Switzerland, Sept 25 (KUNA) -- Piloting a wheelchair using only one's mind Jose de R. Millan's laboratory in the Swiss Federal institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) Neuroprosthetic Center is accomplishing this seemingly impossible task. An artificial intelligence system called "shared control" is being developed to render the brain-machine interface more usable.
"The user sits on a wheelchair that he is controlling only with his mind. While the chair slowly moves around, avoiding obstacles along the way, The user remains eerily still and concentrated. His thoughts activate specific brain patterns that are recorded by electroencephalography (EEG) using a helmet with electrodes. These patterns are then interpreted by a computer that transmits a command to the chair." Said Prof Milan to the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA).
When the user wants to turn left, he has to imagine moving his left hand and this is very natural and very quick; he can send a command in about a second." he added.
"The user has to spend a couple of hours for his brain to adapt to the system, and in turn the system adapts to the particularities of the brain that is controlling the machine-it is a process of mutual apprenticeship between human and machine".explained Prof. Millan.
The scientists of the EPFL said that "the current brain-machine interface allows for comfortable piloting of the wheelchair, but it remains rudimentary".
To compensate for the simple but effective tertiary input (left/right/forward), and to take some of the pressure off the user, a system using artificial intelligence is used. Called "shared control", two small cameras, situated on each side of the chair, along with image-processing software help avoid obstacles.
Many young scientists from different countries joined the Swiss Neuroprosthetic Center in the EPFL to improve the "shared control" piloting. The Team of Prof. Milan is looking to improve the security and precision of the system.
The system requires advanced artificial intelligence-it will need to distinguish between different types of objects: furniture, people, and doorways. Carlson explains that "if it is a cabinet, the chair should be directed around it. But if it is a desk, the chair will have to recognize it and approach it appropriately." In the future, the system will be able to interpret the user's higher-level intentions. "We are trying to analyse different brain patterns, such as error-related potentials that may help to disambiguate the intentions of the user," says the EPFL scintists. They are interested to know "does the user want to avoid the desk or is it his, and should the chair pull up to it so he can work?" Human and artificial intelligence are intricately intertwined and this complex interaction requires competences from varying fields: electronic, neuroscientific, computer programming. The Defitech Foundation Chair in non Invasive Brain Machine Interface at EPFL is currently working on other brain-machine projects that include a remote controlled robot and software allowing the user even to write emails and surf the internet. - Kuna