Method of detecting, segmenting and extracting salient regions in documents using attention tracking sensors

A computing apparatus for detecting, segmenting, and extracting salient regions in documents by using attention tracking sensors, the computing apparatus comprising:

• a processor;
• a memory;
• and
• a communication interface coupled to each of the processor and the memory,
• wherein the processor is configured to:
• receive, via the communication interface, an image that corresponds to a document;
• receive, from a sensor via the communication interface, a sequence of measurements that correspond to a human reading of the document, wherein the sensor includes an eye-tracking sensor configured to detect a sequence of eye-gaze positions on the document as a function of time;
• determine, based on the received sequence of measurements, an identification of at least one of a title, a section header, a graph, and a table, included in the document;
• output the identification of the at least one of the title, the section header, the graph, and the table;
• determine, based on the received sequence of measurements, at least one region of the document as being a salient document region;
• demarcate the salient document region in an electronically displayable manner;
• and
• output a file that includes a displayable version of the document with the demarcated salient document region.

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for detecting, segmenting, and extracting salient regions in documents by using attention tracking sensors, the storage medium comprising executable code which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to:

• receive an image that corresponds to a document;
• receive, from a sensor, a sequence of measurements that correspond to a human reading of the document, wherein the sensor includes an eye-tracking sensor configured to detect a sequence of eye-gaze positions on the document as a function of time;
• determine, based on the received sequence of measurements, an identification of at least one of a title, a section header, a graph, and a table, included in the document;
• output the identification of the at least one of the title, the section header, the graph, and the table;
• determine, based on the received sequence of measurements, at least one region of the document as being a salient document region;
• demarcate the salient document region in an electronically displayable manner;
• and
• output a file that includes a displayable version of the document with the demarcated salient document region.