PBL for BME 120 (Undergraduates) Brain computer interface to control a smart room Fall 2017 Severe neuromuscular disorders can cause loss of voluntary muscle control, reducing an individual’s ability to carry out the daily tasks that are essential for independent living. In extreme cases, such as quadriplegia, patients may be unable to move, speak, or even breathe without assistance. Quadriplegic patients spend most of their lives in hospital beds. Your team is charged with designing a brain computer interface (BCI) to help a quadriplegic patient control different aspects of his or her environment, essentially creating a BCI-controlled smart room. The input to the BCI will be EEG signals measured from the patient; these signals will be processed, decoded, and turned into distinct computer commands that will control different devices in the room, such as the lights or thermostat. You will need to think carefully about the needs of the user and which functions will be most useful for them. While P300 and SSVEP can be incorporated into your design, they cannot be the only signals you use. Feel free to be creative! For instance, how can we make use of signals from the motor cortex or frontal lobe? This is an open field of study, and there is no “right” answer. We are looking for a conceptual design, so you do not need to provide the mathematical details of the neural processing algorithms, but you should be able justify your choice of algorithm with relevant references. And remember, a well-thought out design with only a few functions is more valuable than one which does not work reliably because the signal decoding and operation is too complex. These elements should be included in your design: 1. Briefly describe the device. Draw a conceptual diagram of it and describe the capabilities of the reader. 2. Choose the placement of the electrodes and justify the placement with relevant literature (e.g., a paper describing changes in motor cortex during imagined movements). For your final video, you may display references on the screen as they come up or list them all at the end. 3. Choose a set of actions for the BCI to carry out. Describe how the neural signals will be paired with these commands. Some important questions to consider in your design: a. For each command, what feature of the EEG will be measured (for example a specific frequency band or waveform) and what region of the brain will it be measured from? b. How the computer will know when the patient wants a command to be carried out? c. Will recognition of the intended commands be robust to normally occurring features of the EEG, such as eye blinks, muscle activity, and the alpha rhythm when the eyes are closed? 4. Include a block diagram or flow chart that explains the process by which brain signals are decoded into actions by the device. 5. If relevant, describe any safety features of your device that will prevent injury to the patient.Assignment: Create a 5-minute video that describes the elements of your design. You will present the video during your PBL session in the week of Nov 27-29. You may use any video recording device and editing software that you feel comfortable with; however, your video must be small enough to upload to Canvas. Aim for ~20 MB. We strongly recommend using PowerPoint to display your drawings, block diagram, etc. and then recording the presentation as you narrate the slides. This is a built-in functionality of PowerPoint, and using it will allow you to spend more time on creating a clear and concise presentation without spending hours on video editing. The video must be no longer than 5 minutes, and each person from your group must appear (or be heard) in the video. Please include a title screen showing the names of all group members. Grading rubric: Design 1. Benefits of the device (Do you explain why you are making this device and how it will benefit the user?) 2. Drawing of the device (Does your video contain a clear drawing of the device that demonstrates its operation?) 3. Signal decoding (How are EEG signals turned into actions by your device? Do you describe the electrode placement and signal feature being measured?) 4. Block diagram (Does your block diagram accurately describe the flow of information and actions in your device?) 5. Feasibility (Based on the typical limitations of BCI devices, is your design feasible?) 60% Individual Participation (Does your peer evaluation and attendance at PBL sessions indicate that you contributed to the project?) 20% Video design (Are your slides and video visually appealing? Is your text consistent and free of typos? Can we clearly hear each person speaking?) 10% Organization and clarity of presentation; adherence to time limit