An Automated Method for Assessing Visual Acuity in Infants and Toddlers Using an Eye-Tracking System
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Updated: Aug 4, 2025
Author Spotlight: An Automated Method for Assessing Visual Acuity in Infants and Toddlers Using an Eye-Tracking System
Published on: March 17, 2023
Jing Wen1, Bikun Yang2, Jinshi Cui2
1Department of Pediatric Ophthalmology, Peking University First Hospital, Peking University Children Vison Institute, Peking University.
Insights
This study introduces an automated acuity card procedure (AACP) for measuring infant visual acuity using webcam eye-tracking. The AACP method is comparable to traditional Teller Acuity Cards (TACs) for assessing visual function in young children.
Area of Science:
- Ophthalmology
- Pediatrics
- Computer Vision
Background:
- Accurate visual acuity measurement is crucial for infant and child visual function assessment.
- Infant communication limitations pose challenges for traditional visual acuity testing.
- Existing methods may require specialized equipment or trained personnel.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a novel automated method for assessing visual acuity in children aged 5-36 months.
- To overcome communication barriers in infant visual acuity testing.
- To evaluate the efficacy of the automated acuity card procedure (AACP).
Main Methods:
- Development of the automated acuity card procedure (AACP) utilizing webcam eye-tracking.
- Implementation of a two-choice preferential-looking test with digital visual stimuli.
- Automatic analysis of children's watching behaviors through recorded facial images and eye movements.
Main Results:
- The AACP successfully assesses visual acuity in infants and young children without verbal communication.
- The automated system measures eye movement responses to visual stimuli.
- Performance of AACP was found to be comparable to established Teller Acuity Cards (TACs).
Conclusions:
- The AACP offers a viable, automated, and communication-independent approach for infant visual acuity assessment.
- This technology has the potential to improve the accessibility and accuracy of pediatric vision screening.
- Further research can explore broader applications and refinements of the AACP system.
Abstract:
Visual acuity measurement is an important visual function test to perform in infancy and childhood. However, accurate visual acuity measurement in infants is difficult because of deficiencies in their communication ability. This paper presents a novel automated method to assess visual acuity in children (5-36 months old). This method, the automated acuity card procedure (AACP), uses a webcam for eye tracking and recognizes children's watching behaviors automatically. A two-choice preferential-looking test is performed when the tested child watches the visual stimuli shown on a high-resolution digital display screen. When the tested child watches the stimuli, their facial pictures are recorded by the webcam. These pictures are used by the set computer program to analyze their watching behavior. With this procedure, the child's eye movement responses to different stimuli are measured, and their visual acuity is assessed without communication. By comparing the results with grating acuity obtained by Teller Acuity Cards (TACs), AACP performance is deemed comparable to that of TACs.
