Games that read your mind
Tomorrow’s Trends has tracked advancements in brain-wave reading technology for a while now. Now, a company is working on toys and games that are controlled by the brain:
A convincing twin of Darth Vader stalks the beige cubicles of a Silicon Valley office, complete with ominous black mask, cape and light saber.
But this is no chintzy Halloween costume. It’s a prototype, years in the making, of a toy that incorporates brain wave-reading technology.
Behind the mask is a sensor that touches the user’s forehead and reads the brain’s electrical signals, then sends them to a wireless receiver inside the saber, which lights up when the user is concentrating. The player maintains focus by channeling thoughts on any fixed mental image, or thinking specifically about keeping the light sword on. When the mind wanders, the wand goes dark.
Engineers at NeuroSky Inc. have big plans for brain wave-reading toys and video games. They say the simple Darth Vader game — a relatively crude biofeedback device cloaked in gimmicky garb — portends the coming of more sophisticated devices that could revolutionize the way people play.
Technology from NeuroSky and other startups could make video games more mentally stimulating and realistic. It could even enable players to control video game characters or avatars in virtual worlds with nothing but their thoughts.
Technology Review: Next-generation toys read brain waves, may help kids focus.
They will be using their brain-wave technology to focus on 3 main market areas: Consumer Electronics, Health, Wellness and Safety, and Education and Training.
There are so many possible future applications for brain-wave reading technology that works. NeuroSky- I even like the company’s name.
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