Abstract
A control system for the remote activation of electronic devices, based on alpha-wave synchronisation, must be robust over a wide range of lighting conditions. This study investigates the effect that low light levels have on the increase in amplitude of the occipital alpha-wave component of the human electro-encephalogram spectrum in response to eye closure. Measurements of the time required for the amplitude of the occipital alpha wave to increase above a predetermined threshold, upon eye closure, were taken from 21 subjects and at four illuminances, ranging from 2×10−1 lx to 2×10−5 lx. The light source used to provide these illuminances was a featureless, uniformly illuminated white paper that subtended 30° of the visual field. Statistical analysis showed that the time to exceed threshold (TTET) upon eye closure was not independent (p<0.001) of illuminance, and that the main source of this lack of independence occurred at the lowest illuminance, 2×10−5 lx. At this luminance, the median TTET value was 15.0 s. However, at 2×10−4 lx, the median value of the TTET was 4.2 s. This is a sufficiently short time for device activation, and therefore a control system based on alpha-wave synchronisation is functional at very low light levels.
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Maher, A.M., Kirkup, L., Swift, P. et al. Effect of luminance level on electro-encephalogram alpha-wave synchronisation. Med. Biol. Eng. Comput. 39, 672–677 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02345440
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02345440