BrainLab at Georgia State
| A brain computer interface (BCI) is a device that enables people to communicate using brain activity alone. That is, you can send messages without a mouse, keyboard, voice system, or other interface. BCIs have helped dozens of patients who are so severely disabled that they can't use other interfaces. BCIs are a very new technology. Although they are much slower than typical interfaces, scientists are making great progress and they are getting faster and better every day! If you would like to learn more about BCIs, this web page is a good starting point. It was developed by Dr. Lee Morris and is a good overview of a healthy subject using a BCI. To learn more, please see our web page at: www.cis.gsu.edu/brainlab. The "Papers-Other writings" section has a lot of articles, slideshows, and other materials that help explain BCIs. Feel free to email me with any questions! -- Brendan Allison, PhD, ballison@cis.gsu.edu. |
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Lennie has a ground wire (her "earring")
attached to one ear. |
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Lennie is fitted with an electrode cap... |
...and electrode gel is applied... |
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...and applied... |
...and applied. |
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Lennie is now WIRED and ready to go! |
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First, Dr. Allison records sample brain waves from
Lennie. |
A close up of Lennie's brain waves. Notice the jump
up in the traces at the right side of the screen. What was she doing?? |
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Lennie concentrates on a specific letter and counts
every time it flashes on the screen. Counting will cause a "blip"
in her brain waves similar to that seen in the picture above. |
This is a close-up of the test screen. The letter Lennie will concentrate on (here it's M) will light up when either the row it is in lights up or the column that it is in lights up. By counting the letter each time it flashes, both the row and the column can be identified by the computer. Since only one letter can be at the intersection of the row and column she selects, that SHOULD indicate which letter she is concentrating on. | |||
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Lennie is "undone". Wow, free hair gel! | |||
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