Project L.I.A.R.

The servo is controlled by an Arduino Uno, and powered by a 10V battery pack
The servo mounted on the nerf gun, making use of scrap metal and fishing line
When looking at the screen, the system lets you work
If you look away, the system gives you half a second to return to your work
After half a second of looking away, it fires the servo to remind you to get back on task

Inspiration

Staying focused is hard, especially with endless distractions. Our team wondered if we could promote focus by introducing some mild consequences. Thus, Project L.I.A.R. was born: a 'motivational' system to keep you on task.

What it does

L.I.A.R. uses real-time eye tracking to monitor user attention through their camera. When you look away for too long, it activates a servo to fire a nerf gun at you, serving as a gentle reminder to get back on task.

How we built it

Using OpenCV to access the computer camera, we then implemented an application using Media Pipe, an eye tracking and face detection software. From there, we flashed an Arduino Uno with our code, and assembled a fully functional project the takes real-time eye tracking data as an input, and fires 109mm of foam persuasion as an output.

Challenges we ran into

One of the biggest roadblocks we overcame was the calibration of the eye-tracking software. Small head movements, lighting changes, or natural blinking could all cause false triggers. After much trial end error, we settled on a sensitivity that effectively balances optimal-user-production with minimal false positives.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We achieved smooth, calibrated eye tracking that accurately detects user attention loss and triggers hardware in real time. The system’s lightning reaction speed exceeded our expectations (and our reflexes).

What's next for Project L.I.A.R.

While the future for this project is uncertain, there is always room for improvement. Given more time, we could create a new 3-D printed base for the system to improve overall stability and reliability.