Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Tongue-controlled System Assists Individuals with Disabilities
System allows them to operate powered wheelchairs and computers
The novel system developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology allows individuals with disabilities to operate a computer, control a powered wheelchair and interact with their environments simply by moving their tongues.
Maysam Ghovanloo, an assistant professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering along with graduate student Xueliang Huo has developed the tongue-operated assistive technology, called the Tongue Drive system.
A rice grain sized magnet is attached into an individual's tongue by implantation. Once this is done the user can control the movement of a cursor across a computer screen or a powered wheelchair around a room.
Magnetic field sensors are mounted on a headset outside the mouth or on an orthodontic brace inside the mouth. This detects the movement of the tongue. The output signals are then wirelessly transmitted to a portable computer, which can be carried on the user’s clothing or wheelchair.
Hands and feet are connected to the brain through the spinal cord. Whereas the tongue is directly controlled by the brain through the cranial nerve. The movements of the tongue are also fast and accurate making it the most preferred choice by the researchers.
Results indicate a 100 percent accuracy for six individual commands. Based on the results one can definitely say that the future looks promising for this system.
Most people with severe disabilities have the will power to take on the world just like everybody else. What really dampens their spirit is the dependency factor. Sometimes they have to depend on friends and loved ones to carry out their everyday tasks. This system will make life easy for the individual and the caregiver.
When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.
They sure do.
Source - Gatech.edu
Watch a video of Ghovanloo describing the Tongue Drive system and its applications here.
Watch a video of Huo operating a powered wheelchair with the Tongue Drive system here.
The novel system developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology allows individuals with disabilities to operate a computer, control a powered wheelchair and interact with their environments simply by moving their tongues.
Maysam Ghovanloo, an assistant professor in the Georgia Tech School of Electrical and Computer Engineering along with graduate student Xueliang Huo has developed the tongue-operated assistive technology, called the Tongue Drive system.
A rice grain sized magnet is attached into an individual's tongue by implantation. Once this is done the user can control the movement of a cursor across a computer screen or a powered wheelchair around a room.
Magnetic field sensors are mounted on a headset outside the mouth or on an orthodontic brace inside the mouth. This detects the movement of the tongue. The output signals are then wirelessly transmitted to a portable computer, which can be carried on the user’s clothing or wheelchair.
Hands and feet are connected to the brain through the spinal cord. Whereas the tongue is directly controlled by the brain through the cranial nerve. The movements of the tongue are also fast and accurate making it the most preferred choice by the researchers.
Results indicate a 100 percent accuracy for six individual commands. Based on the results one can definitely say that the future looks promising for this system.
Most people with severe disabilities have the will power to take on the world just like everybody else. What really dampens their spirit is the dependency factor. Sometimes they have to depend on friends and loved ones to carry out their everyday tasks. This system will make life easy for the individual and the caregiver.
When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.
They sure do.
Source - Gatech.edu
Watch a video of Ghovanloo describing the Tongue Drive system and its applications here.
Watch a video of Huo operating a powered wheelchair with the Tongue Drive system here.
Labels: Automation, Electrical-Engineering
PermaLink - Tongue-controlled System Assists Individuals with Disabilities posted by Vanessa : 9:22 AM
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