Weiss, Jeffrey M.
(2018)
Development and characterization of an intracortical closed-loop brain-computer interface.
Master's Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
Intracortical brain-computer interfaces (BCI) have the potential to restore motor function to people with paralysis by extracting movement intent signals directly from motor cortex. While current technology has allowed individuals to perform simple object interactions with robotic arms, such demonstrations have depended exclusively on visual feedback. Additional forms of sensory feedback may lessen the dependence on vision and allow for more dexterous control. Intracortical microstimulation (ICMS) has been proposed as a method of adding somatosensory feedback to BCI by directly stimulating somatosensory cortex to evoke tactile sensations referred to the hand. Our lab recently demonstrated that ICMS can elicit graded and focal tactile sensations in an individual with spinal cord injury (SCI). However, several challenges must be resolved to demonstrate the viability of ICMS as a technique for incorporating sensory feedback in a closed-loop BCI.
First, microstimulation generates large voltage transients that appear as artifacts in the neural recordings used for BCI control. These artifacts can corrupt the recorded signal throughout the entire stimulus train, and must be eliminated to allow for continuous BCI decoding. Second, it is unknown whether the sensations elicited by ICMS can be perceived quickly enough for use as a feedback signal.
Here, I present several aspects of the development of a closed-loop BCI system, including a method for artifact rejection and the characterization of simple reaction times to ICMS of human somatosensory cortex. A human participant with tetraplegia due to SCI was implanted with four microelectrode arrays in primary motor and somatosensory cortices. I implemented a robust method of artifact rejection that preserves neural data as soon as 750 microseconds after each stimulus pulse by applying signal blanking and an appropriate digital filter. I validated this method by comparing BCI performance with and without ICMS and found that performance was maintained with ICMS and artifact rejection. Next, I characterized simple reaction times to single-channel ICMS, and found that responses to ICMS were comparable, and often faster, than responses to electrical stimulation on the hand. These findings suggest that ICMS is a viable method to provide feedback in a closed-loop BCI.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
|
| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
11 June 2018 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
19 March 2018 |
| Approval Date: |
11 June 2018 |
| Submission Date: |
2 April 2018 |
| Access Restriction: |
2 year -- Restrict access to University of Pittsburgh for a period of 2 years. |
| Number of Pages: |
104 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
Swanson School of Engineering > Bioengineering |
| Degree: |
MS - Master of Science |
| Thesis Type: |
Master's Thesis |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
ICMS, BCI, Artifact Rejection, Reaction Times |
| Date Deposited: |
11 Jun 2018 17:13 |
| Last Modified: |
11 Jun 2020 05:15 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/33958 |
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