How Should the State of the Brain Be Described? A call to standardize descriptions of brain states for data collection and research

The IEEE Brain Initiative and the Consumer Technology Association (CTA, formerly the Consumer Electronics Association) promote brain research, development, and commercialization. CTA's recent standardization of electroencephalogram (EEG) signal data interoperability facilitates brain technology developments in the Internet environment for consumer-friendly applications. Emerging brain-computer interface (BCI) consumer products have accelerated new tool development to be blended seamlessly in rehabilitation, education, and entertainment. It has been observed that, while some of these developments flourish via collaboration, others tend to proliferate. To continue the recent commercialization advancement in BCI headsets, it behooves the industry to standardize EEG brain signal collection to form an open databank to allow data exchange via the Internet. Specific issues are raised with respect to the fundamental harmonization of brain states and its linkage to EEG signals for big data analytics and Internet of Things connectivity. Replacing proprietary formats with standard EEG data is the purpose of this article, and the progress and challenges of the ongoing standardization effort within the CTA are discussed. © 2012 IEEE.