SAMARA, April 23. /TASS/. Russian-developed system Neurochat, which allows the power of thought to control devices and go online and surf the world web, began to be batch-produced this year, the project’s director, Natalya Galkina, said at the presentation of the system in Samara on Tuesday.
Neurochat works on the basis of what she described as the "brain-computer interface" technology. The patient can choose an icon or symbol on the screen using the power of thought, control external devices and access the Internet. The device will let patients with cerebral atherosclerosis, chronic cerebral ischemia, senile asthenia and other speech and movement impairments communicate with other people.
"This year, Neurochat began to be batch-produced. The price of the kit is 120,000 rubles ($1,900), but the developer and the Ministry of Health promise to help patients receive a compensation," Galkina said
The system consists of Russian components 85%. Research is currently underway on the impact of Neurochat on patients’ rehabilitation. "Currently, we are trying to understand whether the system has rehabilitation properties. Even now about 160 patients use it in hospitals across Russia. Alternative counterparts do exist, but they are hospital-class equipment, while Neurochat is a consumer-grade device. It can be used at home," Galkina said.
In 2019, the designer plans to sell more than 200 sets of equipment in Russia.
Neurochat was one of the first projects to have been funded under the National Technology Initiative (NTI), that is, the state program for creating fundamentally new markets and conditions for Russia's global technological leadership. It is a product of collective efforts by mathematicians, engineers, programmers, and biologists.
