Passive wireless tags for tongue controlled assistive technology interfaces

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Assistive Technology

Background:

• Developing intuitive and unobtrusive human-device interfaces is crucial for assistive technology.
• Existing interfaces often require significant training or invasive components.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a novel human-device interface utilizing tongue position with low-profile, passive mouth tags.
• To evaluate user accuracy and learning rates with this tongue-controlled system.

Main Methods:

• Passive, wireless mouth tags were developed to detect tongue-tag separation.
• User accuracy was assessed using confusion matrices for tongue position targeting.
• Training sequences were implemented to measure learning rates and performance improvements.

Main Results:

• High user accuracy was achieved, with errors close to 1% after short training.
• Zero missed targets were recorded, indicating reliable performance.
• The intuitive nature of the interface was evidenced by rapid learning rates.

Conclusions:

• Low-profile, passive wireless mouth tags offer an intuitive and effective human-device interface.
• This technology has significant potential for controlling assistive devices for individuals with motor impairments.
• The cost-effective and disposable nature of the mouth-mounted technology enhances its practical applicability.