EEG is a noninvasive method of monitoring brain activity. Typically, it uses electrodes placed on the outside of the head, and measures voltage oscillations in the neurons of the brain caused by ionic current. It has been used in medical applications for a very long time. The Emotiv EPOC is an example of an EEG headset with 14 sensors and having an internal sampling rate of 2048 Hz. After filtering the signals, it sends the data to the computer at approximately 128 Hz.
The signals are transferred from the headset to the computer through wireless technology. This offers much greater mobility, and instead of requiring a special gel, the electrodes of the EPOC simply need to be dampened using a saline solution that in disinfectant and common. The project presented in this paper aims to develop a low cost and versatile human-like prosthetic arm controllable via brain activity using EEG neuro-feedback technology. The arm is equipped with a network of smart sensors and actuators that give the patient intelligent feedback about the surrounding environment and the object in contact. It also allows the arm to react and execute pre-programmed series of actions in critical cases (extremely hot or fragile objects, etc.) A first prototype has been developed to test the prosthetic arm with the embedded electro-mechanical system. This prototype is controlled using flex sensors integrated within a wearable glove. A microcontroller is added to the system, thus allowing to perform programmed actions and tasks. This prototype focuses on the arm-environment interaction. A second prototype based on the EEG control has also been developed and still under test. Preliminary experimental results show that the EEG technique is a promising and good alternative to other existing techniques. This can be achieved with a few days of training. The purpose of this paper is to explore the methodology and use of an inexpensive and non-invasive BCI for the control of robotic systems; specifically a two degree freedom of fingers in a prosthetic arm.