CHS: Medium: A Bi-directional Neural Interface for Bionic Prosthetic Legs

当人们失去下肢时，他们依靠假肢恢复日常生活中的基本活动能力。 但是大多数现代机器人假肢都是自主操作的，不与用户直接通信，这限制了这些辅助设备的功能和多功能性。 该项目将开发一种新型的双向神经机器接口，使下肢截肢者能够直观自然地操作和感知他们的假肢。 项目成果将通过改善下肢截肢患者的活动性和稳定性、平衡信心和整体生活质量，同时减轻幻痛，产生深远的社会影响。 从长远来看，这项研究所创造的技术可能会导致假肢以外的医疗辅助设备商业开发的范式转变。 此外，神经和康复工程专业的本科生和研究生将作为研究团队的成员接受培训，和K-12学生的代表性不足的群体将通过教育和外展活动参与。这项研究将开发一种新的非侵入性和双向神经机接口（NMI）仿生假肢踝关节，使机器人假肢和他们的用户的无缝集成，以提高机动性和稳定性。 该项目将包括三个主要方面：高密度经皮神经刺激的研究和新的编码算法，用于唤起截肢脚的感觉错觉（感觉界面）;基于机器学习和神经生理学建模方法开发新型EMG解码算法，用于假肢踝关节的连续神经控制（运动接口）;以及双向NMI的设计和制造，其组合了前述感觉和运动接口两者以实现假体踝在用户内的具体整合。 NMI原型将在进行日常生活中常见的各种活动时对胫骨截肢患者进行验证。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

When individuals lose a lower limb, they rely on a prosthesis to restore their basic mobility in daily living. But most modern robotic prosthetic legs operate autonomously, without direct communication with the user, which limits the functionality and versatility of these assistive devices. This project will develop a novel bi-directional neural-machine interface that enables individuals with lower limb amputations to operate and sense their prosthetic leg intuitively and naturally. Project outcomes will have profound societal impact by improving the mobility and stability, balance confidence, and overall quality of life for the large community of individuals with lower limb amputation, while alleviating phantom pain. In the longer term, the technology created by this research may lead to a paradigm shift in the commercial development of medical assistive devices other than prostheses. In addition, undergraduate and graduate students in neural and rehabilitation engineering will be trained as members of the research team, and K-12 students from underrepresented groups will be engaged through educational and outreach activities.This research will develop a novel non-invasive and bi-directional neural-machine interface (NMI) for a bionic prosthetic ankle that enables seamless integration of robotic prostheses and their users for improved mobility and stability. The project will encompass three main thrusts: investigation of high-density transcutaneous nerve stimulation and new encoding algorithms for evoking the illusion of sensation in an amputated foot (a sensory interface); development of novel EMG decoding algorithms based on machine learning and neurophysiological modeling approaches for continuous neural control of a prosthetic ankle (a motor interface); and design and fabrication of a bidirectional NMI that combines both of the aforementioned sensory and motor interfaces to achieve embodied integration of a prosthetic ankle within the user. The NMI prototype will be validated on individuals with transtibial amputations when performing various activities common in daily living.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.