A NEW TIDE IN PROSTHETICS
In the present world, not everyone is blessed with all the features of the human body, and a few, unfortunately, lose some of their limbs due to unforeseen circumstances. The primary goal of the prosthesis industry is to ensure a prosthetic that not only closely mimics the functioning of an ingenious limb, but also provides the desired level of comfort and confidence for the disabled to see themselves as any other ordinary person. The main subsidiary goal is also to make the prosthetic as cheap as possible so that, majority of people can afford it.
The brain-controlled prosthesis is one of the most modern technologies in the field, which closely resembles the functioning of a real limb. Bionic Arms is one similar feature with an aim for a sensation of touch along with all the other characteristics. An implant gets attached inside the bone of the remaining limb via osseointegration, which essentially extends into the skeleton to where the prosthetic arm is attached.
The features of the same are-
- A direct attachment to a person’s nerves, muscles, and skeleton.
- It is controlled by the brain and can deliver sensations that are perceived by the user as arising from the missing hand.
- It is self-contained; all essentials (electronics) required are contained within the prosthesis.
- It is relatively safe. Patients can use it for a long period (7 years) and can be used for all of their day-to-day activities.
- It has been able to provide not only inversion and eversion but also dorsiflexion.
One of the biggest challenges in mind-controlled prosthetics is tapping into strong and stable nerve signals to feed the bionic limb. Some research groups use the brain as the primary source. This is essentially useful when working with people who suffer from paralysis, but it can be invasive and high-risk.
For people with amputations, peripheral nerves were considered, but they hadn’t yet led to a long-term solution for a couple of reasons, like the nerve signals they carry are weak, and other approaches to pick up signals involve probes that eavesdropped by force. These lead to scar tissue, which damages the already faint signal over time.
The University of Michigan team came up with a technique. They wrapped the small muscle grafts around the nerve endings within the participants’ arms. The regenerative peripheral nerve interfaces(RPNIs) offer the damaged nerves a new tissue to hold on to it. This can prevent the growth of nerve masses (neuromas) that lead to limb pain. The muscle grafts amplify the nerve signals. Patients have electrodes implanted in their muscle grafts, and electrodes were able to record these nerve signals and pass them on to a prosthetic hand in real-time with an AI(Artificial Intelligence) algorithm.
For Example, if a person wants to move a finger, the electrodes pick up the signal from the brain and deliver it to the prosthetic limb via an AI algorithm.
Final Thoughts
The Brain controlled Prosthetics have been one of the most significant innovations which provided amputees with an option of sensation and a real limb operative function. Significant Developments are being made to accommodate all kinds of motion and to reduce the cost. As Joe Hamilton, one of the study participants who had unfortunately lost his arm in a firecracker incident in 2013 aptly said, “It’s like you have a hand again”.
Bibliography and References:
- https://news.umich.edu/its-like-you-have-a-hand-again-an-ultra-precise-mind-controlled-prosthetic/
- https://www.healthline.com/health-news/future-prosthetics-might-be-this-mind-controlled-bionic-arm#How-the-technology-works-compared-with-conventional-prostheses
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200430110321.htm
- https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0896627306007264-gr1.jpg
- https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0896627306007264-gr1.jpg
- https://hips.hearstapps.com/pop.h-cdn.co/assets/15/41/1444245427-prosthetics-980.jpg
SAE-NITK 
