IV. “Technology: Software and Hardware” (org. by: Gerwin Schalk, Febo Cincotti)

Progress in BCI research requires the rigorous study of alternative methods during online operation as well as in offline analyses, and would be greatly enhanced by decreasing the substantial expertise, resources, and costs of putting a BCI into operation. To explore this issue, this workshop is dedicated to examining the ways in which the technology (in particular the hardware and the software on which BCI research and development depend) can be improved. The emphasis will be on development and dissemination of powerful and flexible systems that can support a wide variety of BCI research studies and clinical applications. The first afternoon will provide an overview of the hardware devices and software systems that support and facilitate implementation of BCI designs and applications. Topics include: the general-purpose BCI system BCI2000; data acquisition systems and Matlab-based BCIs; BCI systems on embedded devices; design and implementation of implanted devices. The second afternoon will consider the tools that facilitate operation and analysis of BCI systems. Topics include: general-purpose analysis tools for BCI signals; EEGlab; Matlab-based analysis tools; advanced offline and online BCI signal processing; and integration of EEG-based BCIs with other imaging modalities (e.g., fMRI). The third afternoon will feature discussion aimed at formulating the summary report to be presented at the plenary session on the fourth day.