This week in our news roundup: the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory explain the engineering behind the Revolutionizing Prosthetics program; research from the TOBI research initiative could help with patient rehabilitation; combining traditional gaming controls with brain computer interfacing has great potential for the future of virtual reality gaming
1//60 Minutes features brainwave-controlled robotics from the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
A recent segment on 60 Minutes featured Robo Sally, an unassuming robot from the John Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL). Robo Sally is just one example of some breakthrough work being done at APL in upper body prosthetics controlled by brain or muscle signals. The work, as part of the Revolutionizing Prosthetics program, was also featured in the John Hopkins student paper The News-Letter.
The prosthetic limbs being developed at APL, the same used in Robo Sally and shown on 60 Minutes, have more than 22 ranges of motion, sensory feedback on touch, and the ability to lift up to 20 pounds. A prosthetic arm would weigh the same as a real arm (9 pounds), allowing amputees more control, dexterity, and accuracy than any other brainwave-controlled prosthetic to date. Here’s a demonstration of some of the innovations from the program:
2// Research from the TOBI project could help with patient rehabilitation
The research project TOBI (Tools for Brain Computer Interaction) was a 4-year initiative funded by the European Commission in partnership with a variety of universities and research labs. TOBI commenced with a weekend workshop January 23rd- 25th, and announced new research on how brain computer interfaces are being used to help stimulate and rehabilitate muscles after a stroke. In the video below, researchers talk about the benefits of this new technique and provide insight into some future clinical applications
3// Combining BCI controls and virtual reality in gaming
A study was released this week that talks about the potential to combine brain computer interface control with traditional input options in virtual reality games. Think joysticks, highly immersive heads-up displays, and other types of game controllers. The results of the study found that use of a traditional game control did not have a negative impact on performance while using a BCI.
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The InteraXon news roundup is published weekly, every Sunday night, to recap trends and breaking news in the world of brain computer interfaces and thought controlled computing. Do you have a story you’d like to submit or share? Contact us at community@interaxon.ca (subject line “News Story”) or leave a comment here.
