Posted on 03/10/2006 4:32:40 AM PST by S0122017
'Mental typewriter' controlled by thought alone 18:35 09 March 2006 NewScientist.com news service Will Knight
The "mental typewriter" could also be used as a games controller (Image: Fraunhofer Institute)
John K Chapin, University of Rochester A computer controlled by the power of thought alone has been demonstrated at a major trade fair in Germany.
The device could provide a way for paralysed patients to operate computers, or for amputees to operate electronically controlled artificial limbs. But it also has non-medical applications, such as in the computer games and entertainment industries.
The Berlin Brain-Computer Interface (BBCI) – dubbed the "mental typewriter" – was created by researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute in Berlin and Charité, the medical school of Berlin Humboldt University in Germany. It was shown off at the CeBit electronics fair in Hanover, Germany.
The machine makes it possible to type messages onto a computer screen by mentally controlling the movement of a cursor. A user must wear a cap containing electrodes that measure electrical activity inside the brain, known as an electroencephalogram (EEG) signal, and imagine moving their left or right arm in order to manoeuvre the cursor around.
"It's a very strange sensation," says Gabriel Curio at Charité. "And you can understand from the crowds watching that the potential is huge."
Learning algorithms Curio says users can operate the device just 20 minutes after going through 150 cursor moves in their minds. This is because the device rapidly learns to recognise activity in the area of a person's motor cortex, the area of the brain associated with movement. "The trick is the machine-learning algorithms developed at the Fraunhofer Institute," Curio says.
John Chapin, an expert in using implanted electrodes to control computers, agrees EEG sensing technology is advancing rapidly. "There's been a lot of progress on the non-invasive side in recent years," he told New Scientist.
The German researchers hope to develop a commercial version of the device as an aid for paralysed patients and amputees.
Chapin adds that brain-computer interfaces could have a range of uses beyond the medical. "Signals from the brain give you a fraction of a second advantage," he says. The device could make a novel game controller and be used in other ways. The researchers have even begun testing the machine as a driving aid, as it can sense a sudden reaction and control a vehicle's brakes before even the driver can.
The next stage is to develop a cap that does not have to be attached directly to the scalp. This should make the device easier to use and cause less skin irritation for the wearer.
ft ping
What a miracle, what a joy.
Holy Cow, that cap has more hair than I do!!!!
OK, aside from Friday morning levity, this is fascinating. Glad to see a sensible application that will be of benefit to those who most need it!
Fer sure!
The thought police will just love this little gem.
You're under arrest for being out in public without your government issued thinking cap on.
This article immediately made me think of the movie Firefox, starring Clint Eastwood released in 1982. I recall that was a fictional story about an advanced Russian jet fighter capable of traveling at Mach 5 with advanced armament controls that responded to thought commands from the pilot.
Surely, the military already has something in the works using this technology for a "deadly serious" games controller.
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I want one you could freep your brains
Combine it with this and the Matrix will be almost here!
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1593034/posts
Neh, just the GREATED GAME OF UNREAL TOURNAMENT EVER
The computer science department I attend has a couple researchers doing similar work. I volunteered to provide data for them once. They were just matching various thought patterns to tasks at that point - had me mentally perform a set of different tasks in order. Things like mental arithmatic, mentally typing a letter, and mentally rotating shapes.
The most annoying thing was, as the article points out, the cap. It was itchy and did not want to stay on (I have very long thick hair). But the opportunities this could offer to paralyzed people is amazing.
Also, I wouldn't be suprised if brain research like this leads to an easy way to answer if someone's in a partial vegetative state or not (like the Terri Schiavo case).
"Think Russian.
Think Russian."
I've often wondered how these guys got their start
It started with implants in the brain, then someone wrote a virus that went right through the windows on which the implants where running and instant borg army!
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