Intersession Robust Hybrid Brain–Computer Interface: Safe and User-Friendly Approach with LED Activation Mechanism

This study introduces a hybrid Brain–Computer (BCI) system with a robust and secure activation mechanism between sessions, aiming to minimize the negative effects of visual stimulus-based BCI systems on user eye health. The system is based on the integration of Electroencephalography (EEG) signals and Electrooculography (EOG) artefacts, and includes an LED stimulus operating at a frequency of 7 Hz for safe activation and objects moving in different directions. While the LED functions as an activation switch that reduces visual fatigue caused by traditional visual stimuli, moving objects provide command generation depending on the user’s intention. In order to evaluate the stability of the system against physiological and psychological conditions, data were collected from 15 participants in two different sessions. The Correlation Alignment (CORAL) method was applied to the data to reduce the variance between sessions and to increase stability. A Bootstrap Aggregating algorithm was used in the classification processes, and with the CORAL method, the system accuracy rate was increased from 81.54% to 94.29%. Compared to similar BCI approaches, the proposed system offers a safe activation mechanism that effectively adapts to users’ changing cognitive states throughout the day by reducing visual fatigue, despite using a low number of EEG channels, and demonstrates its practicality and effectiveness by performing on par or superior to other systems in terms of high accuracy and robust stability.