Although completely self-driving cars have yet to enter common use, we are already seeing semi-autonomous driving assistance technologies. Nissan announced one such system this Wednesday, which determines what the driver is about to do, a split-second before they actually do it. It's known as Brain-to-Vehicle, or B2V, technology.
In order for the system to work – in its current prototype form, at least – the driver has to be wearing a headset equipped with electrodes that measure and "decode" their brain's motor cortex activity.
Based on this data, the system is reportedly able to detect signs that the driver is about to initiate sudden movements such as turning the steering wheel or hitting the brake. It then essentially beats them to the punch, by initiating those actions itself.
It does so about 0.2 to 0.5 seconds faster than the driver. Although that's enough to make a big difference in an emergency situation, Nissan claims that the "taking over" effect is largely imperceptible.
The B2V system will be demonstrated on a driving simulator, next week at CES in Las Vegas.
There's more information in the following video.
Source: Nissan