About this Research Topic
The field of brain computer interfaces (BCI) is making fast progress. Research is mostly aimed at providing disabled patients some levels of communication, control of external devices, and mobility, but there is also interest in real-world applications for the healthy population.
Of particular interest is the combination of BCI and re-embodiment. It has been shown that under some circumstances, people can have a strong illusion of body ownership over a surrogate body, either a virtual avatar or a physical robot. A unique scenario is controlling such a representation by 'thought' alone; in this setup the virtual or robotic body becomes a replacement of the participant's body. Brain signals and BCI can also be a complementary mean of interaction to control a virtual environment or a robot, together with traditional inputs.
Other opportunities are abundant, such as using virtual reality (VR) to enhance the experience of neurofeedback, design new brain activity visualization tools and embed the participant in a rich multi-sensory context, or enhancing VR experiences with so-called passive BCIs, such that the VR content adapts to the participants' cognitive and emotional state, as extracted from their brainwaves. BCI technologies can also be used to assess the ergonomic qualities of a VR environment or of a human-robot interaction (referred to as “neuroergonomics”).
This call seeks original manuscripts describing new research in all areas in the intersection of BCI and VR or BCI and robotics. Methodological papers, reviews, and theoretical contributions are also welcome. All categories of BCI, i.e., based on invasive (ECoG, subcortical electrode arrays) or non-invasive (Electroencephalography – EEG, functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging – fMRI) recording modalities, are welcome.
Areas of Interest:
- BCI in virtual reality
- BCI for robotic control
- BCI control of prosthetic limbs
- BCI and embodiment
- Neuroergonomics of VR or human-robot interaction
- Brain activity visualization tools in VR
- Neurofeedback and VR
- Real-time neurophysiological loops in VR and robotics
- BCI and augmented reality
- Multimodal control (Hybrid BCI) of VR and robots
Of particular interest is the combination of BCI and re-embodiment. It has been shown that under some circumstances, people can have a strong illusion of body ownership over a surrogate body, either a virtual avatar or a physical robot. A unique scenario is controlling such a representation by 'thought' alone; in this setup the virtual or robotic body becomes a replacement of the participant's body. Brain signals and BCI can also be a complementary mean of interaction to control a virtual environment or a robot, together with traditional inputs.
Other opportunities are abundant, such as using virtual reality (VR) to enhance the experience of neurofeedback, design new brain activity visualization tools and embed the participant in a rich multi-sensory context, or enhancing VR experiences with so-called passive BCIs, such that the VR content adapts to the participants' cognitive and emotional state, as extracted from their brainwaves. BCI technologies can also be used to assess the ergonomic qualities of a VR environment or of a human-robot interaction (referred to as “neuroergonomics”).
This call seeks original manuscripts describing new research in all areas in the intersection of BCI and VR or BCI and robotics. Methodological papers, reviews, and theoretical contributions are also welcome. All categories of BCI, i.e., based on invasive (ECoG, subcortical electrode arrays) or non-invasive (Electroencephalography – EEG, functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging – fMRI) recording modalities, are welcome.
Areas of Interest:
- BCI in virtual reality
- BCI for robotic control
- BCI control of prosthetic limbs
- BCI and embodiment
- Neuroergonomics of VR or human-robot interaction
- Brain activity visualization tools in VR
- Neurofeedback and VR
- Real-time neurophysiological loops in VR and robotics
- BCI and augmented reality
- Multimodal control (Hybrid BCI) of VR and robots
Keywords: brain computer interface, virtual reality, robotics, embodiment, neurofeedback
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
