This project became part of the Driven By Optimism initiative, under which the company seeks to "challenge the status quo" through "modern developments combined with the human spirit."
For the test, a special helmet was used that records an electroencephalogram and converts it into simple signals. These signals were transmitted to a computer that controlled the actuators. When the driver thought of something positive, the car accelerated, and when distracted or neutral thoughts occurred, it slowed down. An engineer sitting in the back handled the steering.
Participants in the tests of the thought-controlled car included athletes from the Atlantic Endeavour team, who in December this year will set off on the 5,000-kilometer Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge rowing regatta across the Atlantic. Also behind the wheel were blind Mark Elcock, who had not driven for 15 years, and personal growth coach Anna Ray.
Previously, similar tests with thought control were conducted by the American company Touch Titans, and in 2011, Nissan, together with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, announced the development of similar technology.
