Biomedical subjects

Benjamin Blankertz

Publications and source records attributed to Benjamin Blankertz.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Towards adaptive classification for BCI.

Non-stationarities are ubiquitous in EEG signals. They are especially apparent in the use of EEG-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs): (a) in the differences between the initial calibration measurement and the online operation of a BCI, or (b) caused by changes in the subject's brain processes during an experiment (e.g. due to fatigue, change of task involvement, etc). In this paper, we quantify for the first time such systematic evidence of statistical differences in data recorded during offline and online sessions. Furthermore, we propose novel techniques of investigating and visualizing data distributions, which are particularly useful for the analysis of (non-)stationarities. Our study shows that the brain signals used for control can change substantially from the offline calibration sessions to online control, and also within a single session. In addition to this general characterization of the signals, we propose several adaptive classification schemes and study their performance on data recorded during online experiments. An encouraging result of our study is that surprisingly simple adaptive methods in combination with an offline feature selection scheme can significantly increase BCI performance.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed2006

Combined optimization of spatial and temporal filters for improving brain-computer interfacing.

Brain-computer interface (BCI) systems create a novel communication channel from the brain to an output device by bypassing conventional motor output pathways of nerves and muscles. Therefore they could provide a new communication and control option for paralyzed patients. Modern BCI technology is essentially based on techniques for the classification of single-trial brain signals. Here we present a novel technique that allows the simultaneous optimization of a spatial and a spectral filter enhancing discriminability rates of multichannel EEG single-trials. The evaluation of 60 experiments involving 22 different subjects demonstrates the significant superiority of the proposed algorithm over to its classical counterpart: the median classification error rate was decreased by 11%. Apart from the enhanced classification, the spatial and/or the spectral filter that are determined by the algorithm can also be used for further analysis of the data, e.g., for source localization of the respective brain rhythms.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2006

The Berlin Brain-Computer Interface: EEG-based communication without subject training.

The Berlin Brain-Computer Interface (BBCI) project develops a noninvasive BCI system whose key features are 1) the use of well-established motor competences as control paradigms, 2) high-dimensional features from 128-channel electroencephalogram (EEG), and 3) advanced machine learning techniques. As reported earlier, our experiments demonstrate that very high information transfer rates can be achieved using the readiness potential (RP) when predicting the laterality of upcoming left- versus right-hand movements in healthy subjects. A more recent study showed that the RP similarily accompanies phantom movements in arm amputees, but the signal strength decreases with longer loss of the limb. In a complementary approach, oscillatory features are used to discriminate imagined movements (left hand versus right hand versus foot). In a recent feedback study with six healthy subjects with no or very little experience with BCI control, three subjects achieved an information transfer rate above 35 bits per minute (bpm), and further two subjects above 24 and 15 bpm, while one subject could not achieve any BCI control. These results are encouraging for an EEG-based BCI system in untrained subjects that is independent of peripheral nervous system activity and does not rely on evoked potentials even when compared to results with very well-trained subjects operating other BCI systems.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2006

The BCI competition. III: Validating alternative approaches to actual BCI problems.

A brain-computer interface (BCI) is a system that allows its users to control external devices with brain activity. Although the proof-of-concept was given decades ago, the reliable translation of user intent into device control commands is still a major challenge. Success requires the effective interaction of two adaptive controllers: the user's brain, which produces brain activity that encodes intent, and the BCI system, which translates that activity into device control commands. In order to facilitate this interaction, many laboratories are exploring a variety of signal analysis techniques to improve the adaptation of the BCI system to the user. In the literature, many machine learning and pattern classification algorithms have been reported to give impressive results when applied to BCI data in offline analyses. However, it is more difficult to evaluate their relative value for actual online use. BCI data competitions have been organized to provide objective formal evaluations of alternative methods. Prompted by the great interest in the first two BCI Competitions, we organized the third BCI Competition to address several of the most difficult and important analysis problems in BCI research. The paper describes the data sets that were provided to the competitors and gives an overview of the results.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2005

Spatio-spectral filters for improving the classification of single trial EEG.

Data recorded in electroencephalogram (EEG)-based brain-computer interface experiments is generally very noisy, non-stationary, and contaminated with artifacts that can deteriorate discrimination/classification methods. In this paper, we extend the common spatial pattern (CSP) algorithm with the aim to alleviate these adverse effects. In particular, we suggest an extension of CSP to the state space, which utilizes the method of time delay embedding. As we will show, this allows for individually tuned frequency filters at each electrode position and, thus, yields an improved and more robust machine learning procedure. The advantages of the proposed method over the original CSP method are verified in terms of an improved information transfer rate (bits per trial) on a set of EEG-recordings from experiments of imagined limb movements.

Brain↗

PubMed2004

BCI Competition 2003--Data set IIa: spatial patterns of self-controlled brain rhythm modulations.

