Thought-controlled prosthetics
Scientists discover non-surgical means for mind-controlled prosthetics
Scientists in the US have learned to "read" hand movements using Electroencephalography (EEG), which measures electrical activity through the scalp, paving the way for thought-controlled prosthetics without the need for brain surgery.
Trent Bradberry and colleagues at the University of Maryland, College Park used EEG to measure the brain activity of five volunteers as they moved their hands in three dimensions, and also recorded the movement detected by motion sensors attached to the volunteers' hands. They then correlated the two sets of readings to create a mathematical model that converts one into the other.
If EEG can be used to monitor complex hand movements, it may also be able to be used to control a prosthetic arm. Previously, only brain implants have been successful in controlling prosthetic arms through thought. Matt Nagle, paralysed from the neck down due to knife injuries, can - through a microchip and 96 protruding electrodes implanted into the part of his brain that control movement - deftly move a prosthetic hand. However, complex surgery such as this carries the risk of infection and brain damage, whereas EEG could avoid invasive and dangerous brain-surgery.
Trent Bradberry believes the research has the potential to dramatically improve the lives for lives of the paralysed.
"We know that brain activity is similar during actual and imagined movements, so we expect our approach to be feasible in this respect," he told Sideways News. "We are currently preparing to run pilot studies to investigate the 3D, real-time control of a cursor through brain activity alone. If our studies are successful, this could ultimately result in devices that could be controlled by the paralysed."
