Pupil Labs Neon – Eye Tracking for Research and Beyond
Overview
Neon is the latest wearable eye-tracking platform from Pupil Labs, designed for scientific research, product development, human behavior studies, UX testing, XR applications, and real-world deployment.
Unlike traditional eye trackers, Neon packages advanced eye-tracking hardware into a compact module powered by deep-learning algorithms, delivering robust tracking across diverse environments and user populations.
Key Capabilities
Comprehensive Eye Tracking Signals
Neon provides a rich set of measurements including:
- Gaze position and gaze vectors
- Fixations
- Saccades
- Blinks
- Pupil diameter
- Eyeball position
- Eyeball orientation
- Eyelid opening angle
- Eye-state information
These signals enable both behavioral research and real-time interactive applications.
Works Everywhere
Neon is designed to operate reliably across a wide range of lighting conditions:
- Complete darkness
- Indoor environments
- Outdoor environments
- Bright sunlight
- High-contrast scenes
Works on Everybody
The system is designed to perform across diverse users regardless of:
- Age
- Gender
- Ethnicity
- Eye makeup
- Contact lens usage
- Eye shape variations
Deep Learning Powered
Neon’s tracking pipeline uses neural-network-based algorithms to analyze:
- Eye movements
- Head movements
- Body movements
This provides highly accurate gaze estimation and robust eye-state tracking in real-world environments.
Research Applications
Neon is widely used in areas such as:
- Cognitive science
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Human factors
- Human-computer interaction
- User experience research
- Sports science
- Marketing research
- Education research
- Healthcare studies
- Ergonomics
- Mixed reality and virtual reality
Global Research Adoption
- More than 1,100 scientific publications
- Used across 25+ research disciplines
- Deployed by universities, laboratories, and industry researchers worldwide
Software Ecosystem
Pupil Cloud
Pupil Cloud provides a complete workflow from data collection to analysis.
Features include:
- Experiment management
- Project organization
- Secure cloud storage
- Team collaboration
- Automated processing
Cloud-Based Analysis
Researchers can process eye-tracking recordings using cloud computing resources for:
- Gaze analysis
- Attention studies
- Visual behavior analysis
- Large-scale experiment processing
Automatic Gaze Mapping
One of the platform’s most powerful features is automatic mapping of gaze onto real-world objects.
Benefits include:
- No manual annotation
- Simple photo-based setup
- Faster analysis workflows
- Scalable processing of large datasets
Visualization Tools
Researchers can visualize results using:
- AOI (Areas of Interest) analysis
- Heatmaps
- Bar charts
- Scanpaths
- Attention metrics
- Behavioral summaries
Open and Accessible Platform
Neon emphasizes openness and transparency.
Open Data Access
Users can access:
- Raw recordings
- Intermediate processing outputs
- Final analysis results
Open Formats
- Open data formats
- Accessible APIs
- Flexible integration workflows
Open Geometry
The hardware supports custom integrations for:
- Research prototypes
- XR devices
- Wearables
- Product development projects
Real-Time and Playback Software
The platform includes desktop software for:
- Live streaming
- Real-time monitoring
- Recording management
- Playback and visualization
- Post-hoc analysis
The software is open source, allowing researchers and developers to customize workflows.
Integration with Other Research Tools
Neon can be integrated with a variety of research technologies including:
- EEG systems
- Motion capture systems
- VR headsets
- XR platforms
- Biometric sensors
- Behavioral research software
This enables synchronized multimodal research combining gaze behavior with neural, physiological, and motion data.
Key Advantages
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Deep-learning eye tracking | High accuracy and robustness |
| Wearable design | Natural behavior recording |
| Works in sunlight and darkness | Real-world usability |
| Calibration-free operation | Faster participant onboarding |
| Open data access | Research transparency |
| Cloud-based analysis | Scalable workflows |
| Automatic gaze mapping | Reduced manual effort |
| XR integration | Supports next-generation applications |
Ideal Users
- Academic researchers
- Neuroscientists
- Human factors engineers
- UX researchers
- XR developers
- Product designers
- Healthcare researchers
- Industrial research teams
Neon combines research-grade eye tracking, deep-learning-powered analytics, open data access, and real-world robustness, making it suitable for both advanced scientific studies and commercial eye-tracking applications.
