Belgium and Netherlands researchers have developed a “thought-to-text” device that, it is claimed, could enable people suffering from paralysis or speech or language disorders to communicate.

The “Mind Speller” device detects and interprets P300 event-related potentials in the EEG signals of a person that is selecting characters from a display presenting alternate rows and columns of characters.

Unlike available P300 devices, which are large, expensive and uncomfortable in use, the Mind Speller is a portable device the size of a matchbox, connected to a cap that contains electrodes located at specific positions on the head.