Mind control

Mind Control Scalextric

The Purpose: who has not always wanted to make things move with their mind- we can not all be Yoda and lift X-Wings out of the swamp but we can use our minds to move a blue foam ball through a plastic obstacle course thanks to the Mindflex game from Mattel. We found the game element a little lame for such an exciting concept so we decided to redesign the play element of the Mindflex product by making an outcome that was more fun and exciting.

The Mindflex shortcomings: The Mindflex EEG headset 'reads' brain activity by detecting through electrodes attached to the head the potential differences between levels of 'brain wave' activity. It amplifies the small potential differences and transmits the signal by remote control. The Mindflex receiver encodes any exponential intensity of the signals from the headset (greater brain activity) into an increase of electrical power that increases the speed of the fan and the movement of the blue foam ball. Why not connect the output of the Mindflex headset to a controller for a scalextric track and use that power to drive a car round the circuit – the greater the concentration the faster the speed.

The Design Method: Costs - our solution had to be the most affordable solution and use as much as the original gear as possible.

Simplicity in Design – The Mindflex construction contained all the elements to enable redesigning there just had to be a way to link the outcome from the encoder box to replace the hand control from the scalextric.

Working method: Removed the fan mechanism and connected the output to relays that control a series of resistors that control the speed of the cars the same way as it used to control the speed of the fan.

Scalextric shortcomings: we are using the micro Scalextric and the contacts and connections can be poor leading to cars stopping and failing to start correctly. We need to obtain a more reliable set up and leave it assemble ready for use.

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