If you’re looking to sharpen your mental focus, Hitachi has developed a wearable brain activity sensor designed to improve learning skills.

The prototype, which looks somewhat like an old-school telephone handset, covers a user’s forehead and works with a smartphone, according to Hitachi High-Tech, a group company.

While it isn’t exactly discreet, it only weighs about 100 grams. Since it has no external power cables, it can be worn while doing daily activities, instantly showing feedback via the smartphone.

The headset emits near-infrared light at both sides of the forehead to measure blood volume changes in the cerebral cortex. The changes are associated with activity in certain brain areas and are analyzed by signal-processing circuits in the forehead unit. After analysis, the data are displayed on a Bluetooth-linked Android smartphone so users can see what their brains are doing in real time.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here