mind switch could help disabled regain control - home appliances suppliers

One day, people with disabilities can use their own brainwaves to operate household appliances such as sound, safety systems, lights and phones, and even browse the computer menu of more complex options.
The device, which could achieve this goal, was released in Australia this week.
It works by extracting specific electrical patterns in the brain and using them to control the switch.
"Thinking transformation" is the idea of a team at Sydney University of Science and Technology.
Tests of 120 volunteers showed that at least some people did not need training to operate the device.
All users have to do is close their eyes and simply relax in order to discover the changes in brain waves.
The university is in talks with companies in Germany and the United States to commercialize the idea of a severely disabled person.
Even toy manufacturers in the United States and Japan are interested in the possibility of being sexy.
The university has applied for Australian patents on the device and will apply for international patents later this year.
"As we all know, for more than 20 years [the alpha wave] has changed
An integral part of the EEG]
When you relax, but no one thinks they can use it, "says physicist Les Kirkup, who has developed circuits that recognize and amplify brain signals.
"It's like gold on the surface that people walk through.
The team discovered the signal two years ago.
It comes from the pillow leaves at the bottom and back of the brain, with a frequency range between 8 and 13Hz.
The difficulty of the project is to re-record the changes in the signal, enlarge them and use them to control the switch.
The signal is controlled by electrodes attached to the scalp.
The intensity of the signal fluctuates between 5 and 15 microvolts and must be magnified about twice before triggering the switch.
For example, if you move your head or bite your teeth, the electrical signals generated by the muscles power the signal, so the group has to design a complex filter to eliminate this "noise ".
This signal is used by both volunteers and team members to turn the lights on and off, to operate toy robots, fans and TVs, as well as racing cars.
I don't know why brain waves change when people close their eyes and relax for a few seconds.
The same change does not occur if the light is lit or eye mask is worn.
Two people who provided technology for the disabled were impressed.
"The fact that there is no need to train fascinates me," said James Dean of technsolutions, a Melbourne company that makes aids for people with disabilities.
Many devices are invasive and difficult to use for severely disabled people.
"This commitment is much simpler," says Raelene Smith, an organization that helps young people with disabilities, "Northern society.
There are already other devices that can be triggered by closing your eyes, but they can be triggered by changes in muscles or by the amount of light reflected by the eyelids.
Kirkup explains that they are "prone to false positives and they turn on unexpectedly when you blink ".
The researchers believe that they found a second 5 to 8Hz brain signal in the theta section of the EEG spectrum, which can also be used as a switch.
If two switches can be developed, people can do more complex tasks.
The study, conducted with 21 volunteers, aims to learn more about EEG maps from 0 onwards.
5 to 50Hz or so and confirm the presence of the second signal.