Clipping of signal and EEG distortions

Projects Discussion and Showcase Science and Measurement
2

  1. Passing current into the human body is potentially a dangerous thing to do. Passing current to the brain probably even more so.

  2. There are strict medical safety and isolation standards to ensure that an EEG, ECG or anything else connected to the human body cannot deliver a potentially dangerous shock, even when electronic components fail. Don't even think about doing this unless you are familiar with these standards, and the person designing the equipment has experience in meeting them.

  3. The problem you describe is commonplace in radar, ultrasonic ranging and similar systems, which have to send a powerful pulse through a transducer and then pick up a weak return signal from it. One solution is to use an amplifier that is tolerant of being overloaded with large inputs and can recover from them quickly, together with an electronic switch between the transducer and the amplifier that cuts off most of the signal going to the amplifier when the transducer is being driven.