title: Driving a Semiautonomous Mobile Robotic Car Controlled by an SSVEP-Based BCI.
abstract: Brain-computer interfaces represent a range of acknowledged technologies that translate brain activity into computer commands. The aim of our research is to develop and evaluate a BCI control application for certain assistive technologies that can be used for remote telepresence or remote driving. The communication channel to the target device is based on the steady-state visual evoked potentials. In order to test the control application, a mobile robotic car (MRC) was introduced and a four-class BCI graphical user interface (with live video feedback and stimulation boxes on the same screen) for piloting the MRC was designed. For the purpose of evaluating a potential real-life scenario for such assistive technology, we present a study where 61 subjects steered the MRC through a predetermined route. All 61 subjects were able to control the MRC and finish the experiment (mean time 207.08 s, SD 50.25) with a mean (SD) accuracy and ITR of 93.03% (5.73) and 14.07 bits/min (4.44), respectively. The results show that our proposed SSVEP-based BCI control application is suitable for mobile robots with a shared-control approach. We also did not observe any negative influence of the simultaneous live video feedback and SSVEP stimulation on the performance of the BCI system.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Technology and Bionics, Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, 47533 Kleve, Germany.
authors.forename: Piotr
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-0095-5793
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stawicki
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Technology and Bionics, Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, 47533 Kleve, Germany.
authors.forename: Felix
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-4193-2993
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gembler
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Technology and Bionics, Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences, 47533 Kleve, Germany.
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-6555-7617
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Volosyak
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D001334:Automobile Driving; D001336:Automobiles; D062207:Brain-Computer Interfaces; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005074:Evoked Potentials, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D058765:Neurofeedback; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D012984:Software; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult