Bionic limbs to directly respond to your nervous system

Since the word 'bionic' was coined by Jack E. Steele in 1958, this fascinating field of science has advanced into an unprecedented propitious epoch. And now continuing on with this 'tradition', scientists at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago’s Center for Bionic Medicine has envisaged a new project, albeit with a conscientious touch. The aim of the project is to create a robotic prosthesis that would be controlled by the person’s own nervous system, and powered in a definitive way, so that it can literally move on its own.

hailey daniswicz bionic leg controlled by the nerv

Volunteering for the project is 20 year old Hailey Daniswicz, who lost her leg due to the effects of bone cancer in 2005. In this process, nine different muscles of her thigh are connected to electrodes, and the resulting biological mechanism is displayed accordingly on a computer screen. With the continuation of this method, the computer will automatically get 'habituated' with user's movement pattern.

bionic leg controlled by the nervous system

So basically the study uses electromyography (electrical signals produced by muscles) and pattern recognition computer software to control the bionic arms. The electrodes will act as antennas for transmission of electric signals from the brain to muscles for movement. The added advantage of this project is that if successful, it will even nullify the requirement of surgery for implantation of additional nerve endings.

Levi Hargrove, a research scientist at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago’s Center for Bionic Medicine, says:

We’re really integrating the machine with the person. The way most prosthetics work now is you have mechanical sensors. You have to push and interact with them. With this, you measure the actual neural intent and have that tell the motor what to do.

Source: Reuters / SlashGear