Brain–Computer Interfaces - Index of

194 F. Nijboer and U. Broermann
screening tests for pregnant women back then. I enjoy living very much, even though
I have disabilities!’ This applies accordingly for me too.
4. Communication
My phonetic is a mystery to my fellow men, because I use a cannula with 8 little
windows for speaking 5 . The BCI training with the University of Tübingen continues
as usual. The goal is to control a computer with thought. Slow waves, μ rhythm and
P300 are the methods that I tried. Finally, I stuck to the P300 method. One sees
on a computer screen the whole alphabet as well as special characters or special
functions. According to an algorithm, to me unknown, the characters in the rows and
columns light up irregularly one after the other, but in every sequence equally often.
This happens after one has been put an EEG-cap on, which electrodes are filled
with contact gel and which is connected to the laptop with a cable. My task is to
concentrate myself on a single letter and when the computer freaks at the university
did their job very well, I am lucky. In the rare occasion that I make a mistake they
programmed a backspace key, which I use in the same way as choosing a letter.
The only disadvantage is that, after every training session, I always have to wash
my hair.
5 BCI Training with Patients
In this section we describe an exemplary BCI session of patient J. and the valuable
lessons we have learned from that concerning requirements for BCI systems. J. is a
39-year old man, who was diagnosed with ALS 3 years before the session we will
describe. He is in a wheelchair and has great difficulties speaking and swallowing.
He is not artificially ventilated, although he has a non-invasive ventilation mask
during the night. He says he has not decided yet if he will accept a tracheotomy.
After arriving at his house, we normally first drink coffee and get cookies, which
is a pleasant side-effect of our job. We talk about his sons and about motor bikes
(J’s life motto is “live to ride, ride to live”). Sometimes we have to ask him to repeat
himself because we cannot understand him. J. has to go to the toilet before training
starts and we call for his wife to help him get to the bathroom. This might take
15 min so we have time to set up our system. The first requirement for any person
supervising a BCI system for a patient is that he or she must have patience.
The system consists of a computer screen for the patient, an amplifier to amplify
the brain signals, and a laptop which contains the BCI system. In contrast to working
in the lab, where a system is generally not moved around, working with patients
at home implies that we assemble and disassemble our system many times per week
and transport it through all weather and traffic conditions. Also if we would leave
5 With a tracheotomy air no longer runs through the larynx. An add-on speech cannula that uses
incoming air instead of outgoing air can enable a person to continue to produce speech. In this
case, Mrs. Broermann says her “phonetic” is a mystery to her fellow men, because it’s difficult to
understand her whispery and raspy voice.