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OpenBCI: connect your brain to your computer!

fustini

Here's an interesting Open Source Hardware kickstarter that I recently backed.  I thought others might find it interesting too:

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OpenBCI: An Open Source Brain-Computer Interface For Makers

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/openbci/openbci-an-open-source-brain-computer-interface-fo

OpenBCI is a low-cost, programmable, open-source EEG platform that gives anybody with a computer access to their brainwaves. Our vision is to realize the potential of the open-source movement to accelerate innovation in brain science through collaborative hardware and software development. Behind the many lines of code and circuit diagrams, OpenBCI has a growing community of scientists, engineers, designers, makers, and a whole bunch of other people who are interested in furthering our understanding of the brain

 

image

In the OpenBCI Brainwave Visualizer above, the graphic at the top left shows the electrode placement positions for the experiment. The color intensity of each node indicates the EEG wave amplitude at that region of the scalp [...] The screenshot was captured about 4 seconds after our test subject closed her eyes. There is a high amplitude waveform seen clearly in channels 5-8, which are placed on the back of the scalp. Notice a spike in the FFT graph at about 10-12Hz. This shows a predominance of alpha waves in the occipital region of the brain, which is what one would expect to see when the subject’s eyes are closed and the visual cortex has nothing to do

 

Anyone up for some brain hacking? image

 

cheers,

drew

http://twitter.com/pdp7

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  • The subject area and the goals are interesting, but whoever thought up the "artistic" positioning of connectors in a semicircle deserves a severe whipping.  Clearly someone thinks that it's an arts project, and engineering commonsense be damned.

     

    Morgaine.

  • in reply to morgaine

    It's an interesting TI chip they're using. I just skim-read the kickstarter page, and couldn't tell the reason for the board shape, but I think maybe they expect to mount it inside a cap, rather than a normal box, so maybe that's the only reason they've got is arranged like that. I too think a normal shape, separate box would have been a better idea, since it would be more discreet than a cap with electronics sticking out, and you might want it in a larger screened box. But maybe I've misunderstood some stuff about the project. It's a lot of money for home use (I know a medical device would cost many times more!) but maybe it can be done for lower cost with an implementation that used a BBB/RPI for the data collection and processing (expecially since there must be many math applications in Linux).

  • in reply to shabaz

    This is what olimex has already made: https://www.olimex.com/Products/EEG/

     

    To me it also looks too expensive for what it is. I'm missing a list of proven track records to support such high cost. I also skim-read, so could've passed some major highlights

  • in reply to shabaz

    shabaz wrote:

     

    maybe it can be done for lower cost with an implementation that used a BBB/RPI for the data collection and processing (expecially since there must be many math applications in Linux).

     

    That does seem a reasonable suggestion based on just a quick glance at the ADS1299's specs.  OK, so it's low noise and provides a lot of EEG-specific functionality at the probe interface, but ultimately it's a glorified 8-channel 24-bit ADC sampling in the audio range, and I suspect that vastly cheaper audio-oriented devices could be used for the task since 24-bit/192KHz is the commercial sweet spot in digital audio.

     

    And as you say, there's no shortage of maths processing libraries available in Linux, for every language under the sun.

     

    Morgaine.

  • in reply to vsluiter

    I took a quick look at the Olimex EEG link you provided --- they sure seem to cover a lot of ground, including both linear and digital solutions.  I noticed an Atmel AT90S4433 on their digital board, an old 8-bit AVR microcontroller, so it's pretty clear that a BBB could do the same job and a lot more, and the PRUs are available if realtime processing is needed.

     

    The impression I gained is that the OpenEEG designs predate this new era of very cheap ARM boards, which can probably do a lot more at a far lower price.

     

    Morgaine.

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  • in reply to vsluiter

    I took a quick look at the Olimex EEG link you provided --- they sure seem to cover a lot of ground, including both linear and digital solutions.  I noticed an Atmel AT90S4433 on their digital board, an old 8-bit AVR microcontroller, so it's pretty clear that a BBB could do the same job and a lot more, and the PRUs are available if realtime processing is needed.

     

    The impression I gained is that the OpenEEG designs predate this new era of very cheap ARM boards, which can probably do a lot more at a far lower price.

     

    Morgaine.

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