MURAL - Maynooth University Research Archive Library



    Assessing the Impact of Environment and Electrode Configuration on P300 Speller Performance and EEG Signal Quality


    Noble, Sandra-Carina, Ward, Tomás and Ringwood, John (2024) Assessing the Impact of Environment and Electrode Configuration on P300 Speller Performance and EEG Signal Quality. In: 2024 46th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC), 15-19 July 2024, Orlando, FL, USA.

    Abstract

    Recent years have seen extensive use of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) using electroencephalography (EEG). A critical element in BCI research is electrode selection, which influences performance, experiment duration, resource utilization, and consequently, cost. Electrode choice is partly dictated by the study location, as environmental electrical noise can impact EEG signal quality. This study evaluates the performance of a P300 speller and EEG signal quality using 4-, 6-, 8-, and 16-electrode configurations in two different office environments. Ten healthy adults participated in a single session, using a P300 speller to spell three words with each electrode set. Participants were split between two locations, with five individuals in each. Significant performance disparities were observed between the locations. Notably, within each location, the performance differences among 4-, 6-, and 8-electrode sets were minimal; only the 16-electrode set outperformed the others in both settings. The location associated with poorer performances also exhibited lower P300 amplitudes and higher levels of mains electricity noise.
    Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
    Keywords: P300 speller; brain-computer interface; BCI; electroencephalography; EEG;
    Academic Unit: Faculty of Science and Engineering > Electronic Engineering
    Item ID: 20825
    Identification Number: 10.1109/embc53108.2024.10782158
    Depositing User: Professor John Ringwood
    Date Deposited: 11 Nov 2025 12:16
    Journal or Publication Title: 2024 46th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC)
    Publisher: IEEE
    Refereed: Yes
    Related URLs:
    Use Licence: This item is available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial Share Alike Licence (CC BY-NC-SA). Details of this licence are available here

    Downloads

    Downloads per month over past year

    Origin of downloads

    Altmetric Badge

    Repository Staff Only (login required)

    Item control page
    Item control page