Brain-Computer Interface Allows Helicopter To Fly Under Mind Control

IEEE Fellow Bin He

A helicopter has been developed that can be controlled just by the power of thought. A brain computer interface that the person wears allows him to pilot the helicopter just by thinking.

In the early 1980's, Clint Eastwood starred in the movie, Firefox, where a Russian jet can be controlled by the mind of the pilot.

Just like in the movie, the signals from the brain are picked up by a cap worn by the pilot. The cap had 64 electrodes through which it recorded the electrical activity of the brain from which a computer translates into movements the helicopter will take. This technique is known as electroencephalography (EEG).

Watch the helicopter as it is flown through a series of obstacles in the embedded video below.

Research on mind controlled devices can result in practical mind controlled applications such as for prosthetic limbs, non verbal communication, and also for motorized transportation for invalids.

It also can lead to applications that aim at restoring damaged hearing, sight and movement.

Mind Controlling A Helicopter

A remote controlled helicopter has been flown through a series of hoops around a college gymnasium in Minnesota.

It sounds like your everyday student project; however, there is one caveat…the helicopter was controlled using just the power of thought.

The experiments have been performed by researchers hoping to develop future robots that can help restore the autonomy of paralysed victims or those suffering from neurodegenerative disorders.

Their study has been published today, 4 June 2013, in IOP Publishing's Journal of Neural Engineering and is accompanied by a video of the helicopter control in action which can be viewed at the embedded video below.

There were five subjects (three female, two male) who took part in the study and each one was able to successfully control the four-blade helicopter, also known as a quadcopter, quickly and accurately for a sustained amount of time.

Lead author of the study Professor Bin He, from the University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering, said: "Our study shows that for the first time, humans are able to control the flight of flying robots using just their thoughts, sensed from noninvasive brain waves."

The noninvasive technique used was electroencephalography (EEG), which recorded the electrical activity of the subjects' brain through a cap fitted with 64 electrodes.

Video: Mind Controlled Helicopter

Facing away from the quadcopter, the subjects were asked to imagine using their right hand, left hand, and both hands together; this would instruct the quadcopter to turn right, left, lift, and then fall, respectively. The quadcopter was driven with a pre-set forward moving velocity and controlled through the sky with the subject's thoughts.

The subjects were positioned in front of a screen which relayed images of the quadcopter's flight through an on-board camera, allowing them to see which direction it was travelling in. Brain signals were recorded by the cap and sent to the quadcopter over WiFi.

"In previous work we showed that humans could control a virtual helicopter using just their thoughts. I initially intended to use a small helicopter for this real-life study; however, the quadcopter is more stable, smooth and has fewer safety concerns," continued Professor He.

After several different training sessions, the subjects were required to fly the quadcopter through two foam rings suspended from the gymnasium ceiling and were scored on three aspects: the number of times they sent the quadcopter through the rings; the number of times the quadcopter collided with the rings; and the number of times they went outside the experiment boundary.

A number of statistical tests were used to calculate how each subject performed.

A group of subjects also directed the quadcopter with a keyboard in a control experiment, allowing for a comparison between a standardised method and brain control.

This process is just one example of a brain–computer interface where a direct pathway between the brain and an external device is created to help assist, augment or repair human cognitive or sensory-motor functions; researchers are currently looking at ways to restore hearing, sight and movement using this approach.

"Our next goal is to control robotic arms using noninvasive brain wave signals, with the eventual goal of developing brain–computer interfaces that aid patients with disabilities or neurodegenerative disorders," continued Professor He.

Quantum Day

05 June 2013

Brain-Computer Interface Allows Helicopter To Fly Under Mind Control