Now, control light by your mind
By siliconindia   |   Thursday, 04 February 2010, 23:48 IST   |    9 Comments
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Now, control light by your mind
Vancouver: You must have heard of lights which can be changed by voice command. But now a company has come up with lights that can be controlled by mind. Spanning more than 3000 km across Canada, InteraXon's Bright Ideas allows visitors to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver to control the lights at major Landmarks in Ontario using thought alone - making it the largest thought-controlled computing installation ever created. Light displays on Toronto's CN Tower, Ottawa's Parliament Buildings, and Niagara Falls will be entirely controlled by people's thoughts. "The McGuinty Government is excited to have InteraXon participate at Ontario House during the 2010 Olympic Games. This unique attraction showcases three of our tourism icons in an innovative, exciting and interactive way," says Michael Chan, Ontario Minister of Tourism and Culture. Users will have the chance to experience the latest in Ontario technology innovation at InteraXon's Bright Ideas installation. "Imagine controlling anything without the touch of a button - expanding your ability to change the world beyond your physical self. It gives you a sense of the potential of the technology we are bringing into everyday life," says InteraXon's CEO Ariel Garten. The headset used in the installation measures the brain's electrical output and reacts to alpha waves, associated with relaxation, and beta waves, associated with concentration. As the users relax or focus their thoughts, the computer will send a message over the internet to the site they are viewing. InteraXon's custom software connects users thoughts to the lighting controls to change the display on the landmark site. The outcome is a thought-generated light show that will be visible to the local residents in Toronto, Ottawa and Niagara Falls and will be projected on massive screens in Ontario House during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. "We're working to bring thought-controlled computing out of research labs and into the mainstream," explains Trevor Coleman, COO. "InteraXon helps companies looking to engage in the exploding thought controlled computing market develop their own brainwave-controlled products and services." As brainwave technology reaches its full potential, the implications for the disabled are immense. Thought controlled wheelchairs and prosthetics are already a reality, and will become more accessible and affordable in the coming years. "As the technology gets smaller, more precise, and less expensive there's no limit to the kinds of things we can control with our minds," adds Chief Technical Officer Chris Aimone. "We can fit a demonstration into a briefcase and take it to your office."

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