Tripolar Concentric Ring Electrodes (TCREs) for Brain Computer Interface

摘要：近200万美国人，以及全世界更多的人，患有由神经肌肉损伤引起的严重运动障碍，如肌萎缩侧索硬化症(ALS)、脑干中风、脑瘫和脊髓损伤(SCI)。脑机接口(BCI)为那些不能使用或有限使用肌肉，但认知完好的人提供了一种交流和控制的替代方案。与需要手术植入的脑机接口相比，基于无创脑电的脑机接口具有明显的临床优势，但它们存在空间分辨率低和信噪比低的问题，这是一个关键缺点。研究人员试图开发一种新的电极技术--三极同心圆环电极(TCRE)--以显著提高基于脑电信号的BCI的空间分辨率、信噪比，从而提高通信传输速率(比特率)，并减少训练时间。以前改进基于脑电信号的BCI的尝试主要依赖于信号处理技术，而没有解决盘电极的限制，导致最好的次优结果。取而代之的是，研究人员将专注于改善电极配置，这是一种新的途径，以改善脑电，从而提高脑机接口的性能。这项工作的动机是TCRE相对于圆盘电极的优越特性，这一点得到了初步结果的有力支持。为了达到这一研究目标，本研究拟通过计算机模拟和对健康人和脊髓损伤患者的测试，系统地确定TCREs对脑机接口的益处和实用性。通过大学与临床的合作，研究人员将有机会接触到足够数量的脊髓损伤患者和该技术的其他潜在最终用户。临床协作提供了一个简化的机制，有助于将研究成果转化为实践。拟议的项目还服务于一个教育目标，即招聘和培训来自不同背景的新一代科学家，他们能够在多个科学领域之间建立联系。智能优点：1.通过使用独特的TCRE而不是传统的盘状电极，研究人员正在采用一种创新的方法来解决基于脑电的脑机接口的严重缺陷。2.首次将重点放在改变电极设计上，以提高脑电，从而提高脑机接口的性能。3.所采用的方法的一个关键临床好处是它是非侵入性的，大大降低了与需要外科植入的脑机接口系统相关的风险和成本。4.研究本身所产生的知识和技术将：(A)大大提高脑机接口和脑电领域的知识水平；(B)超越脑机接口领域，为一般了解大脑活动和神经障碍提供强有力的工具；(C)在帮助运动障碍者的技术的广阔空间中具有广泛的适用性。更广泛的影响：1.这项工作将通过3种方式加强研究和教育的基础设施：(1)建立跨工程领域和大学的合作，(2)与退伍军人医学中心和一家地区医院建立临床合作，以及(3)在本地学校整合K-8教育。2.拟议的工作是高度跨学科的，架起了生物医学工程、电气工程、计算机科学和神经科学的桥梁。这种广度增强了从代表性不足的群体中招收学生的能力。3.残疾研究生和本科生以及来自代表性不足群体的学生将共同努力，在学术和临床环境中获得尖端研究经验。4.与当地少数民族学校开展的外联项目将为年轻的少数民族学生(3至8年级)提供直接参与研究实验的机会。5.与“学生争取更无障碍校园”建立了合作关系，以扩大残疾学生的参与，并提高对社区中帮助残疾人的研究的认识。

0933596BesioSummary: Nearly two million people in the U.S., and many more worldwide, suffer from severe motor disabilities brought on by neuromuscular impairments, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), brainstem stroke, cerebral palsy, and spinal cord injury (SCI). A Brain Computer Interface (BCI) provides those persons who cannot use or have limited use of their muscles but are cognitively intact with an alternative for communication and control. Noninvasive electroencephalography (EEG) based BCIs have obvious clinical benefits over BCI systems that require surgeries for implantation, but they suffer from poor spatial resolution and low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), a critical drawback. The investigators seek to develop a new electrode technology - tripolar concentric ring electrodes (TCREs) - to significantly increase the spatial resolution, SNR, and consequently the communication transfer rate (bit rate) and decrease the training time of EEG based BCIs. Previous attempts to improve EEG based BCIs primarily depended on signal processing techniques without addressing the limitations of the disc electrode, resulting in at best suboptimal outcome. Instead, the investigators will focus on improving the electrode configuration, a new path, to improve EEG and consequently the performance of BCI. The motivation of this work is the superior characteristics of TCREs over disc electrodes, which are strongly supported by preliminary results. To achieve the research objective, experiments are proposed to systematically establish the benefits and practicality of TCREs for BCI through both computer modeling and tests on healthy and SCI persons. Through the university-clinical collaboration, the investigators will have access to a sufficient number of SCI patients and other potential end-users of the technology. The clinical collaboration provides a streamlined mechanism which will facilitate the translation of the research outcomes to practice. The proposed project also serves an education objective of recruiting and training a new generation of scientists from diverse backgrounds who are capable of interfacing between multiple scientific fields. Intellectual Merit: 1. By using unique TCREs rather than conventional disc electrodes, the investigator is taking an innovative approach to address the critical drawbacks of EEG based BCI. 2. For the first time, the effort will be focused on transforming the electrode design to enhance EEG and consequently the performance of BCI. 3. A critical clinical benefit of the approach taken is that it is noninvasive, substantially reducing the risks and costs associated with BCI systems that require surgical implantation. 4. The knowledge and technology resulting from the research itself will (a) significantly enhance the state of knowledge in the field of BCI and EEG; (b) above and beyond the field of BCI, provide a powerful tool for understanding brain activity and neural disorders in general; and (c) have extensive applicability in the broad space of technologies to aid persons with motor impairments. Broader Impacts: 1. This work will strengthen the infrastructure for research and education in 3 ways: (1) instituting collaboration across engineering fields and universities, (2) establishing clinical collaboration with VA medical center and a regional hospital, and (3) integrating K-8 education at a Native school. 2. The proposed work is highly interdisciplinary and bridges Biomedical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and Neuroscience. The ability to recruit students from underrepresented groups is enhanced by this breadth. 3. Graduate and undergraduate students with disabilities and from underrepresented groups will work jointly and gain cutting edge research experience in both academic and clinical settings. 4. An outreach project with a local minority school will provide young minority students (3~8 grade) the opportunity to directly participate in research experiments. 5. Collaboration is established with "Students for a More Accessible Campus" (SFAMAC) to broaden the participation of students with disabilities and raise awareness for research to aid persons with disabilities in the community.