A stylish new brain-sensing headband
October 22, 2012 by Amara D. Angelica
Muse wearable brainwave headband (credit; InteraXon)
Finally: a brainwave-sensing gadget disguised as a stylish wearable headband that would fit right in with Google Glass … and not make you look like a Fringe experiment run amok.
InteraXon just announced its Muse tonight. It’s available for pre-order now on crowd-funding platform Indiegogo (to raise $150,000) and due out in Spring 2013, the company says.
It’s not clear to me yet how this gadget differs from other EEG headset devices*, but features include wireless connection to your smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth (iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, PC, and Linux), and rechargeable battery that lasts for 10 hours of continuous use.
Pricing: $135 including shipping during the first week of the Indiegogo campaign, then $165 until December 7; after that, $199 retail.
Muse (credit: InteraXon)
The company says they’ve been working with neuroscientists (no names provided yet) “under a federal grant right now; they include Dr William Tays, Dr Sylvain Morano, and Dr Norm Farb at Rotman Brain Institute in Toronto,” InteraXon CEO Ariel Garten told KurzweilAI. “Other collaborators have included Tiago Falk, Tim Mullins, Peter Carlen, Kostas Plataniotis (biosignals), and others.” They have also been working with cyborg Dr. Steve Mann, famous for his escapade with McDonald’s in Paris.
InteraXon says it will be designing apps for gaming, memory training, fitness, brain health, stress reduction, education, music, and entertainment, plus there’s a free SDK.
Garten has promised more details Monday morning. InteraXon is based in Toronto are best known for a PR stunt at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, with people lighting up three major Canadian landmarks with their brainwaves.
Meanwhile, I’m placing my pre-order. This thing definitely looks awesome.
* Update from InteraXon CEO Ariel Garten: ”We differ from the other EEGs on the market in a few ways: we are a four-sensor system, which gives you good fidelity and coverage in a discreet form factor. All the channels are independent from each other and the reference, giving robust readings.”
UPDATE 12:10 a.m. PDT 10/22/2012 from CEO Ariel Garten, as noted in two locations above.
UPDATE 9:30 a.m. PDT 10/22/2012: end date for Indiegogo funding: Dec. 7
Comments (19)
by Roslyn McCoy
For little more than two years I have been using the Emotiv Epoc headset with a young woman who was in a car accident at the age of 17. With this neural interface she can now play video games and have the beginnings of controlling a computer. I really like this even though it has four sensors because it’s something she could wear for many hours. She has been in a semi-vegetative state for over 12 years now. Giving her even two switches would give her control over her environment. 45 to 50% of people in semi-vegetative state are really conscious and their.
by Mikhail
You know, Epoc Emotiv headset is an awful device. Poor quality – it’s plastic body cracks and sensors oxidize very quikly. I’m glad for the girl but can you give us a video with her achievements in neurogaming and neurocontrolling. If it would be so easy to control computer with Emotiv Epoc headset the company has far from a 40000 amont of sold headsets from the beginig of it’s history. The quantity of sensors don’t play a great role – it is a fallacy came from traditional medicine EEG measurments.
by Mikhail
Don’t be hopeful about device. Because It will not give us the true controlling of computers. We need to control computer with our brainwaves but this device have no such a feature. It will catch facial expressions, it will be not a true brainwaves. What functions are avaliable now – concentration meditation linked to what. It is only two commands. And what about 4 commands, 6 commands, what about true controlling of computer devices. Very many doubts about muse what it really could do.
by cartesio
No more hacking the NeuroSky chip included in the Mind-Flex!, this BCI-EGG of InteraXon seems very interesting, in addition, APIs and Tools for developing look open enough and reasonably priced.
by rick
It looks like the technical hurdles are steadily coming down. Perhaps the key word now is “stylish”. For most of us, this will first be a replacement for keyboards, mice, touchscreens, etc., especially in places or situations where those are impractical. But wide-spread adoption will depend on coming up with designs that are as unobtrusive and/or stylish as any other fashion accessory.
by TechNUT
This news caused a measurable response in my EEG.
But the question remains: who needs this?
MEEE!!!! X-D 8-D X-D :-D
by bausleyfreddy
what does it do?
by eldras
This is likely to be highly specific and the only mobile internet device you need.
We have imagination caused by brain signals internally and this can be simulated in time from headband devices in a healthy way.
Curious to see whether wearables or cyborg stuff evolves faster?
by Bri
I wish there was an article on the whole system. What brain waves are being used to do what. How selective of your though processes thes can be. I don’t doubt that as time goes by, these will become very sensitive to brain activity. I would like to have a greater understanding of what activities it is monitoring.
by Editor
“article on brain waves.” Good idea. We’ll work on that.
by Bernard Denis
Another article in this issue talks about biofeedback training for the brain, with this equipment people will be able to train on their own. We believe that introducing Binaural Beats to the process will greatly improve performances. We will be conducting many crowd research on the subject and provide open access to results in an anonymous maner. Much to be discovered in near future.
by Vin
Typically, when people know they are being filmed or photographed, there’s usually an element of self-conciousness, so I’m wondering if this will be similar and skew the results beyond compensation.
by Ian Clarke
Like raised blood pressure in patients having their blood pressure tested? Not sure that would be applicable with something you wear and forget.
I’m more interested in the four sensors, and the information they gather. I guess we’ll have to wait for a week to find out.
by Ian Clarke
Having just read the article PROPERLY, I know see this is purely EEG data from all four sensors. The potential applications are endless. I’m looking forward to future reports on this.
by Editor
Yes, that appears to be the case; I’m expecting InteraXon to respond to my request for full technical specs by tomorrow.
by Ian Clarke
It will be interesting to read about your experiences with it (I assume you’ll be writing a review?) What will you be hoping to get from such a device?
Sorry to be nosey. :)
by Eve
If you get any technical specs, I hope you will be allowed to share them through your blog. I went through their official webpage but I could not find some info that you mention in your article, e.g. the operating hours of the battery. So a technical document would be very useful to have all this info gathered there.
by Mikhail
There is no PURE EEG DATA, because there many artifacts on the area of sensors placed on
by advancedatheist
Wow. An early version of the neural-interface headbands used by the characters in Vernor Vinge’s “Marooned in Realtime”?