System and methods for cuing visual attention

1. A computer system method for providing one or more sensory cue to direct visual attention on a screen display, the method comprising:

(a) defining an area on the screen display where attention will be measured;

(b) programming sensory cues to estimate attention during a programming phase, the programming including:

accessing a user interface for defining settings for each sensory cue;

entering a minimum time threshold required to accept attention input data associated with each sensory cue;

selecting parameters for each sensory cue;

choosing sensory cues for participation; and

defining an input device for acquiring attention input data; and

(c) executing the sensory cues during an execution phase with respect to a frame or region, the executing including:

(a) initializing each chosen sensory cue for each frame or region to a zero value;

(b) recording real-time attention input data;

(c) accepting the real-time attention input data if the minimum time threshold is met;

(d) updating real-time a duration of time between accepted attention input data for each sensory cue in each frame or region;

(e) comparing real-time all durations of time of all sensory cues within the frames or regions;

(f) selecting the frame or region with the longest duration of time thereby demonstrating a measurement of attention and assigning a neglected status to that frame or region;

(g) displaying an activation cue for visual attention in the frame or region on the screen display according to the selected parameters; and

(h) repeating (b)-(g) until the execution phase ends.

2. The computer system method of claim 1 wherein the sensory cue is a visual sensory cue.

3. The computer system method of claim 2 wherein the visual sensory cue is a frame component including a window element and a border element.

4. The computer system method of claim 2 wherein the selecting includes:

selecting a window fill parameter for each visual sensory cue; and

selecting a border parameter for each visual sensory cue.

5. The computer system method of claim 4 wherein the window fill parameter is one or more selected from a group of: a color and an overlay including opacity, translucency, and transparency.

6. The computer system method of claim 5 , further comprising selecting the color using a swatch grid.

7. The computer system method of claim 5 , further comprising selecting the color using one or more models selected from the group comprising another group that includes:

hue, saturation, value (HSV) model,

hue, saturation, luminance (HSL) model,

red, green, blue (RGB) model, and

cyan, magenta, yellow, black (CMYK) model.

8. The computer system method of claim 4 wherein the border parameter is a border thickness, border style, or combination thereof.

9. The computer system method of claim 1 further comprising creating a frame or region record.

10. The computer system method of claim 9 wherein the creating includes:

entering an initial location of the frame or region based on x, y coordinates of the screen display;

defining an initial size and location of each frame or region based on a height dimension and a width dimension;

assigning a color to the frame or region; and

adjusting a color format of the assigned color, wherein the color format includes overlay, weight value, and weight percentage.

11. The computer system method of claim 1 wherein the attention input data includes eye gaze of the user, eye movement of the user, and device input according to movement of at least one input device by the user.

12. The computer system method of claim 11 wherein the at least one input device includes a computer mouse, touch screen, touch pad, stylus, keyboard, or combination thereof.