Advancing Prosthetics
From: NASA Tech Briefs Insider - 11/04/2010

Injured soldiers and amputees may soon benefit from advanced prosthetics
based on the refinement of two-way fiber optic communication between
prosthetic limbs and peripheral nerves. The Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA) is funding the Neurophotonics Research Center at
Southern Methodist University, as part of its Centers in Integrated Photonics
Engineering Research (CIPhER) project, which aims to improve the lives of
military amputees returning from war in Iraq and Afghanistan.  

The Neurophotonics Research Center is working to develop a link compatible
with living tissue that will connect powerful computer technologies to the
human nervous system through hundreds or thousands of sensors embedded in a
single fiber. Unlike experimental electronic nerve interfaces made of metal,
fiber optic technology would not be rejected or destroyed by the body's
immune system.  

Researchers also envision man-to-machine applications that extend beyond
prosthetics, leading to medical breakthroughs like brain implants for the
control of tremors, neuro-modulators for chronic pain management, and
implants for patients with spinal cord injuries. 

Read the entire article at:
http://blog.smu.edu/research/2010/09/optical_interface_for_prosthet.html

Links:
SMU-led research center aims to connect brain signals to robotic limbs
http://www.smu.edu/News/2010/research-artificial-limbs-08sept2010.aspx

SMU Lyle School of Engineering
http://www.smu.edu/lyle.aspx

New initiative to develop a system that controls prosthetic limbs naturally
http://www.ecnmag.com/News/2010/11/New-initiative-to-develop-a-system-that-controls-prosthetic-limbs-naturally/