Measuring the performance of laser spot clicking techniques

Laser spot clicking technique is the term of remote interaction technique between human and computer using a laser pointer as a pointing device. This paper is focused on the performance test of two laser spot clicking techniques. An off-the-shelf laser pointer has a toggle switch to generate a laser spot, the presence (ON) or absence (OFF) of this spot and its combination are the candidates of the interaction technique. We conducted empirical study that compared remote pointing technique performed using combination of ON and OFF of the laser spot, ON-OFF and ON-OFF-ON, and using a desktop mouse as a baseline comparison. We present quantitative performance test based on Fitts' test using a one-direction tapping test in ISO/TS 9241-411 procedure; and assessment of comfort using a questionnaire. We hope this result give contribution to the interaction technique using laser pointer as a pointing device especially in selecting the appropriate clicking technique for real application. Our results suggest ON-OFF technique has positive advantages over ON-OFF-ON technique such as the throughput and comfort.