How do packet losses affect measures of averaged neural signals?

Abstract

Recent advances in implanted device development have enabled chronic streaming of neural data to external devices allowing for long timescale, naturalistic recordings. However, characteristic data losses occur during wireless transmission. Estimates for the duration of these losses are typically uncertain reducing signal quality and impeding analyses. To characterize the effect of these losses on recovery of averaged neural signals, we simulated neural time series data for a typical event-related potential (ERP) experiment. We investigated how the signal duration and the degree of timing uncertainty affected the offset of the ERP, its duration in time, its amplitude, and the ability to resolve small differences corresponding to different task conditions. Simulations showed that long timescale signals were generally robust to the effects of packet losses apart from timing offsets while short timescale signals were significantly delocalized and attenuated. These results provide clarity on the types of signals that can be resolved using these datasets and provide clarity on the restrictions imposed by data losses on typical analyses.