Obstacles in using a computer screen for steady-state visually evoked potential stimulation

In brain computer interface (BCI) applications, the use of steady-state visually evoked potentials (SSVEPs) is common. Therefore, a visual stimulation with a constant repetition frequency is necessary. However, using a computer monitor, the set of frequencies that can be used is restricted by the refresh rate of the screen. Frequencies that are not an integer divisor of the refresh rate cannot be displayed correctly. Furthermore, the programming language the stimulation software is written in and the operating system influence the actually generated and presented frequencies. The aim of this paper is to identify the main challenges in generating SSVEP stimulation using a computer screen with and without using DirectX in Windows-based PC systems and to provide solutions for these issues.