Randy Segal wins US patent for cognitive signal detector

Randy Segal has been awarded a US patent for a system that detects cognitive entrainment signals in digital media. The patent covers analysis of both audio and visual patterns.

Segal, an independent inventor based in Key Largo, said US Patent No. 12659418 relates to a system and method for multi-modal detection of cognitive entrainment signals. He said he began the project in December 2025 and developed the invention, software engine, iOS application and supporting web platform himself with the help of artificial intelligence tools.

The patented system is designed to analyse frequency data in sound and images and generate a threat assessment when it identifies patterns associated with brainwave entrainment ranges. Segal said the work addresses concerns about whether frequency-based material could influence viewers without their awareness.

The technology shares some similarities with the Harding Test, a framework broadcasters use to detect photosensitive epilepsy triggers caused mainly by rapid visual flashes in television content. Segal said his system differs because it is intended to monitor both audio and visual streams in real time before content reaches the user.

According to Segal, the system is built to operate at the operating system level and continuously monitor live and recorded media. He said it covers brainwave entrainment frequencies from 0.5 Hz to above 30 Hz and is intended for licensing into platform infrastructure.

The underlying signal engine was calibrated by Florida Standards Labouratory, which Segal described as an ISO/IEC 17025-accredited facility, with NIST-traceable results. He said the calibration is intended to support the technical basis of the system's measurements.

Artificial intelligence was central to the project, Segal said, because he had no coding background and had not previously filed a patent. He said AI helped him develop the signal engine, structure the patent claims, build the iOS app and design the backend platform.

His account reflects a growing pattern in which individuals outside traditional engineering teams use generative AI tools to produce software and technical documentation. It also highlights how solo founders are increasingly using AI in place of larger technical staffs to develop patentable inventions.

Consumer app

The technology is already being used in FreqCheck, an iPhone and iPad application that Segal said is live for consumers. He described the app as offering users real-time audio frequency awareness.

In addition to the granted patent, Segal said the wider intellectual property portfolio includes a continuation patent application pending under number 19/660,467. He also said the software codebase and application architecture are covered by registered federal copyright protection.

The announcement places the invention in a category that touches on content safety, digital health and device-level monitoring. While photosensitive epilepsy screening has long relied on established testing practices, systems aimed at identifying potential cognitive entrainment signals remain less familiar in mainstream consumer technology.

Questions remain about how device makers, platforms and regulators would assess such systems if they were deployed more broadly. Issues including false positives, standards for defining harmful patterns and the limits of real-time media scanning would likely shape commercial adoption.

Segal described the patent as a milestone in a project that moved from concept to launch in roughly six months. "I built this on my own, with AI as my partner, because I believe people deserve tools that can verify what they're being exposed to," said Segal, Sole Inventor and Owner, Abundance Sea.

He added that the process showed what an individual could do with AI assistance despite lacking a formal technical background. "I'm 63, I'd never coded or filed a patent before, and I started this last December. I built all of it myself; the system, the app, and the website with AI as my partner, and I think that should give a lot of people hope about what they can still create. Issuing the patent is an important step, and I'm now exploring the best opportunity to bring it forward," Segal said.