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ego - driving cars have already go far , at least in the testing stage , and now judgement - controlled escape could be on the skyline , researcher say .
A team of engineers develop an algorithm that canconvert brain undulation into flight commands . The researchers trust the intellect - control system paired with specialized airplane controls will make vaporize easier and safer in the future tense .
Pilots put on EEG caps during flight simulations and were able to control the plane by thinking commands.
" If flying is more intuitive , it is also easier and thus safer , " Tim Fricke , an aerospace applied scientist at Technische Universität München in Germany , who helped develop the system of rules , told Live Science . " Moderately trained world-wide aviation pilots with [ petty ] flying experience would probably profit the most from this new approach . " [ Supersonic ! The 10 Fastest Military Airplanes ]
During the practical flying simulation , researchers fit seven pilots with a blank cap covered with dozens of electroencephalography ( EEG ) line to enter the subjects’brain waves . Each pilot had varying degrees of experience , including one who had never been in an airplane cockpit . The EEG cable send off electrical signal to a data processor , which was break away the mind - control algorithm ; the computer then converted the electric signaling into an action mechanism that was carried out wirelessly .
Brain waves have distinct patterns , so the algorithm can specifically place the pilots ' planer - dominance thoughts .
Just by thinking commands , the pilot who participated in the experiment were able to dispatch maneuvers such as lampoon and landing , and they were able to keep the plane within a few degree of a given compass centering , the researchers read . The pilots ' accuracy surprised the team ; if the feigning had been real flight , each of the participants would have go all the requirements in a pilot burner license run . Some pilot film even landed the carpenter’s plane on the runway in tempestuous circumstance with poor profile , the researchers said .
However , themind - control techniquehas limitations . During flight , pilot bank on the resistance they find from the forcible controls to keep the plane on track through clouds and high-pitched wind , the researchers said . In mind - controlled flight , the archetype lack this feedback . Researchers require to design a way to signal to the pilots when they are overcorrecting , Fricke suppose , adding that this could be accomplished by giving the pilots a visual or auditory signal .
The successful pretence do not think all pilots will of a sudden bulge out trading in their captain ’s hats for EEG chapiter , the researchers said .
" Brain - electronic computer user interface technology is still quite young , and although we might see some awing developments in the next years , wide program is still decennium out , specially when we talk about controlling aircraft , where [ the ] highest base hit standards have to be value , " Fricke said .
Next , the researchers will work on getting the algorithm ready for an unmanned presentation flight .
The team will portray their result , which have not yet been publish in a equal - go over scientific journal , in September at the German Aerospace Congress ( DLRK ) in Augsburg , Germany .
