Wearable Wireless Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy System for Cognitive Activity Monitoring

From learning environments to battlefields to marketing teams, the desire to measure cognition and cognitive fatigue in real time has been a grand challenge in optimizing human performance. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is an effective optical technique for measuring changes in subdermal hemodynamics, and it has been championed as a more practical method for monitoring brain function compared to MRI. This study reports on an innovative functional NIRS (fNIRS) sensor that integrates the entire system into a compact and wearable device, enabling long-term monitoring of patients. The device provides unrestricted mobility to the user with a Bluetooth connection for settings configuration and data transmission. A connected device, such as a smartphone or laptop equipped with the appropriate interface software, collects raw data, then stores and generates real-time analyses. Tests confirm the sensor is sensitive to oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin changes on the forehead region, which indicate neuronal activity and provide information for brain activity monitoring studies.