16.11.2012 Views

Brain–Computer Interfaces - Index of

Brain–Computer Interfaces - Index of

Brain–Computer Interfaces - Index of

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

262 J. Mellinger and G. Schalk<br />

2 BCI2000 Design<br />

2.1 System Model<br />

The BCI2000 system model [27] was designed such that it can accommodate any<br />

kind <strong>of</strong> BCIs. This model is similar to that proposed in [15]. Any BCI consists<br />

<strong>of</strong> three main components: a data acquisition component that records signals from<br />

the brain; a signal processing algorithm that extracts signal features that represent<br />

the user’s intent and that translates them into commands for an output device; and a<br />

user application component that performs these commands, e.g., for letter selection.<br />

These components <strong>of</strong> any BCI system are described in e.g. [35] and in chapters<br />

“Brain Signals for Brain-Computer <strong>Interfaces</strong>” and “Brain–Computer <strong>Interfaces</strong>: A<br />

Gentle Introduction in this book.<br />

In BCI2000, these three components correspond to three “core modules”: A<br />

Source Module, which acquires and stores data, a Signal Processing Module, and a<br />

User Application Module (Fig. 1). These core modules are realized as independent<br />

executables; they exchange data using a network-capable protocol. There is a Source<br />

Module for each type <strong>of</strong> data acquisition hardware, a Signal Processing Module for<br />

each type <strong>of</strong> signal processing algorithm, and a User Application Module for each<br />

type <strong>of</strong> feedback or output device. These modules may be re-combined by choosing<br />

a different set <strong>of</strong> executables when starting up BCI2000. Typically, this is done by<br />

executing different startup scripts in order to run BCI2000.<br />

As an example, conducting sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) feedback experiments<br />

using the g.tec TM g.USBamp acquisition system will involve the g.USBamp Source<br />

module (for data acquisition and storage), the ARSignalProcessing module (for<br />

spatial filtering, autoregressive spectral estimation, linear classification, and signal<br />

normalization), and the CursorTask module (to give visual feedback to the user in<br />

form <strong>of</strong> cursor movement).<br />

Source<br />

Storage<br />

Operator<br />

system configuration visualization<br />

brain signals Signal control signals<br />

event markers Processing event markers<br />

event markers<br />

User<br />

Application<br />

Fig. 1 BCI2000 System Model. Acquired data are processed sequentially by three modules<br />

(i.e., Source, Signal Processing, and User Application). Processing is controlled by an additional<br />

Operator module (from [27])

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!