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PyeLink and SyeLink : Open-source Python tools for low-level EyeLink experiment control and data parsing

Salari, Mohammadhossein ; Nyström, Marcus LU orcid ; Niehorster, Diederick C. LU orcid and Bednarik, Roman (2026) ETRA '26: 2026 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications
Abstract
We present PyeLink and SyeLink, two complementary open-source Python tools for running eye-tracking experiments and parsing data from SR Research Ltd. EyeLink eye tracking hardware. PyeLink simplifies experiment creation through plug-and-play support for multiple display backends (Pygame, PsychoPy, Pyglet) while enabling two features not available in existing tools: recording data during calibration and validation phases, and simultaneously recording raw P-CR data alongside calibrated gaze data. These enriched data files cannot be processed by existing parsers, which motivated the development of SyeLink. SyeLink parser processes recorded files and makes the data accessible through both Python API and command-line interface. SyeLink... (More)
We present PyeLink and SyeLink, two complementary open-source Python tools for running eye-tracking experiments and parsing data from SR Research Ltd. EyeLink eye tracking hardware. PyeLink simplifies experiment creation through plug-and-play support for multiple display backends (Pygame, PsychoPy, Pyglet) while enabling two features not available in existing tools: recording data during calibration and validation phases, and simultaneously recording raw P-CR data alongside calibrated gaze data. These enriched data files cannot be processed by existing parsers, which motivated the development of SyeLink. SyeLink parser processes recorded files and makes the data accessible through both Python API and command-line interface. SyeLink converts raw ASC data into structured JSON and CSV formats and supports visualization of calibration and validation results. Together, these tools provide a complete Python workflow for running eye-tracking experiments with enriched data recording capabilities while exposing all configurable aspects of EyeLink eye trackers. (Less)
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author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding
publication status
published
subject
host publication
ETRA '26 : Proceedings of the 2026 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications - Proceedings of the 2026 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications
editor
Chetouani, Aladine ; Vilanueva, Arantxa ; Bruno, Alessandro and Echeverria, Rebeca
article number
50
pages
3 pages
publisher
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
conference name
ETRA '26: 2026 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications
conference location
Marrakesh, Morocco
conference dates
2026-06-01 - 2026-06-04
ISBN
979-8-4007-2519-7
DOI
10.1145/3797246.3805844
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
2c666394-cf91-4b18-a8bd-877829a2bbeb
date added to LUP
2026-06-01 19:01:00
date last changed
2026-06-16 13:22:18
@inproceedings{2c666394-cf91-4b18-a8bd-877829a2bbeb,
  abstract     = {{We present PyeLink and SyeLink, two complementary open-source Python tools for running eye-tracking experiments and parsing data from SR Research Ltd. EyeLink eye tracking hardware. PyeLink simplifies experiment creation through plug-and-play support for multiple display backends (Pygame, PsychoPy, Pyglet) while enabling two features not available in existing tools: recording data during calibration and validation phases, and simultaneously recording raw P-CR data alongside calibrated gaze data. These enriched data files cannot be processed by existing parsers, which motivated the development of SyeLink. SyeLink parser processes recorded files and makes the data accessible through both Python API and command-line interface. SyeLink converts raw ASC data into structured JSON and CSV formats and supports visualization of calibration and validation results. Together, these tools provide a complete Python workflow for running eye-tracking experiments with enriched data recording capabilities while exposing all configurable aspects of EyeLink eye trackers.}},
  author       = {{Salari, Mohammadhossein and Nyström, Marcus and Niehorster, Diederick C. and Bednarik, Roman}},
  booktitle    = {{ETRA '26 : Proceedings of the 2026 Symposium on Eye Tracking Research and Applications}},
  editor       = {{Chetouani, Aladine and Vilanueva, Arantxa and Bruno, Alessandro and Echeverria, Rebeca}},
  isbn         = {{979-8-4007-2519-7}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{05}},
  publisher    = {{Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)}},
  title        = {{PyeLink and SyeLink : Open-source Python tools for low-level EyeLink experiment control and data parsing}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3797246.3805844}},
  doi          = {{10.1145/3797246.3805844}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}