CPS: Synergy: Collaborative Research: A Signal-Aware-Based Low-Power, Fully Human Implantable Brain-Computer Interface System to Restore Walking after Spinal Cord Injury

脑机接口(BCI)是记录人类脑电波并将其转换为计算机和机器人等外部设备的控制命令的网络物理系统(CPSS)。它们可能会让患有脊髓损伤(SCI)的人承担起对下肢假肢的直接大脑控制，以恢复行走的能力。由于脊髓损伤导致的下肢瘫痪每年仅在美国就导致高达500亿美元的医疗费用，使用BCI控制的下肢假体恢复行走可能会对公共健康产生重大影响。最近的研究结果表明，脊髓损伤导致的截瘫患者可以使用非侵入性的脑机接口恢复基本的行走。虽然令人鼓舞，但这种脑机接口不太可能成为广泛采用的解决方案，因为非侵入性记录的脑波的信号质量较差可能导致不可靠的脑机接口操作。此外，非侵入性脑-机接口系统的安装程序冗长而繁琐是不切实际的。永久植入的BCI CPS可以解决这些问题，但必须克服关键挑战才能实现这一目标，包括消除突出的电子设备和依赖外部计算机进行脑信号处理。这项研究的目标是开发一种完全可植入的BCI CPS的台式版本，能够采集直接从大脑表面记录的皮层电信号，并进行内部分析，以实现对步行机器人步态外骨骼(RGE)的直接大脑控制。BCI CPS将被设计为一种具有革命性自适应功率管理的低功耗系统，以满足未来人类植入所需的严格的热量和电力消耗限制。全面的测量和台式测试将确保BCI CPS的正常运行。最后，该系统将与RGE集成，并将在一小群人类受试者中测试其促进脑控行走的能力。该项目的成功完成将产生广泛的生物工程和科学影响。它将使医疗设备技术发生革命性变化，最大限度地减少电力消耗和热量产生，同时能够执行复杂的操作。这项研究还将有助于加深对人类大脑如何控制行走的理解，这对神经科学家来说一直是一个谜。最后，本研究对S更广泛的影响是促进工科学生和社会各界的教育和终身学习，扩大未被充分代表的群体对工科的参与，提高残疾人的科学素养。将为研究生(本科)提供研究机会。他们的研究结果将被广泛传播，并纳入教学活动。为了鼓励未被充分代表的K-12和社区大学生在STEM领域接受高等教育，并提高残疾人的科学素养，将以现场科学展览和实际脑机接口演示的形式开展外展活动。最近的结果表明，因脊髓损伤而截瘫的人可以使用基于脑电的脑机接口恢复基本行走。虽然令人鼓舞，但这种基于脑电的脑机接口不太可能成为广泛采用的解决方案，因为脑电-S固有的噪声和对伪影的敏感性，可能导致操作不可靠。此外，冗长而乏味的脑电(未)安装程序也是不切实际的。永久植入的BCI CPS可以解决这些问题，但必须克服关键的CPS挑战才能实现这一目标，包括消除突出的电子设备和依赖外部计算机进行神经信号处理。这项研究的目标是实现一个完全可植入的BCI CPS的台式模拟，能够采集高密度(HD)皮层脑电(ECoG)信号，并在内部进行分析，以便于直接大脑控制机器人行走的步态外骨骼(RGE)。BCI CPS将设计为具有革命性自适应电源管理的低功耗模块化系统，以满足未来人体植入所需的严格散热和功耗限制。第一个模块用于HD-ECoG信号的采集。第二个模块将在内部执行优化的BCI算法，并将命令无线传输到RGE进行行走。将通过综合测量进行系统和电路级别的表征。台式测试将确保适当的系统功能和符合生物医学的限制。最后，该系统将与RGE集成，并将在一组人类受试者中测试其促进脑控行走的能力。该项目的成功完成将具有广泛的生物工程和科学影响。它将通过最大限度地减少功耗和散热，同时使复杂的算法能够实时执行，从而使医疗设备技术发生革命性变化。这项研究还将有助于加深对人脑如何控制行走的生理学理解。这项研究将促进工科学生和社区的教育和终身学习，扩大未被充分代表的群体对工程学的参与，并提高残疾人的科学素养。将为本科生提供研究机会。他们的研究结果将被广泛传播，并纳入教学活动。为鼓励代表不足的K-12和社区大学生在STEM领域接受高等教育，并提高残疾人的科学素养，将以现场科学展览和实际BCI演示的形式开展外联活动。

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are cyber-physical systems (CPSs) that record human brain waves and translate them into the control commands for external devices such as computers and robots. They may allow individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) to assume direct brain control of a lower extremity prosthesis to regain the ability to walk. Since the lower extremity paralysis due to SCI leads to as much as $50 billion of health care cost each year in the US alone, the use of a BCI-controlled lower extremity prosthesis to restore walking can have a significant public health impact. Recent results have demonstrated that a person with paraplegia due to SCI can use a non-invasive BCI to regain basic walking. While encouraging, this BCI is unlikely to become a widely adopted solution since the poor signal quality of non-invasively recorded brain waves may lead to unreliable BCI operation. Moreover, lengthy and tedious mounting procedures of the non-invasive BCI systems are impractical. A permanently implantable BCI CPS can address these issues, but critical challenges must be overcome to achieve this goal, including the elimination of protruding electronics and reliance on an external computer for brain signal processing. The goal of this study is to develop a benchtop version of a fully implantable BCI CPS, capable of acquiring electrocorticogram signals, recorded directly from the surface of the brain, and analyzing them internally to enable direct brain control of a robotic gait exoskeleton (RGE) for walking.The BCI CPS will be designed as a low-power system with revolutionary adaptive power management in order to meet stringent heat and power consumption constraints for future human implantation. Comprehensive measurements and benchtop tests will ensure proper function of BCI CPS. Finally, the system will be integrated with an RGE, and its ability to facilitate brain-controlled walking will be tested in a small group of human subjects. The