Multi-command Tactile and Auditory Brain Computer Interface based on Head Position Stimulation
This work addresses the need for multimodal BCI systems for users with disabilities, though it appears incremental as it builds on existing tactile and auditory BCI concepts.
The researchers tackled the problem of creating a brain-computer interface (BCI) by using vibrotactile stimuli on the head to evoke combined somatosensory and auditory responses, achieving validation through online experiments with six head positions and demonstrating feasibility via information transfer rate studies.
We study the extent to which vibrotactile stimuli delivered to the head of a subject can serve as a platform for a brain computer interface (BCI) paradigm. Six head positions are used to evoke combined somatosensory and auditory (via the bone conduction effect) brain responses, in order to define a multimodal tactile and auditory brain computer interface (taBCI). Experimental results of subjects performing online taBCI, using stimuli with a moderately fast inter-stimulus interval (ISI), validate the taBCI paradigm, while the feasibility of the concept is illuminated through information transfer rate case studies.