What Is BCI? | Cumming School Of Medicine - University Of Calgary

So you don't need surgery to use a BCI?

You may have heard of implantable, or invasive BCIs - these systems involve surgically implanting sensors directly onto the surface of the brain. These systems also measure the electrical activity of neurons, but because the electrical activity doesn't have to travel through bone, skin and hair to get to the sensor, the recorded activity is much stronger. Invasive BCIs are being studied because these stronger signals could potentially allow us to develop more accurate or complex BCI systems than those that record signals from outside of the scalp, like EEG-based BCIs.

On the other hand, non-invasive BCIs, including those that use EEG, do not require surgery. They are perfectly safe and do not cause any pain (with the exception of mild discomfort for those with very sensitive scalps). Our program focuses on non-invasive EEG-based BCI systems.

Does this mean you can read my thoughts?

No, a BCI cannot read your thoughts. Even with implantable, invasive BCI systems (the ones that can record stronger electrical signals since they are placed closer to the brain), the technology is still very, very far from being able to "read" anyone's thoughts. Instead, what BCIs look for are patterns that occur in brain activity in response to certain external events or stimuli, or that are generated during certain cognitive processes. These patterns are typically neurophysiological phenomena that have been well documented and studied by neuroscientists and doctors. For example, if you stare at a flashing light, your brain activity will start to synchronize with the rate of that flashing light, and this synchronizing pattern can be detected by the BCI. There are several types of BCIs paradigms, which are all based on their own neurophysiological pattern. We have more information coming soon about some of the most common BCI paradigms and these patterns that they employ!

Who can use a BCI?

Some of the first applications of BCIs were to help people with locked-in syndrome (that is, people who have lost all ability to voluntary control their muscles and therefore cannot move, speak or even blink or move their eyes) to communicate. Locked-in syndrome can be the result of long-term neurodegenerative disease like ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Individuals that are locked-in physically are generally still cognitively aware - their thoughts and feelings are unaffected, they just have no way of sharing them with the world.

While the original BCI systems were designed for locked-in individuals, their value for individuals with other degrees of physical impairment were quickly recognized. Research began to see how BCIs could be used and implemented to replace, restore or supplement muscle control for people with a wide range of physical disabilities. BCI research in this area has rapidly expanded, and BCIs are now being explored as a means to drive power wheelchairs, as a way to operate prosthetic limbs, as a way to administrate neuro-regenerative therapies like functional electrical stimulation (FES), as access technologies to things like communication devices, personal computers, tablets, and environmental controls to name a few applications.

BCIs are also not limited to people with physical disabilities. With the expansion of BCI research, it also translated to the typically developed population. BCIs are now being developed for applications like assessing fatigue for attention-demanding jobs like air traffic controllers or truck drivers, for creating new immersive experiences for video games and virtual reality, and for assessing users emotions and reactions in 'neuromarketing' strategies. There are even some devices already available commercially, such as 'brain-sensing' headbands that monitor your relaxation and focus levels as you meditate.

Over the next few decades, BCI research and development is likely to continue to grow and we may see greater widespread use of BCIs in people's daily lives. The exciting thing is that the more development and resources being put into these different BCI applications will help refine and enhance the technology for all BCI applications. Therefore the broader and larger the field of BCI research, the closer we will get to improving the accuracy, reliability and efficiency of BCIs and the better they will be as an option for people and kids with physical disabilities.