Elon Musk's brain implant company Neuralink announced on Tuesday that it is launching research to test its implant for a new use: to allow a person to control a robotic arm using only their thoughts, UNN writes, citing Wired.
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"We are pleased to announce the approval and launch of a new feasibility study to extend BCI control with the N1 implant to the investigational robotic arm," Neuralink said in a post on the social media platform Mask X.
BCI, or brain-computer interface, is a system that allows a person to directly control external devices using brain waves. It works by reading and decoding predictable movement signals from neurons. The BCI Neuralink includes a coin-sized device called the N1, which is surgically implanted into the brain by a robot. The company is currently evaluating the safety of its BCI, as well as its ability to control a computer in people with paralysis.
On social media earlier this year, Neuralink demonstrated that its BCI could be used to control a computer cursor. In a video on X, study participant Noland Arbeau demonstrated the use of a Neuralink device to play chess and other games on a computer.
The new robotic arm study, according to Neuralink's post on X, "will allow cross-registration of participants from the ongoing PRIME study."
Brian Dekleva, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh's Rehab Neural Engineering Labs, says the biggest challenge in achieving BCI control over a robotic arm is the need for calibration. "The more complex the control, the more degrees of freedom you add, the longer it will take to calibrate," he says. - "People don't want to sit and do a half-hour calibration at the beginning of every day so they can use their device.
If this limitation can be overcome, BCIs that control robots will allow people with paralysis to perform simple daily tasks without assistance, the publication notes.
