Lucid Dreamers Control a Virtual Car in REMspace Study

Emerging research suggests that linking our dream worlds with conscious reality may be entirely achievable.

A new study from three researchers at US neurotechnology company REMspace indicates that, with some training, certain people may be able to respond to nearby devices while lucid dreaming.

Lucid dreaming is the ability to realise that you are dreaming while the dream is still happening. Although it is a skill that can be learned, around half of people have experienced the phenomenon spontaneously.

Scientifically verified for the first time in 1975, lucid dreaming has fascinated researchers ever since. One of its most intriguing potential applications has now been tested.

Lucid dreaming and virtual driving

In a basic experiment, five experienced lucid dreamers, two of whom were researchers, controlled a virtual avatar while dreaming. They reacted to LED cues shone through their closed eyelids.

During rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the participants controlled a virtual Cybertruck. By contracting muscles in their limbs, they deliberately steered around obstacles indicated by bright flashes of light.

The participants were not actually dreaming that they were driving. Even so, the ability to respond to signals while otherwise asleep could create new ways to bridge dream states and the waking world.

Most muscles are largely paralysed during REM sleep, yet lucid dreamers can still make minute contractions. REMspace created specialist equipment capable of detecting tiny movements in the arms and legs during sleep.

Before attempting to drive cars in their dreams, however, the participants first had to learn how to respond when awake.

They were taught to direct a virtual car displayed on a screen while keeping their eyes closed. Whenever the vehicle needed to turn to avoid an obstacle, two lights were projected onto the participants' closed eyes.

Twitching the left or right arm turned the virtual car in the corresponding direction. Tensing both legs, meanwhile, put the pedal to the metal.

The two lights were turned off after an obstacle had been successfully avoided.

How REMspace tested the dream controls

Once participants understood the system, they attempted it while asleep. Electrodes placed on their skulls confirmed when they had entered REM sleep.

While dreaming, they signalled that they were ready to drive by making at least three successive left-to-right eye movements.

The car's engines were then started.

"After the avatar was activated, participants received obstacle signals immediately if there were any obstacles in front of the object," explain researchers at REMspace in a peer-reviewed paper.

"The participants needed to run, squat, or tense their quadriceps and then make turns using their arms if an obstacle appeared."

After waking the following day, participants were required to describe their experience verbally, including how they had responded to the task while asleep.

In total, every participant attempted to drive the virtual car, completing 28 appropriate turns altogether.

Yet the task proved difficult, even for seasoned lucid dreamers.

One participant entered a lucid dream five times over three nights, but tried to drive the car on only two occasions. During the first attempt, they made two controlled turns, drove straight for a short time and then woke up. On the second, they performed several controlled turns as well as a few unnecessary ones, before the light flashes woke them.

Another participant completed 17 controlled turns to avoid virtual obstacles during sleep. On one occasion, however, their legs became numb and they were unable to contract their muscles.

Potential for smart homes and physical devices

REMspace researchers believe that, with suitable instruction, most people could potentially be trained to perform similar tasks. In another recent study, the same team trained one lucid dreamer to twitch muscles in order to issue 'voice commands' to their smart home. While asleep, they operated lights, an electric kettle and a radio.

The latest study offers a possible proof of concept that lucid dreamers can "receive feedback" about a system's status and "react to it appropriately."

"Two-way interaction with a computer from dreams opens up a whole area of new technologies," REMspace founder Michael Raduga, who led the experiment, says in a release.

"Now, these developments are crude, but soon they will change the idea of human capabilities."

For a start, the researchers say their body sensors need improving, as they did not always register the subtle twitches lucid dreamers reported trying to make.

With further development and more related research, though, the team believes it could "[unite] dreams and the physical realm". Repeating the experiments with larger, more independent research teams could also help establish the directions future studies might take.

"The next step is to demonstrate the two-way control of physical objects (e.g., robots, cars, or drones)," the researchers at REMspace conclude.

"Functions of smart homes could also be conveniently controlled from [lucid dreams]."

Imagine making some coffee for the morning while you sleep…

The study will be published in the International Journal of Dream Research.