Patent ID: 7873411
Filing Date: 2011-01-18
Classification: A61B,G06F

Abstract:
1. An interface device intervening between a measuring unit that measures brain activities of a subject and an object to be controlled, and comprising: a reference signal storing part that stores a brain activity signal measured at a time when the subject conducts predetermined thinking which causes movement of the object and is different from direct thinking in order to control the object to be controlled in a desired mode as a reference signal, wherein the predetermined thinking is multiple kinds of thinking about movements of body sites, the predetermined thinking is conducted in regions of the subject's brain corresponding to areas in a Penfield's brain functional map representative of portions of the brain that are separate from each other and correspond to the body sites, a discriminating part that compares the brain activity signal measured by the measuring unit with the reference signal and discriminates whether or not the thinking of the subject is the predetermined thinking, a controlling part that controls the object to be controlled in the desired mode at a time when the discriminating part discriminates that the thinking of the subject is the predetermined thinking, and an image display unit to provide the subject with predetermined information that is arranged on the image display unit, wherein the controlling part displays an indication on a screen to aid the subject in conducting the predetermined thinking when the object is being controlled and a control content related to the predetermined thinking, wherein the indication is an image showing movements of the body sites.