User:AdrienS314/Mind-controlled wheelchair

Lead
A mind-controlled wheelchair is a mind-machine interfacing device that uses thought (neural impulses), usually in the form of electrencephalogram, to command the motorized wheelchair's motion. The wheelchair is of great importance to patients with locked-in syndrome (LIS), in which a patient is aware but cannot move or communicate verbally due to complete paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles in the body except the eyes. In addition, it can benefit those with disabilities such as muscular dystrophy, a disease that weakens the musculoskeletal system and hampers locomotion (walking or moving).

History
The technology behind brain or mind control goes back to at least 2002, when researchers implanted electrodes into the brains of macaque monkeys, which enabled them to control a cursor on a computer screen. Similar techniques were able to control robotic arms and simple joysticks. In 2009, researchers at the University of South Florida developed a wheelchair-mounted robotic arm that captured the user's brain waves and converted them into robotic movements.

The first such device to reach production was designed by Diwakar Vaish,[1] Head of Robotics and Research at A-SET Training & Research Institutes.[2][3]

In November of 2022, the University of Texas at Austin developed a mind-controlled wheelchair using an EEG device.[4] In addition, March of 2022 saw a paper from Clarkson University planning the design of a mind-controlled wheelchair also using an EEG.[5]

Technology
Operation[edit] A mind-controlled wheelchair functions using a brain–computer interface: an electroencephalogram (EEG) worn on the user's forehead detects neural impulses that reach the scalp allowing the micro-controller on board to detect the user's thought process, interpret it, and control the wheelchair's movement. In 2009, researchers at the University of South Florida developed a wheelchair-mounted robotic arm that captured the user's brain waves and converted them into robotic movements. The Brain-Computer Interface (BCI), which captures P-300 brain wave responses and converts them to actions, was developed by USF psychology professor Emanuel Donchin and colleagues. The P-300 brain signal serves a virtual "finger" for patients who cannot move, such as those with locked-in syndrome or those with Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS). In November of 2022 the University of Texas in Austin conducted a study on the effectiveness of a model of mind-controlled wheelchair. Similar to the BCI, the machine translates brain waves into movements. Specifically, the participants were instructed to visualize moving extremities to prompt the wheelchair to move. This study saw the use of non-invasive electrodes, using an electroencephalogram cap as opposed to internally installed electrodes.[6] In March of 2022, Stoyell et al. at Clarkson University published a paper in which they planned a design of a mind-controlled wheelchair, which would employ an electroencephalogram device dubbed the "Emotiv EPOC X headset".[7]

Functionality[edit] The A-SET wheelchair comes standard with many different types of sensors, like temperature sensors, sound sensors and an array of distance sensors which detect any unevenness in the surface. The chair automatically avoids stairs and steep inclines. It also has a "safety switch": in case of danger, the user can close their eyes quickly to trigger an emergency stop. In the case of the chair designed by Stoyell et al., the only equipment needed to use the chair is the EMOTIV EPOC X headset. Both the University of Texas' and Clarkson University's designs have the benefit of being un-invasive, with the electrodes being placed onto the head as opposed to being surgically implanted, making this product relatively more accessible. [6][7]