EEG

Researchers at the University of Maryland (UMD) continue to advance the development of their “brain cap” technology that allows users to turn their thoughts into motion. The team has already had success in using EEG brain signals captured from the cap’s 64 electrodes attached to users’ scalps to reconstruct 3D hand movements and to control a computer cursor with their thoughts, and now the team has successfully reconstructed the complex 3D-movements of the ankle, knee and hip joints during treadmill walking. The aim is to provide a non-invasive technology that can return motor function to victims of paralysis, injury or stroke.  Read More

With human error the predominant cause of car accidents, automatic braking systems like the Pedestrian Detection system found in the Volvo S60 use cameras and sensors to assist drivers in detecting oncoming hazards and automatically applying the brakes. Now a team of researchers from the Berlin Institute for Technology has found a way to improve the response times of drivers by reading their minds. Using electroencephalography (EEG) by attaching electrodes to the scalp the researchers demonstrated that reading driver’s brain signals can provide quicker reaction times to potentially prevent many of the car accidents caused by human error.  Read More

Boston-based Parlee Cycles is working on a concept bicycle which will reportedly feature thought-controlled gear shifting. Under development as part of the Toyota Prius Projects, the PXP as it's officially known, sits somewhere between a time trial bicycle and a road bike in terms of geometry and would use neurotransmitters in the helmet to operate an electronic gear shift.  Read More

Until recently a purely lab based technology, brainwave (electroencephalograph or EEG) headsets are trickling into the marketplace in a number of different guises. But what exactly do these devices do, how do they differ from each other and - with potential applications ranging from medicine to gaming and market research – who will use them and for what purpose? Dr. Max Sutherland takes a closer look.  Read More

Using the same technology that allowed them to accurately detect the brain signals controlling arm movements that we looked at last year, researchers at the University of Utah have gone one step further, translating brain signals into words. While the previous breakthrough was an important step towards giving amputees or people with severe paralysis a high level of control over a prosthetic limb or computer interface, this new development marks an early step toward letting severely paralyzed people speak with their thoughts.  Read More

Traditional electroencephalography (EEG) is time-consuming to set up, must be administered by qualified technologists and relies on reusable electrodes which can leave patients vulnerable to infection. Massachusetts-based HydroDot is aiming to solve these issues and significantly improve the clinical process with StatNet – a flexible, single-use EEG headpiece that offers a simpler, safer, faster and more accurate way to measure electrical activity in the human brain.  Read More

Brain-Computer Interfacing (BCI) is a hot area of research. In the past year alone we’ve looked at a system to allow people to control a robotic arm and another that enables users to control an ASIMO robot with nothing but the power of thought. Such systems rely on the use of an electroencephalograph (EEG) to capture brain waves and translate them into commands to control a machine. Now researchers at the University of Southampton have used a similar technique to show it is possible to transmit thoughts from one person to another.  Read More

The brain is one of our most delicate organs. It’s not really meant to be prodded and poked, hence the nice protective skull surrounding it. That fragility makes experimental devices that use tiny electrodes poking into the brain to help paralyzed people use computers and potentially let amputees control bionic limbs, a risky proposition. But now a new University of Utah study shows that brain signals controlling arm movements can be detected accurately using new microelectrodes that sit on the brain, but don't penetrate it.  Read More

The VTT Technical Research Centre in Finland is Northern Europe's biggest contract research organization and provides high-end technology solutions, often combining different technologies to create new innovations. One new breakthrough that's certain to be watched closely later this week will be that of VTT Research Scientist, Miikka Ermes (M.Sc., Eng.), who will publicly defend his doctoral thesis presenting methods for analysing human biosignals, including innovative methods for the verification of brain damage following cardiac arrest. Up until now, the use of electroencephalography (EEG) in the monitoring of cardiac patients has been limited due to interpretation difficulties.  Read More