We’re excited to officially launch NIRxWINGS2 – the next evolution in physiological sensing technology for multimodal fNIRS neuroimaging. Designed in response to direct feedback from our global user community, NIRxWINGS2 brings upgrades in signal quality, flexibility, and mobility to your fNIRS studies.

Whether you're investigating cognitive function, stress and attention in dynamic environments, or designing advanced neuroergonomic paradigms, NIRxWINGS2 is your tool for combined physiological and fNIRS measurements.

In this blog post, you will find some of the features and advancements NIRxWINGS2 offers your research!

Like its predecessor, NIRxWINGS2 is designed to extend the NIRSport2 and comes with sensors for respiration, ExG (e.g., EMG, EOG, ECG), temperature, PPG, and electrodermal activity (EDA/GSR). However, the new universal sensor port offers more flexibility for your research.

Full Customization with the NIRx BioLink

The NIRx BioLink universal sensor port introduces a flexible system that adapts to your research now and in the future.

Mix & match sensors: ExG (e.g., EMG, ECG), respiration, temperature, and EDA
Color-coded sensors for fast, mistake-free setup
Auto-recognition via our Aurora software streamlines configuration
Ready for future sensor types—your research is future-proof!

No matter your study design, you’re in control.

Smarter Sensors, Cleaner Data

With NIRxWINGS2, signal fidelity takes a leap forward. The EDA, respiration, and temperature sensors have been refined to deliver cleaner, more reliable outputs in even the most dynamic settings:

EDA: Redesigned circuit for improved signal quality
Respiration: Inductive sensor belt minimizes motion artifacts
Temperature: Thermistor-based sensor provides real-time responsiveness
Shielded cables reduce cross-talk for high-fidelity signals

Built for the Real World

Research doesn’t always stop at the lab door, so why should your tools? Combining the NIRxWINGS2 + NIRSport2 means compact, lightweight, and wireless solution for fully mobile multimodal recordings:

Wireless connectivity & internal storage
Real-time synchronization of physiology + fNIRS via LSL stream
Robust performance in high-movement, multi-sensory environments
Ideal for studies in sports science, mindfulness, VR, learning, and more

Take your setup into classrooms, clinics, workplaces, or the great outdoors.

See It in Action – Join Our Webinar

Curious how NIRxWINGS2 can elevate your work? Don’t miss our upcoming live webinar, where we’ll showcase:

How to set up your custom configuration with NIRx BioLink
Strategies to improve data quality across modalities
Real use cases from our global research community
Live Q&A with our NIRx expert support team!

📅 Date: May 28th, 2025
⏰ Time: 4-5 pm, GMT + 2
🔗 Register via Zoom

Explaining Variance

In fNIRS recordings, we primarily want to see the signal from the brain. In reality, we also measure non-evoked, systemic activity from the surrounding tissue too (Tachtsidis and Scholkmann, 2016). You can regress out this noise using data from short-channels and physiological sensors. These sensors might include HR, BR, Tonic/Phasic Skin Conductance, Blood Pressure, SpO2 amongst others.

Multi-Modality

Being able to simultaneously measure several global body parameters could enrich your research with more data. It enables you to asses novel mechanisms and concurrent phenomena. A mobile device would allow for naturalistic experiments in complex real-world environments.

Some examples could be: emotional arousal in response to presented stimulus (dos Santos et al 2021), orthostatic hypotension and falls (Mol et al, 2020), cardiac output and respiration (Anh et al, 2016), or concurrent muscle activation (Ortega et al, 2020).

Introducing NIRxWINGS

The NIRxWINGS module for peripheral physiology measurements extends the NIRSport2. Signal processing algorithms can be optimized for artefact rejection (von Lühmann et al, 2019). It enables new experiments and amplifies your datasets with additional biosignal inputs.

Wireless data transfer allows the participant to move freely. Although the device stores data onboard, it also wirelessly streams for real-time display.

Mobililty

With NIRxWINGS, you are able to move outside the lab to conduct systemic physiology augmented fNIRS (SPA-fNIRS). You can access complex, dynamic and multi-sensory real-world environments.

Sensors

Pulse oximetry (PPG)

Heart-rate

Heart-rate variability (HRV),

Oxygen saturation (SpO2),

Respiration,

Temperature,

Galvanic skin response (GSR),

Bipolar signals such as EMG and ECG.

The physiology data from NIRxWINGS coupled with short-channels and motion sensors are highly effective in explaining the error variance in your fNIRS signal.

Check out this page to find more NIRxWINGS features.

See how it works and book a demo with us here

Want to know more about this product? Send us an e-mail at support@nirx.net

References:

Tachtsidis, I., & Scholkmann, F. (2016). False positives and false negatives in functional near-infrared spectroscopy: issues, challenges, and the way forward. Neurophotonics, 3(3), 031405. https://doi.org/10.1117/1.NPh.3.3.031405

**Technical References:**

von Lühmann, A., Boukouvalas, Z., Müller, K. R., & Adalı, T. (2019). A new blind source separation framework for signal analysis and artifact rejection in functional near-infrared spectroscopy. NeuroImage, 200, 72-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.06.021

von Lühmann, A., Li, X., Gilmore, N., Boas, D. A., & Yücel, M. A. (2020). Open Access Multimodal fNIRS Resting State Dataset With and Without Synthetic Hemodynamic Responses. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.579353

**Use Cases**

Useful to identify user attention, stress, and vigilance, to detect and differentiate evoked systemic physiology in fNIRs.

Ahn, S., Nguyen, T., Jang, H., Kim, J. G., & Jun, S. C. (2016). Exploring neuro-physiological correlates of drivers' mental fatigue caused by sleep deprivation using simultaneous EEG, ECG, and fNIRS data. Frontiers in human neuroscience, 10, 219. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2016.00219

Ortega, P., Zhao, T., & Faisal, A. A. (2020). HYGRIP: Full-Stack Characterization of Neurobehavioral Signals (fNIRS, EEG, EMG, Force, and Breathing) During a Bimanual Grip Force Control Task. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.00919

Mol, A., Maier, A. B., van Wezel, R. J., & Meskers, C. G. (2020). Multimodal monitoring of cardiovascular responses to postural changes. Frontiers in physiology, 11, 168. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2020.00168

dos Santos, F. R., Bazán, P. R., Balardin, J. B., de Aratanha, M. A., Rodrigues, M., Lacerda, S., ... & Kozasa, E. H. (2021). Changes in Prefrontal fNIRS Activation and Heart Rate Variability During Self-Compassionate Thinking Related to Stressful Memories. Mindfulness, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-021-01789-0

Introducing NIRxWINGS2: The Next Generation of Physiological Sensing