Using biometrics in your semester project

In Urban Tech Lab you can borrow our equipment and get guidance in best practices, study design and data analysis.

Currently we have two different types of portable eye tracking equipment: Pupil Invisible and Pupil Core. On top of that, we have a Varjo VR3 virtual reality headset with built-in eye tracking.

We also have Shimmer GSR sensors for measuring electrodermal activity and Shimmer ECG sensors for measuring electrical heart activity.

For data analysis we offer guidance in using Pupil Labs’ and Shimmer’s free desktop software solutions, and upon request we can help set up your study in iMotions multimodal analysis software.

See below some examples of studies for inspiration on how to use biometrics:

Bio Mapping (GSR and GPS)
Nold, C. (2018). Bio Mapping: How can we use emotion to articulate cities? Livingmaps Review, 4. http://livingmaps.review/journal/index.php/LMR/article/view/103/176

Eyetracking and Urban street edges (Mobile eye tracking)
Simpson, J., Freeth, M., Simpson, K. J., & Thwaites, K. (2019). Visual engagement with urban street edges: Insights using mobile eye-tracking. Journal of Urbanism: International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability, 12(3), 259–278. https://doi.org/10.1080/17549175.2018.1552884

Visual attention and smartphones (Mobile eye tracking and GPS)
Argin, G., Pak, B., & Turkoglu, H. (2020). Through the Eyes of (Post-) Flâneurs—Altering rhythm and visual attention in public space in the era of smartphones. 38th eCAADe Conference: Anthropologic – Architecture and Fabrication in the cognitive age, 1, 239–248. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/348961679_Through_the_Eyes_of_Post-Flaneurs_Altering_rhythm_and_visual_attention_in_public_space_in_the_era_of_smartphones

Visual memory (Mobile eye tracking and mapping)
Sayegh, A., Adreani, S., Li, L., Rudin, J., & Yan, X. (2015). A New Method for Urban Spatial Analysis: Measuring Gaze, Attention, and Memory in the Built Environment. UrbanGIS’15: Proceedings of the 1st International ACM SIGSPATIAL Workshop on Smart Cities and Urban, 42–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/2835022.2835030

Emotions and navigation (Mobile eye tracking, GSR and PPG)
Lanini-Maggi, S., Ruginski, I. T., & Fabrikant, S. I. (2021). Improvingpedestrians’ spatial learning during landmark-based navigation with auditoryemotionalcues and narrative. UC Santa Barbara – GIScience 2021 Short Paper Proceedings. https://doi.org/10.25436/E26P43

Perception of urban spaces (HRV, GPS and mapping)
Agustí, D. P. i, Rutllant, J., & Fortea, J. L. (2019). Differences in the perception of urban space via mental maps and Heart Rate Variation (HRV). Applied Geography, 112, 102084. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2019.102084

Geometry in architecture (Virtual Reality eye tracking, GSR and EEG)
Shemesh, A., Leisman, G., Bar, M., & Grobman, Y. J. (2021). A neurocognitive study of the emotional impact of geometrical criteria of architectural space. Architectural Science Review, 64(4), 394–407. https://doi.org/10.1080/00038628.2021.1940827