successful completion of this project will have broad bioengineering and scientific impact. It will revolutionize medical device technology by minimizing power consumption and heat production while enabling complex operations to be performed. The study will also help deepen the understanding of how the human brain controls walking, which has long been a mystery to neuroscientists. Finally, this study?s broader impact is to promote education and lifelong learning in engineering students and the community, broaden the participation of underrepresented groups in engineering, and increase the scientific literacy of persons with disabilities. Research opportunities will be provided to (under-)graduate students. Their findings will be broadly disseminated and integrated into teaching activities. To inspire underrepresented K-12 and community college students to pursue higher education in STEM fields, and to increase the scientific literacy of persons with disabilities, outreach activities will be undertaken in the form of live scientific exhibits and actual BCI demonstrations.Recent results have demonstrated that a person with paraplegia due to SCI can use an electroencephalogram (EEG)-based BCI to regain basic walking. While encouraging, this EEG-based BCI is unlikely to become a widely adopted solution due to EEG?s inherent noise and susceptibility to artifacts, which may lead to unreliable operation. Also, lengthy and tedious EEG (un-)mounting procedures are impractical. A permanently implantable BCI CPS can address these issues, but critical CPS challenges must be overcome to achieve this goal, including the elimination of protruding electronics and reliance on an external computer for neural signal processing. The goal of this study is to implement a benchtop analogue of a fully implantable BCI CPS, capable of acquiring high-density (HD) electrocorticogram (ECoG) signals, and analyzing them internally to facilitate direct brain control of a robotic gait exoskeleton (RGE) for walking. The BCI CPS will be designed as a low-power modular system with revolutionary adaptive power management in order to meet stringent heat dissipation and power consumption constraints for future human implantation. The first module will be used for acquisition of HD-ECoG signals. The second module will internally execute optimized BCI algorithms and wirelessly transmit commands to an RGE for walking. System and circuit-level characterizations will be conducted through comprehensive measurements. Benchtop tests will ensure the proper system function and conformity to biomedical constraints. Finally, the system will be integrated with an RGE, and its ability to facilitate brain-controlled walking will be tested in a group of human subjects.The successful completion of this project will have broad bioengineering and scientific impact. It will revolutionize medical device technology by minimizing power consumption and heat dissipation while enabling complex algorithms to be executed in real time. The study will also help deepen the physiological understanding of how the human brain controls walking. This study will promote education and lifelong learning in engineering students and the community, broaden the participation of underrepresented groups in engineering, and increase the scientific literacy of persons with disabilities. Research opportunities will be provided to under-graduate students. Their findings will be broadly disseminated and integrated into teaching activities. To inspire underrepresented K-12 and community college students to pursue higher education in STEM fields, and to increase the scientific literacy of persons with disabilities, outreach activities will be undertaken in the form of live scientific exhibits and actual BCI demonstrations.