In the 1990s, a scientist working on pilot training at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, came up with a way to translate brainwave output, measured through neurofeedback, to characterize attention levels. 

To help pilots train their attention, researcher Dr. Alan Pope invented what he called an engagement index. The strength of higher-frequency beta waves that result from greater concentration is divided by the combined power of alpha and theta waves – lower-frequency outputs associated with relaxation. Pope’s system then spit out a number, one through six, to indicate the level of engagement.

His team tested the technique and found that subjects who were shown their engagement level while performing a task were able to learn to control their concentration and outperformed control groups while reporting a lower perceived workload.

Narbis wanted to bring this concept to bear on real-life activities and apply the same neurofeedback technology to smart glasses that users could wear while performing any task at all. The glasses would darken as the user became distracted, providing a real-time incentive to stay focused.

The Narbis system uses NASA’s engagement index and the accompanying algorithms, as well as the “dynamic thresholding” of the original technology – that is, the way the level of difficulty varies with the user’s performance.