A brain-computer interface (BCI) is a system that should in its ultimate form translate a subject's intent into a technical control signal without resorting to the classical neuromuscular communication channels. By using that signal to, e.g., control a wheelchair or a neuroprosthesis, a BCI could become a valuable tool for paralyzed patients. One approach to implement a BCI is to let users learn to self-control the amplitude of some of their brain rhythms as extracted from multichannel electroencephalogram. We present a method that estimates subject-specific spatial filters which allow for a robust extraction of the rhythm modulations. The effectiveness of the method was proved by achieving the minimum prediction error on data set IIa in the BCI Competition 2003, which consisted of data from three subjects recorded in ten sessions.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2004

The BCI Competition 2003: progress and perspectives in detection and discrimination of EEG single trials.

Interest in developing a new method of man-to-machine communication--a brain-computer interface (BCI)--has grown steadily over the past few decades. BCIs create a new communication channel between the brain and an output device by bypassing conventional motor output pathways of nerves and muscles. These systems use signals recorded from the scalp, the surface of the cortex, or from inside the brain to enable users to control a variety of applications including simple word-processing software and orthotics. BCI technology could therefore provide a new communication and control option for individuals who cannot otherwise express their wishes to the outside world. Signal processing and classification methods are essential tools in the development of improved BCI technology. We organized the BCI Competition 2003 to evaluate the current state of the art of these tools. Four laboratories well versed in EEG-based BCI research provided six data sets in a documented format. We made these data sets (i.e., labeled training sets and unlabeled test sets) and their descriptions available on the Internet. The goal in the competition was to maximize the performance measure for the test labels. Researchers worldwide tested their algorithms and competed for the best classification results. This paper describes the six data sets and the results and function of the most successful algorithms.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Brain-computer communication and slow cortical potentials.

A thought translation device (TTD) has been designed to enable direct brain-computer communication using self-regulation of slow cortical potentials (SCPs). However, accuracy of SCP control reveals high intersubject variability. To guarantee the highest possible communication speed, some important aspects of training SCPs are discussed. A baseline correction of SCPs can increase performance. Multichannel recordings show that SCPs are of highest amplitude around the vertex electrode used for feedback, but in some subjects more global distributions were observed. A new method for control of eye movement is presented. Sequential effects of trial-to-trial interaction may also cause difficulties for the user. Finally, psychophysiological factors determining SCP communication are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Boosting bit rates in noninvasive EEG single-trial classifications by feature combination and multiclass paradigms.

Noninvasive electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings provide for easy and safe access to human neocortical processes which can be exploited for a brain-computer interface (BCI). At present, however, the use of BCIs is severely limited by low bit-transfer rates. We systematically analyze and develop two recent concepts, both capable of enhancing the information gain from multichannel scalp EEG recordings: 1) the combination of classifiers, each specifically tailored for different physiological phenomena, e.g., slow cortical potential shifts, such as the pre-movement Bereitschaftspotential or differences in spatio-spectral distributions of brain activity (i.e., focal event-related desynchronizations) and 2) behavioral paradigms inducing the subjects to generate one out of several brain states (multiclass approach) which all bare a distinctive spatio-temporal signature well discriminable in the standard scalp EEG. We derive information-theoretic predictions and demonstrate their relevance in experimental data. We will show that a suitably arranged interaction between these concepts can significantly boost BCI performances.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2003

A data analysis competition to evaluate machine learning algorithms for use in brain-computer interfaces.

We present three datasets that were used to conduct an open competition for evaluating the performance of various machine-learning algorithms used in brain-computer interfaces. The datasets were collected for tasks that included: 1) detecting explicit left/right (L/R) button press; 2) predicting imagined L/R button press; and 3) vertical cursor control. A total of ten entries were submitted to the competition, with winning results reported for two of the three datasets.

Algorithms↗

PubMed2003

Boosting bit rates and error detection for the classification of fast-paced motor commands based on single-trial EEG analysis.

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) involve two coupled adapting systems--the human subject and the computer. In developing our BCI, our goal was to minimize the need for subject training and to impose the major learning load on the computer. To this end, we use behavioral paradigms that exploit single-trial EEG potentials preceding voluntary finger movements. Here, we report recent results on the basic physiology of such premovement event-related potentials (ERP). 1) We predict the laterality of imminent left- versus right-hand finger movements in a natural keyboard typing condition and demonstrate that a single-trial classification based on the lateralized Bereitschaftspotential (BP) achieves good accuracies even at a pace as fast as 2 taps/s. Results for four out of eight subjects reached a peak information transfer rate of more than 15 b/min; the four other subjects reached 6-10 b/min. 2) We detect cerebral error potentials from single false-response trials in a forced-choice task, reflecting the subject's recognition of an erroneous response. Based on a specifically tailored classification procedure that limits the rate of false positives at, e.g., 2%, the algorithm manages to detect 85% of error trials in seven out of eight subjects. Thus, concatenating a primary single-trial BP-paradigm involving finger classification feedback with such secondary error detection could serve as an efficient online confirmation/correction tool for improvement of bit rates in a future BCI setting. As the present variant of the Berlin BCI is designed to achieve fast classifications in normally behaving subjects, it opens a new perspective for assistance of action control in time-critical behavioral contexts; the potential transfer to paralyzed patients will require further study.

Algorithms↗