How Computers Control Human Motor Skills

Bionics

The idea of a bionic human is no longer science fiction, but science fact. For years, scientists have been studying the way our brain interacts with the part of our peripheral nervous system (PNS) that controls voluntary movements, such as the opening and closing of hands, known as the somatic nervous system. The motor neurons in the somatic nervous system, called effectors, carry signals from the central nervous system (CNS) to the proper muscles or gland that controls the movement. This part of the PNS is called somatic because the movements manifest themselves in conscious thought. These thoughts are such second nature that we are not even aware of them.

This area of the PNS enables disabled people to do things they would not otherwise be able to. For example, a woman loses her right arm in a bad car accident. It is amputated right below the elbow. Today, doctors can attach a prosthetic arm to her amputated limb. This arm is not any ordinary prosthesis, it is connected to a Brain-Computer Interface, or BCI. This device hooks into the nervous system, and interprets signals coming from the brain that are telling her arm to move. Prosthetics such as these are already in use.

Ever since the first BCI controlled prosthesis was developed, scientists have been working feverishly to improve on the current technology. One aim is to make the brain-computer connection less intrusive to the patient. Devices must now hook up directly into the part of the brain that controls the desired movement. The electrodes penetrate into the brain tissue, but researchers are developing a non-penetrating electrode that will sit on the brain tissue instead of in it. The frequency of electrode replacement, as well as the level of intrusiveness into a patient's brain, is determined on a case-by-case basis.

The medical industry is not the only one showing interest in BCI technology. Some electronic entertainment companies, like OCZ Technology, have developed interface devices such as the Neuro Impulse Actuator that sense movement commands from the user's brain and translates them into computer commands. The benefit of the Nia is that it repeats action sequences the user frequently uses in a video game or on the computer in general. If a gamer always casts the same spells and performs the same actions against a certain enemy, then they can record the signals coming from their brain when they perform those actions. Then those same actions play back at will simply by thinking of them. It is no surprise that gamers love this idea. The Nia itself even claims to cut reaction times in half on some games.

It is no doubt that this technology is here to stay, and it is only in the infant stage right now. The better the equipment becomes at interpreting and decoding the signals from the brain, the more diverse the devices will become.