Mind-reading car could drive you round the bend

The Nissan Leaf electric car. Now the manufacturer is helping to develop a car that can interact with its driver's brain. Photograph: Simon Stuart-Miller

One of the world's largest motor manufacturers is working with scientists based in Switzerland to design a car that can read its driver's mind and predict his or her next move.




However, although BMI technology is well established, the levels of human concentration needed to make it work are extremely high, so the research team is working on systems that will use statistical analysis to predict a driver's next move and to "evaluate a driver's cognitive state relevant to the driving environment".


Lucian Gheorghe, who joined Nissan's mobility research centre after graduating in computer science and artificial intelligence from Kobe University, Japan, said he believed the joint project could benefit both scientists and motorists.

"Brain wave analysis has helped me understand driver burden in order to reduce driver stress," he said. "During our collaboration with EPFL, I believe we will not only be able to contribute to the scientific community but we will also find engineering solutions that will bring us close to providing easy access to personal mobility for everyone."

Professor José del R Millán, who is leading the project, said the idea behind the research was a simple one: "to blend driver and vehicle intelligence together in such a way that eliminates conflicts between them, leading to a safer motoring environment".