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Emotiv Systems

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Emotiv Systems is an Australian-origin[1] electronics company developing brain-computer interfaces based on electroencephalography (EEG) technology. Emotiv Systems was founded in 2003 by four scientists and executives: neuroscientist Professor Allan Snyder, chip-designer Neil Weste[2], and technology entrepreneurs Tan Le (B. Comm. in 1998 from Monash University)[3] and Nam Do[4].

EPOC, their gaming-peripheral, release date is provisionally set for 2009, with a price tag of US$299[5]. For comparison with OCZ Neural Impulse Actuator and other devices, see Comparison of Consumer Brain-Computer Interface Devices.

Emotiv EPOC

Emotiv EPOC

This sub-article is about Emotiv EPOC, a peripheral for gaming on Windows PCs. For other uses, see EPOC (disambiguation).

Emotiv System's only current product, scheduled to be released in summer 2009[6][7], is the Emotiv EPOC peripheral for gaming on Windows PCs. Emotiv Systems claims the headset will make it possible for games to be controlled and influenced by the player's mind, and facial expressions. It connects wirelessly with the PC, and may in the future work on other game platforms such as consoles. The Epoc was designed by Emotiv Systems in conjunction with the IDEO design group[8].

There is logical speculation that the Emotiv Epoc will be released in July 2009, based on comments by Nam Ster in the Emotivated Facebook group.

Inputs

The EPOC has 14 electrodes[9] [10] (falling short of a standard medical EEG by 5 but manyfold the number of 3 forehead electrodes that OCZ's NIA features and a multiple of NeuroSky's single electrode). It also has a two-axis gyro for measuring head rotation.

"You must first train the headset to recognize what kind of thought pattern equates to a certain action." It can measure four categories of inputs[11]:

  • Conscious thoughts (Cognitiv suite): Imagining 12 kinds of movement- those were in the demo application 6 directions (left, right, up, down, forward, and "zoom") and 6 rotations ([anti-]clockwise rotation, turn left and right, and sway backward and forward)- plus 1 other visualization ("disappear") that can be detected in µ rhythms. While the current driver may only be able to listen for any 4 of these at a time, the degrees of freedom are larger than a joystick's 2 df. Ideomotor responses ("I found myself inadvertently tightening my stomach muscles, or raising an eyebrow when I tried to make the box float. The Emotiv guy used his hands to try and cue himself to think the same way every time." (emphasis added)[12]) or the much stronger EMG currents aside, these thought commands effectively become hotkeys. Videos of Emotiv employees playing "The Game" show a high degree of difficulty in adapting and thinking right even as experienced users. Users can train the 13 visualizations to totally different thoughts than the ones specified, but detection ability will be worse[citation needed]. Due to the complex detection algorithms involved, there is a slight lag in detecting thoughts, making them more suitable for use in games like Harry Potter than FPS games.[1]
  • Emotions (Affectiv suite): "Excitement", "Engagement/Boredom", "Meditation", and "Frustration" can currently be measured. Emotiv admits that the names may not perfectly reflect exactly what the emotion is, and says that they may be renamed before market launch.
  • Facial expressions (Expressiv suite): Individual eyelid and eyebrow positions, eye position in the horizontal plane, smiling, laughing, clenching, and smirking can currently be detected. Other expressions may be added prior to release. The expressions are detected by the EEG sensors picking up signals to facial muscles, rather than by reading brainwaves. Unlike reading mental activity, these detections are very fast (10ms)[13] conveying a decisive advantage and rendering them suitable for fast paced games in the FPS genre.
  • Head rotation: The angular velocity of one's head can be measured in the yaw and pitch (but not roll) directions. This is detected by gyros, and isn't related to the EEG features.

For compatibility with non-compliant software EmoKey would be provided in order to bind commands to keys or combinations thereof transforming the device into an HID.

EPOC cannot be used to get EEG data. It can only measure specific interpretations of it defined by Emotiv. Neuroscientists and artificial-intelligence programmers cannot create more advanced interpretations.

Responding to an email about building software for EPOC, Emotiv says the raw EEG data from the 16 electrodes is encrypted and there are "no plans to license the raw EEG data" but "that may change in the future based on customer demands."

Software & SDK

The Emotiv EPOC will ship with a game by Demiurge Studios, previously called "The Game", built on the Unreal engine. Videos of portions of the game have been shown at conferences and in media interviews. The game involves a first person view of the user walking around a virtual environment, with many different activities at different locations. The sky changes color according to the mood of the player. Demonstrated activities in the game include pushing and rotating giant stone structures into the shape of stone henge, then raising a temple from below the ground; levitating a large rock and some smaller ones; repairing a bridge; bending a tree; and scaring away glowing spirits with scary facial expressions.

The EPOC also includes "EmoKey" software used to emulate keystrokes based on combinations of thoughts, feelings, and facial expressions. Any EPOC detection can be paired with keystrokes or string of keystrokes through a simple user interface by the end user. Future versions will also emulate the mouse based on the gyros. This software allows most existing games, instant messaging programs, and other software to be controlled with the headset.

