Mind-Reading Headsets To Be Released

San Francisco, CA (AHN) - Gaming technology recently took a huge step forward with the announcement of a near-future release of a headset designed to read electrical impulses from the user's brain, resulting in thought-controlled operation.

The Epoc headset, to be released by American-Australian company Emotiv, will be reading the user's basic thought commands, such as "lift", "drop", "push", "pull", and "rotate."

It can also sense the gamer's facial expressions, converting the gathered data and translating it into the player's game character.

The headset's functions will be based on electroencephalography, or the reading of impulses emitted by neurons.

"It picks up electrical activity from the brain and sends wireless signals to a computer," Emotiv president Tan Lee told the Telegraph. "It allows the user to manipulate a game or virtual environment naturally and intuitively."

Lee said that the headset would also help in the further advancement of the currently developing artificial intelligence technology used in virtual worlds, such as Second Life, which uses avatars as representatives of the gamers.

The Times reported that the Epoc headset is designed to sense and interpret more than 30 different expressions, such as winking, laughing, smiling, and expressions of shock. The primary feature, however, was its function that enables the player to control the character simply by thinking of the command.

The Epoc is designed with 16 sensor points positioned at specific parts of a person's head. It comes with wireless capacity, and a gyroscope, mimicking parts of the technology used by the Nintendo Wii.

The Epoc is scheduled to go on sale later this year, at $291.