Sony Working on Video Game Method to Detect ADHD, Other Disorders
Sony is working on patenting a method that uses video games to detect ADHD and other disorders like bipolar, depression, and OCD. Using video games to diagnose psychiatric disorders might seem like a stretch, but the method is based on previous research linking eye perception and disorders like ADHD.
The technology is based on the concept of binocular rivalry, which is something that happens when the left and right eyes are seeing different images. When this happens, a person's dominant eye will switch rapidly, going back and forth between eyes about every 0.5 seconds, which means the dominant image they're seeing will also change. Studies have found that people with ADHD will have the switch much slower than average, and that slow switch times can also potentially be a sign of depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism, and schizophrenia.
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Sony has taken this idea and put it in the context of gaming. Instead of showing people random images during a test, it has people play a video game designed to cause binocular rivalry. It can then measure how quickly the person's dominant eye changes, which could then potentially help diagnose the person being tested.
The patent specifically mentions the benefits the method would have for diagnosing children. Current diagnostic tests are often inconvenient or uncomfortable for the person being assessed, especially for children. Many of the people being tested for ADHD, autism, and some other disorders are children, and Sony hopes to create a test that works well for them. This is not the first patent it has filed regarding the health and safety of children, having also filed a patent for smart parental controls
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