Canon Patent Application: Improving Eye Control Autofocus

[Canon Rumors Guy]

Canon never fully completes something and is always looking at methods to improve the technology they have developed. In this patent application (2024-003432), Canon is looking to improve Eye Control AF’s functions. This is currently available on the Canon EOS R3 and, most likely, on the R1 camera body. Hopefully, it will be an option

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[mxwphoto]

Would be great if the eye control AF would trickle down to R5 and R6 level cameras soon. That and since it is now EVF, make the viewfinders bigger. That would be worth a camera upgrade.

 

[HMC11]

Would be great if the eye control AF would trickle down to R5 and R6 level cameras soon. That and since it is now EVF, make the viewfinders bigger. That would be worth a camera upgrade.

Wait long enough, it would get to the R7, R8 level. At a guess, I imagine it could be a game-changer for fast-moving wildlife & sports photography.

 

[koenkooi]

I wonder if the eye control in the Apple Vision Pro will make Canon try a bit harder to file down the rough edges.

 

[Maximilian]

I always ask myself how well eye control works when you are wearing glasses...

 

[vikingar]

Would be great if the eye control AF would trickle down to R5 and R6 level cameras soon. That and since it is now EVF, make the viewfinders bigger. That would be worth a camera upgrade.

Bigger, higher resolution, but more importantly better colors. It's pretty washed out IMHO.

 

[Toamelicious]

I always ask myself how well eye control works when you are wearing glasses...

Probably depends on the glasses and the amount of ambient light.
I have tried the R3s eyetracking when I was at the photopia in Hamburg last year. Even though I am horribly far sighted, after calibration it worked like a charm through my quite heavily corrected glasses.
That was indoors though. I think it would probably struggle a lot, when there was quite a lot of lightleaking and reflection in the glasses.

 

[Del Paso]

What I know is that my next Canon will have eye AF. Since the R5 II is, according to rumors, to be announced later, it could benefit from some improvements.
If the R5 II doesn't, I'll buy the R3. Period!

 

[tangerine_sedge]

I am very short sighted and wear spectacles. I have turned off the eye tracking on my R3, as it was just getting in the way. I perservered for a few months, but it was never reliable causing me to miss lots of shots and take ages getting the shots I did want. I've gone back to a large central focus point, and that works reliably well. On a positive note though, the dioptre adjustment on the eyepiece works like a charm to ensure that I can focus on the EVF.

Other non-spectacle wearers viewpoints might be different 8)

 

[John Wilde]

I'm too lazy to look it up, but recall a Canon exec saying that they were planned on improving Eye Control AF, so it's not one of those one and done features.

 

[frankchn]

It works very well for me and I am fairly nearsighted (-7.00 on both eyes) and wear glasses.

 

[Maximilian]

Probably depends on the glasses and the amount of ambient light.
I have tried the R3s eyetracking when I was at the photopia in Hamburg last year. Even though I am horribly far sighted, after calibration it worked like a charm through my quite heavily corrected glasses.
That was indoors though. I think it would probably struggle a lot, when there was quite a lot of lightleaking and reflection in the glasses.

Thanks for that impression. If eye AF gets improvements, that'll turn out even better.

 

[becceric]

It works very well for me and I am fairly nearsighted (-7.00 on both eyes) and wear glasses

 

[becceric]

Back when I had my Elan IIe, my experience was similar to tangerine_sedge, above. I'm a -5.25, and while hoping for a future improvement, I've read too many mixed reviews for the current state of eye controlled focus.
But it's great to see the Elan IIe image on Canon Rumors! That the closest to a "retro" style camera that I could accept.

 

[Manlikechrisgray]

I always ask myself how well eye control works when you are wearing glasses...

It works terribly.. I bought the r3 specifically for this feature and as someone who wears glasses its not great.. It doesn't detect movement very much

 

[mxwphoto]

It works terribly.. I bought the r3 specifically for this feature and as someone who wears glasses its not great.. It doesn't detect movement very much

I would imagine that a larger viewfinder will make things more accurate for tracking the eye (more room to place sensors). Would be nice if we had the option to get eyecups big enough to fit around glasses so little to no stray light enters when looking through the EVF.