“To make Android more accessible for everyone, we’re launching new tools that make it easier to control your phone and communicate using facial gestures,” the tech giant said.

Two new tools will allow front-facing cameras on smartphones to work at detecting face and eye movements. Users can scan their phone screen and select a task by smiling, raising eyebrows, opening their mouth, or looking to the left, right or up.

“Every day, people use voice commands, like ‘Hey Google’ or their hands to navigate their phones,” Google said in a blog post. “However, that’s not always possible for people with severe motor and speech disabilities.”

The changes are the result of two new features, one of which is called “Camera Switches”, which lets people use their faces instead of swipes and taps to interact with smartphones.

The other is “Project Activate”, a new Android app that allows people to use those gestures to trigger an action, like having a phone play a recorded phrase, send a text, or make a call.

“Now it’s possible for anyone to use eye movements and facial gestures that are customised to their range of movement to navigate their phone, without hands and voice,” Google said.

The free Activate app is available in Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States via the Google Play store.

Apple, Google and Microsoft have consistently rolled out innovations that make internet technology more accessible to people with disabilities or who find that age has made some tasks, such as reading, more difficult.