Robot arms can be controlled by thinking, no brain implants are needed

Researchers can control the robot arm by thinking without brain implant surgery, promising the ability to control every technology around in the future.
If you want to control a robot with your thoughts, you have 2 options.

The first is brain implants. In that case, the robot control process will go smoothly and continuously. Or you can skip the risky, expensive surgery to use a brainwave sensing device from outside the skull. However, the control will not be exactly equal.

A research team from Carneigie Mellon University is closing the gap between those two options. They create robotic arms that can be controlled by thinking and operating smoothly without a brain implant – bringing people closer to the future using the mind to control the technology around them.

Participants were asked to use their thoughts to control the robotic arm pointing at the mouse pointer on the screen. Photo: CMU.

In the article in Science Robotics, researchers describe how they combine sensor technology and machine learning technology to create a brain computer interface (BCI). This system can transmit signals deep into the brains of participants wearing EEG caps.

With the system test, participants were asked to control the robotic arm to point at the mouse pointer on the screen. For the first time on an external skull system, the robot device runs smoothly and without recoil.

Robotic arms are used mainly by people with disabilities or motor problems. Photo: SNFS.
Currently, most thought-controlled robots are used for people with movement disorders, disabilities or paralysis. However, researcher Bin He envisioned the scenario when the technology was present everywhere, benefiting all humans.

“Despite facing technical challenges when using non-invasive signals, we are committed to bringing this technology to anyone who needs it,” He said in a press release.

“This is an important step in the process of building a computer interface beyond the skull. Someday, it could become a technology to support people, ”he added.

Scientists from Carnegie Mellon University have successfully built a thought-controlled robotic arm that can function smoothly without the need for a brain transplant surgery.

Source : ZingNews