An efficient P300-based brain–computer interface for disabled subjects

A brain–computer interface (BCI) is a communication system that translates brain-activity into commands for a computer or other devices. In other words, a BCI allows users to act on their environment by using only brain-activity, without using peripheral nerves and muscles. In this paper, we present a BCI that achieves high classification accuracy and high bitrates for both disabled and able-bodied subjects. The system is based on the P300 evoked potential and is tested with five severely disabled and four able-bodied subjects. For four of the disabled subjects classification accuracies of 100% are obtained. The bitrates obtained for the disabled subjects range between 10 and 25 bits/min. The effect of different electrode configurations and machine learning algorithms on classification accuracy is tested. Further factors that are possibly important for obtaining good classification accuracy in P300-based BCI systems for disabled subjects are discussed.