File:EPOC.jpg
Dr. Zoz Brooks mind controlling[14] a car with EPOC

There is also a planned web site known as "Emortal", for listening to music, viewing photos, and other activities, modified based on what you are thinking and feeling.

And there is Emotiv Control Panel, also seen in many videos, which allows users to train the various thoughts, such as "push" and "disappear", and test them on a floating, bobbing, cube. It also allows users to view their emotional state, such as "excitement", on a graph. And it has a 2D blue avatar for viewing their own facial expressions, and adjusting the sensitivity of those detections.

A free SDK (called SDK Lite) is also available for download from the Emotiv website. It includes software to emulate the Emotiv EPOC for developers who do not have one of the (beta version) headsets. A SDK interface will give Linux users a more powerful control for recoding and modification of the Emotiv head set for other game consoles and programs.

Marketing

At the Game Developers Conference 2008, in San Francisco an Emotiv headset was among the new video game input devices there. The demo played with the Emotiv was a puzzle where the player rebuilds Stonehenge. To do so, the wearer did hand motions such as, pushing and pulling to restore Stonehenge. [15]

Competitors

Emotiv has two main commercial-competitors in the area of consumer EEG technology for gaming- and PC-users. The competitors have gone for a lower price, but with much fewer electrodes and thus less detections[citation needed].

OCZ has a $160 US Neural Impulse Actuator with 3 electrodes on the front of a headband[16]. OCZ are hoping to gain market share by bringing their product out first (May, 2008). Unlike Emotiv, they are marketing it as a faster, more efficient way of controlling existing games and applications (mostly using facial expressions), instead of as a more immersive way of triggering magical abilities in games or making avatars show your facial expressions.

NeuroSky has a very cheap single electrode headset. However they are not marketing it directly to the public. They are selling their technology in bulk to other companies for those companies to incorporate into their products. Currently Neurosky's headset can only detect the strength of two emotions[citation needed].

There is also an existing game machine table based on the alpha waves in an EEG, called Mindball- patented and marketed by Swedish Interactive Productline. Squarely counter to the faster, higher, farther paradigm, players contest one another in an effort to push a ball away on a table towards the opponent by calming down and being more relaxed and at ease than the adversary. Headbands pick up on the players´ alpha waves, and the ball rolls away from the player who can maintain peace of mind. The game is over when the ball has been completely pushed outwards into the other contestant's domain. He who "laughs" last laughs best. It could be played remotely as no action is involved. The setup can easily be rigged by simply closing one's eyes. The machine costs roughly $20,000 and is usually rented out to groups.

Several other companies - including EmSense in Monterey, California; NeuroSky in San Jose, California; and Hitachi in Tokyo - are also developing technology to detect players´ brainwaves and use them in next-gen video games.

EmSense, also in San Francisco, offers technology that focuses on business uses, according to its Web site.[17] To this end it has developed a headset that processes rich biofeedback, of which neurofeedback is one component, to measure the effectiveness of brandspaces, advertising campaigns, political speeches and video games for instance.[18] Lee, in his role as Chief Science Officer, is quoted as saying: "We're heavily into advertising. We can see if people got the joke, how long did it take to get the joke, etc." "Without EEG, it's something you wouldn't be able to do."[19]

References

  1. ^ Corporate HP
  2. ^ http://www.tvp.com.au/portfolio/news/Emotiv-PR-March2007.pdf
  3. ^ Board of Directors
  4. ^ Board of Directors
  5. ^ grinding.be » Blog Archive » Emotiv EPOC Neuroheadset Update
  6. ^ http://www.dailycal.org/article/103338/mind_your_own_business
  7. ^ http://malachid.blogspot.com/2008/09/emotiv-epoc-delay.html
  8. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/01/arts/01iht-DESIGN1.html?pagewanted=2&ref=arts
  9. ^ Johnson, Stephen (July 08, 2008). "Headset Promises Mind-Control Games". G4 Media, Inc. Retrieved 14 February 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); More than one of |author= and |last= specified (help)
  10. ^ Top mention under headset features on this site of the corporate domain.
  11. ^ http://www.gamedev.net/columns/events/gdc2008/article.asp?id=1307
  12. ^ Field report Memorable quote: "It worked ["levitation" thought command recognition from the cognitiv suite]. I laughed in surprise and the box immediately dropped back down again."
  13. ^ deep link to youtube where Randy Breen of Emotiv answers a question regarding this during a presentation at Stanford university
  14. ^ "Prototype This: Mind Controlled Car" on The Discovery Channel
  15. ^ Game Developers Conference 2008
  16. ^ http://www.legitreviews.com/article/475/1/ - CeBIT 2007 Highlights - The Neural Impulse Actuator
  17. ^ EmSense HP
  18. ^ http://www.physorg.com/news124723221.html
  19. ^ http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/features/emsense-tell-us-how-you-ireallyi-feel/70988/?biz=1&page=2

See also

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