A new method for the estimation of the onset of the lateralized readiness potential (LRP)

The aim of this work was to develop a new method for the estimation of the onset of the lateralized readiness potential (LRP). In contrast to the known methods that use only restricted data segments for estimation, the proposed segmented regression (SR) method employs the LRP trace from the stimulus onset to the LRP peak. Comparison of the SR with two other methods, done with both simulated and real data, shows that the SR method yields a relatively unbiased absolute onset time that is not affected by different LRP gradients before and after the onset. Moreover, the SR estimator proved to be quite sensitive to subtle onset differences across conditions.