Music is very powerful. It has the power to move people and bring them together across cultures. Many use it as a form of expression and as a way to channel their emotions. There are those who are musically talented and take it upon themselves to learn the art of music and learn how to play many instruments. However, what happens if you have cerebral palsy? Or are paralyzed and cannot manipulate your limbs? And what happens if you love music and would love to play the guitar or piano?
Eye Play the Piano is able to allow people who do not have control of their arms to express themselves via Piano. It does so by taking advantage of gaze tracking algorithms and using a head-mounting device to interpret the eye movements of the user. The user interface of the system is shown below:
The user stares at a certain note and blinks whenever the user is ready to “press” the note. The head-mounting device is connected to the piano and once the user’s input is interpreted, there is a mechanism that allows the respective keys to pressed. It gets really interesting when the user wants to play complicated chords. In this video, one can see how anyone can use this device and play the piano. The technology allows one to learn how to plan the piano and get better at it. The boy in the video is playing the piano and one can see how great he is at it and the joy that he gets out of performing in front of a large audience.
I believe this form of technology is fantastic, and that everyone should be given the opportunity to learn and express themselves through music, even if someone has a disability.
I think hobbies, whether they be music, art, athletics, etc. are vital to a full and happy life. All to often I think that AT developers focus on the everyday tasks of living when developing devices, which is important, but leaves out the vital recreational/cultural component. More technologies like the one you have shown here are certainly needed to make sure that individuals with disabilities have the same opportunities to be creative and express themselves.