For ERP and Behavioral testing applications we offer a variety of manual response pads that are compatible with both SuperLab, Presentation, and a variety of other commercial/freeware stimulus delivery software programs.  These response boxes use a state of the art, low-power microcontroller to detect button presses, encode them, and send them to the serial port.  Switch debouncing is performed by the microcontroller, guarenteeing that each button-press produces only one signal.

Here are some of the features of the RB Series response boxes:

  • USB interface – compatible with Windows and Mac OS.  Yes, it is even compatible with Linux though we cannot provide support to Linux Users.
  • Replacable key tops – customize the response pads to any experiment
  • Built-in reaction time measurement – get peace of mind with a hardware timer that guarentees 1 millisecond resolution.  Your computer is now free to perform any task, however complex (e.g. playing a movie) while the response pad takes care of timing.
  • Universal compatibility -The RB series response pads are compatible with E-Prime, Presentation, SuperLab, and other programs.
  • No batteries or A/C adapter required – Take them anywhere, they even work on a battery operated laptop.
  • Accessory connector – you now have 6 general purpose TTL lines – save on the cost of an I/O card (SuperLab 3.0 will be needed to take advantage of this feature)
  • Upgradeable firmware – your response pad will never be obsolete.  The firmware (software inside the pad) can be upgraded via a simple download.

Customizable Key Tops
With the RB-x30 models, Cedrus introduces removable key tops on all models. The tops can be removed without any tool. Every model includes red, green, blue, yellow, and clear tops.
This feature gives you, the investigator, new ways to customize the response pad for your particular experiment. Examples include using all four colored tops in a Stroop experiment, or use the red and green tops to simplify instructions to participants, e.g. “press the green key if the two faces are the same or red if they are not”.

You can even display your instructions, literally, on the response pad. Using your printer, you can print any text or graphic, on plain white or colored paper, and insert it under a clear top.
The top of every key on every RB model can be removed and replaced except for the round button on the RB-540.

Built-in Timing Facilities
The RB-x40 response pads are XID devices, or eXperimental Interface Devices. This technology was originally developed for the high end Lumina fMRI response pads but is now included in the RB Series pads as well.

Being an XID device means that your response pad can measure the participant’s reaction in hardware and then report a time stamped response to the computer. This capability relieves the computer to provide computationally intensive trials such as movies without worrying about maintaining accurate timing.

XID devices provide timing and other facilities, e.g. a long-cycle timer that can be polled at anytime by the computer, test procedures for measuring transmission delays due to the computer’s operating system, support for an Accessory Connector (see below), and so forth.
RB Series Accessory Connector: Features, In Plain English

The Accessory Connector on the back of the RB Series response pads provides up to six highly configurable I/O (input/output) lines that can be used to send a signal to an external device or to accept input from external sources.

Note: The features described below will require SuperLab 3.0 before you can take advantage of them.

The RB Series response pads sport an Accessory Connector that can be configured in many ways and entirely via software. It can function in one of two modes: Reflective or General Purpose.

When in Reflective Mode, the pins on the Accessory Connector reflect the status of the response pad’s push buttons. The following options are offered:

 

Reflective Mode When a Push Button is Pressed…
Continuous …the corresponding pin on the Accessory Connector goes high and stays high until the push button is released.
Single Pulse Mode …a single pulse is sent on the corresponding pin. The pulse’s duration can be adjusted. This mode works well with many ERP systems.
Double Pulse Mode …a pulse is sent on the corresponding pin; when the push button is released, a second pulse is sent.

 

Two additional features are available when in Reflective Mode:

  • A pin on the Accessory Connector provides an “OR” output. It goes high when any push button is pressed.
  • The logic of the output pins can be set to active high or active low.

When in General Purpose Mode:

  • The Accessory Connector can be used for general purpose input/output (I/O) operations.
  • Any I/O lines can be used for either input or output.
  • Lines selected for input can be pulled high or pulled low, entirely via software — no exterior resistors needed.
  • For input lines, inputs are time stamped.