Transcranial photobiomodulation for motion sickness mitigation

Introduction

Cyber- and motion sickness are debilitating for many people, limiting both travel opportunities and the use of new technologies such as virtual and augmented reality. These forms of sickness are due to nauseogenic sensory mismatch (NSM).

Prevalence of Sickness

Cybersickness affects up to 50% of people who use AR and VR headsets. Motion sickness affects 30% of travelers in all forms of transport, with even more getting sick if they use AR or VR as a passenger.

Project Overview

To mitigate the effects of NSM, the PhotoMod project will demonstrate the efficacy of a novel transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) technique using near-infrared light. This is delivered by LEDs on the scalp shining invisible light into the brain, focused on the human vestibular network (HVN) to create neural entrainment.

Background of the Method

Our novel method extends work on the ERC ViAjeRo project, which used transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) to create entrainment in the HVN. We use this to synchronize the phase information of endogenous neural oscillations associated with NSM in the HVN to an external phase stimulus generated by tACS, which mirrors healthy phase information.

Benefits of the New Technique

We have found very significant benefits for NSM with this method. However, tACS has many drawbacks for commercial application. tPBM overcomes all of these as it is:

• More precise
• Safer
• More comfortable
• Cheaper

Development and Testing

In PhotoMod, we will develop new hardware and software to deliver tPBM in a commercial form, then test it as a mitigation for cybersickness at home and for motion sickness on the road.

Final Outcome

The final result will be a commercializable wearable system that can mitigate the effects of cyber and motion sickness across a wide area of applications.