First U.S. Patient Reaches Major Milestone Toward a Bionic Arm Anchored to Bone, Nerves and Muscles (VIDEO)
Caption
The video opens with the participant seated, two weeks after his surgery, so his dressings are still in place. A small metal post (the abutment) extends from his residual limb — it's anchored directly to his bone, and wires run through it from sensors inside his arm. These sensors pick up electrical signals from his muscles. There are also electrodes gently wrapped around two of the major nerves in his arm so that in the future we can stimulate his nerves and he can receive sensation. The orange cable connects that post to a small battery-powered microcontroller system that is attached to the arm. Those signals are fed to an artificial intelligence program that has learned to recognize what movement he's trying to make. When he thinks about moving his missing (phantom) hand, the AI decodes his muscle signals and moves the demonstration arm to match — no buttons or switches, just natural, intuitive effort. We ask him to mirror each movement with his intact hand so we can confirm the robotic arm is doing what he intends, and the computer screen lets the team verify everything is working properly. An occupational therapist then coaches him on refining his muscle contractions and builds a practice program he can continue at home.
Credit
Shirley Ryan AbilityLab
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