Some interesting new mind-reading headsets are finding their way to market.  The devices relay the electrical signals within the wearer's brain to a computer, which then can use the information to control such things as characters in video games, medical devices, or even robots.

NeuroSky Mindset (Picture)
This device consists of a headset with an arm sticking out of the front.  At the tip of the arm is a sensor that rests on the wearers forehead which is used to read the signals eminating from the wearer's brain.  The $199 device and software development kit (PDF overview) will be released in the summer of 2009.

Neurosky has whipped up a nifty source-engine demo video showing the Mindset controlling objects:

CBC News has a small description of the author's experience with the device:

Though the technology has its share of bugs, a cheap and simple brain machine interface seems to be more than wishful thinking. In my tests of Neurosky's headset, the device captured some degree of real thought, appearing to respond to my levels of attention or relaxation with only a fraction of a second of delay.

In one software demo, focusing on any single point caused an image of a barrel to emit flames. The more intent my focus, the faster the barrel burned. Distractions, on the other hand, like a phone call or chatty colleagues (many of whom were curious as to why I was wearing a headset and staring intently at a picture of a barrel) squelched the fire within a second or two.

According to the company's chief executive, Stanley Yang, the headset's sensor measures the frequency and amplitude of the electrical signals emitted by the brain's neurons. Neurosky's software, he says, distinguishes which brainwave patterns represent two basic mental states: a visual focus on a single point, in which a frequency known as beta waves dominate, or a state of relaxation, in which a lower frequency known as alpha waves dominate.

"To develop these patterns, we tested thousands of subjects across different age groups, gender and race in all sorts of environments," Yang says. "The result is a set of algorithms that can accurately detect the depth of those states of concentration or relaxation."

Emotiv EPOC (Picture)
Creator Emotive has created a more advanced device that isn't aimed at just the game market. The Emotive headset is built around the same concept as the Neurosky device but is capable of reading the users' mind through sixteen different sensors, allowing the wearer better control through finer thought distinction.  Emotiv is planning to sell their headset this fall for $299 and has posted several demo videos one involving wheelchair control.

The CBC article has some information on the Emotive device:

With a bit of training, a user can think "push" and push a virtual object, and then think "pull" to pull it back, claims the company's co-founder Tan Le.

"We approach the idea of a brain computer interface very differently from Neurosky," Le says. "If you want a toy, then there's no need for a sophisticated device with so many sensors. But if you're an adult looking for a complex platform for interacting with virtual worlds and multimedia software, we offer a much broader range of applications."

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JRichards  - Cool   |Author |2009-04-27 15:12:31 This has got to be one of the coolest things I've ever seen. Although the technology looks like it's in the early stages there are going to be lots of possibilities for it I'm sure. Is this the first step into the Matrix?

Anonymous   |66.242.231.xxx |2009-08-26 03:45:46 im @ skool

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