freedman et al., 2000; Cecala et al., 2008), in

Frequency (%)

Frequency (%)
which they studied with simple stimuli and/or without body
movements, there is only limited knowledge of how to move
cooperatively in the nature environment with the freely body
movements.
L ← → R L ← → R
Eye position (deg)
PURPOSE Eye position (deg)

R
R
To investigate the relationship between eye and head Head orientation and velocity
movements while searching for a target in a 360°visual The peak eye orientation is at right/left most, Evaluation of the eye position distributions
display with freely head and body movement. when the head orientation and velocity are both in right/left. by comparing the standard deviation of the distributions
**
MATERIALS AND METHODS 30

Standard Deviation (deg)

** p < .01

L
L
L R L R

→ R 15
**

Peak value of eye position

L distribution R
Head velocity (deg/s)

0 Head velocity Head orientation Head orientation and

velocity
 Eight participants ran 4 blocks:
each block consisted of 48 trials. The standard deviation of eye position distribution classified based on both
 The participant naturally moved R head orientation and velocity is significantly smaller than that classified
his head, eyes, and body to search -15 R based on either.
An example of head and eye movements
←

for the target and pressed a button L L → Eye position is correlated both with head orientation and velocity.
→ R

Head orientation
relative to body as soon as he found the target.
L

 We measured participant’s eyes,

CONCLUSIONS
Degree

head and body movements.

-30
The distribution of the eye position tended to peak at right/left side of the head when the head
Eye position
oriented right/left and the head moved in right/left.
L ←

relative to head
When head oriented right/left,
eyes’ positions were biased to right/left. -30 -15 0 15 30 The gaze direction can be predicted as a distribution function with a standard deviation of less than
L ← Head orientation (deg) → R
Time (sec) 10 degrees by analyzing both head orientation and velocity.