On the floor of a Northeastern University laboratory, a
squat circular robot darts across the floor in seemingly erratic
movements. First right, then left and then it comes to an abrupt stop.
A
student researcher controls the robot using signals produced by his
visual cortex, the part of the brain that allows him to see. That's
right, a researcher uses his brain to directly control the robot's
movements.
Here's how it works: when the eye's retina experiences a certain type of visual stimulus, the brain generates electrical activity. Researchers divided a computer screen into four checkerboard patterns that flash at different frequencies and represent different commands for the robot. Those commands include the ability to move it in any direction.
When a user stares at one of the checkerboard patterns, electrodes on the back of his head pick up the resulting brain signals and are sent to a computer software program. The program transmits the command to the robot, moving it according to the user’s visual cortex command.
The idea that someone's brain could directly control a robot's action has been around for a decade. Research already shows potential for our brains to control the television, but that's not the only way a brain-computer interface can "upgrade" humans.
Researchers hope this technology can be expanded to larger robots to perform more complex maneuvers.
Deniz Erdogmus is one of the professors who helped direct this project. He says "people with disabilities will soon be able to communicate through the computer to operate wheelchairs or other vehicles or devices."
I just hope that the robot my brain can control isn't nearly as clumsy as I am with my own body.
Tags: Brain-Computer Interface, Robotics, Robots
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