Brain-Computer Interface for home-use application

There are several diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which can lead to a loss of the ability to communicate. As a healthy person one cannot imagine what it feels like to be trapped in one’s own body - mentally present, but unable to communicate with relatives, this is called locked-in syndrome. However, a distinction must be made between locked-in and complete locked-in syndrome (CLIS). For the former, those affected can still voluntarily control certain muscles, above all the eye muscles, which in turn can be used for communication. Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), i.e. systems that allow to control a computer by pure brain activity, have proven to be a helpful method for restoring the ability to communicate. However, all recent BCI systems are almost exclusively used in research, since all previous methods are not suitable for real-world applications. This is mainly due to the fact that for a meaningful and independent use, the recognition of the user’s intention (to control the system or not) must be highly accurate. Otherwise, this leads to random classifications/commands, which can be dangerous depending on the application, for example when controlling an electric wheelchair.