New Findings from Mind-Controlled Robot Arm Project Published
From: Wireless Design & Development - 12/17/2014

Using mind control, woman with quadriplegia moves robot arm and hand in '10D'.

In another demonstration that brain-computer interface technology has the
potential to improve the function and quality of life of those unable to use
their own arms, a woman with quadriplegia shaped the almost human hand of a
robot arm with just her thoughts to pick up big and small boxes, a ball, an
oddly shaped rock, and fat and skinny tubes.

The findings by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of
Medicine, published in the Journal of Neural Engineering, describe, for the
first time, 10-degree brain control of a prosthetic device in which the trial
participant used the arm and hand to reach, grasp, and place a variety of
objects.

In February 2012, small electrode grids with 96 tiny contact points each were
surgically implanted in the regions of trial participant Jan Scheuermann's
brain that would normally control her right arm and hand movement.

Each electrode point picked up signals from an individual neuron, which were
then relayed to a computer to identify the firing patterns associated with
particular observed or imagined movements, such as raising or lowering the
arm, or turning the wrist. That "mind-reading" was used to direct the
movements of a prosthetic arm developed by Johns Hopkins Applied Physics
Laboratory.

Within a week of the surgery, Ms. Scheuermann could reach in and out, left
and right, and up and down with the arm to achieve 3D control, and before
three months had passed, she also could flex the wrist back and forth, move
it from side to side and rotate it clockwise and counter-clockwise, as well
as grip objects, adding up to 7D control. 

Read the entire article at:
http://www.wirelessdesignmag.com/news/2014/12/new-findings-mind-controlled-robot-arm-project-published
http://www.ecnmag.com/news/2014/12/new-findings-mind-controlled-robot-arm-project

Links:
Sensor Uses Radio Waves to Detect Subtle Changes in Pressure
http://www.wirelessdesignmag.com/news/2014/10/sensor-uses-radio-waves-detect-subtle-changes-pressure

10-Degree Brain Control of a Prosthetic Device
http://www.wirelessdesignmag.com/news/2014/12/photos-day-10-degree-brain-control-prosthetic-device

Thumbs-Up for Mind-Controlled Robotic Arm
http://www.biosciencetechnology.com/news/2014/12/thumbs-mind-controlled-robotic-arm

Woman with Quadriplegia Lifts Objects Using Mind Controlled Robotic Arm
http://www.roboticstrends.com/service_healthcare/article/woman_with_quadriplegia_lifts_objects_using_mind_controlled_robotic_arm

Robot Arm Prosthetic Controlled by the Brain
http://www.mdtmag.com/news/2014/12/robot-arm-prosthetic-controlled-brain