“Mind-reading” technology will help patients communicate

Summary

Scientists at the Catholic University of Leuven (KUL) have developed an apparatus that reads the thoughts of patients who are unable to speak or to type on a conventional keyboard.

Scientists at the Catholic University of Leuven (KUL) have developed an apparatus that reads the thoughts of patients who are unable to speak or to type on a conventional keyboard.

The scientific facts, of course, don’t quite live up to the promise of that headline. The so-called Mind Speller, developed by a team of researchers under Professor Marc Van Hulle of the university’s neurophysiology department, is essentially a swim-cap with electrodes attached to an electro-encephalograph (EEG) machine. The patient looks at a set of signs – letters, numbers and punctuation marks – and the machine “reads” whichever sign has been selected.

The patient is then able to build up words and sentences, one letter at a time, which can be read from a screen or transformed into speech. At a later stage, the team wants to integrate word-completion and the sort of predictive text function already common on mobile phones.

The device was developed for Professor Van Hulle by IMEC in Leuven, the country’s largest research centre for nanotechnology. The apparatus has been tested on 12 patients with encouraging results.

It was also tested last week by a volunteer, Het Nieuwsblad reporter Inge Bosschaerts, who described the experiment as a success, albeit one that requires concentration and takes a long time to produce results.

Van Hulle promised to introduce improvements and replace the swim-cap with a sort of diadem containing the essential components. “We hope to have the set on the market within two years,” he said. The price will be around €200.

The Mind Speller was last week awarded the annual Swift Prize, which recognises organisations using communication and information technologies, worth €50,000.

“Mind-reading” technology will help patients communicate

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