Brain-Computer Interface Racing at the Cybathlon 2016

Brain-computer interfaces measure the electricity produced by the brain and translate it into commands that are sent to a machine. However, it is often difficult to judge how quickly a user will be able to perform a task using a brain-computer interface without testing it in realistic situations. At an event called Cybathlon 2016, we organized a brain-computer interface race, in which participants with paralysis of both arms and legs used brain-computer interfaces to navigate an obstacle course in a computer game. This article summarizes the racing game, the technologies that participants used, and the race results. Our race demonstrated that brain-computer interfaces can help people complete a task but can also be nearly useless if errors occur. In the future, the racing game can be used to compare different brain-computer interface technologies and study the factors that affect the performance of such interfaces, paving the way for improvement of the technology.