“TECNALIA, an expert in electrotactile feedback technology, offers its knowledge with the aim of providing users with tactile sensations”
TECNALIA designs, builds and tests interfaces that allow people to control artificial limbs in coordination with their natural limbs
Non-invasive interfaces to enhance movement would have multiple applications in many different fields. Laparoscopic surgeons would be able to perform three-handed surgical interventions, allowing them to perform tasks that require skilful synchronisation when handling three surgical instruments, which currently cannot be performed with minimally invasive access.
The recently completed NIMA project has explored the possibility of implementing a specific and novel concept: it makes use of the redundancy of the motor system at different levels in order to control additional degrees of freedom of limbs, devices or computers, independently of natural limb movements.
TECNALIA, expert in electrotactile feedback technology
This research, in which TECNALIA has participated, is based on research into the design and construction of interfaces that allow people to control artificial limbs in coordination with their natural limbs.
TECNALIA, an expert in electrotactile feedback technology, offers its knowledge of this technology so that the user can have tactile sensations, such as the position of the additional limb or how hard an object is pressed.
Visionary thinking
The European H2020 NIMA project (grant agreement No 899626.), “Non-invasive Interface for Motion Augmentation”, is a project to create Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) that go beyond what is known and where visionary thinking can open promising avenues towards new and powerful technologies.
To this end, a team of leading experts in neuroscience, neurotechnology, human-machine interfaces, robotics and ethics was assembled to push the limits of technology by creating non-invasive interfaces with multimodal sensory feedback, enabling effortless control of multiple limbs or objects, as well as a wearable supernumerary robotic limb.
During this time, the teams have worked to understand the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying movement augmentation, how it can be functionally incorporated and how it can be facilitated by multimodal feedback, combining neuromodulation, computational modelling and behavioural experiments.
The project also aimed to use motion augmentation to expand human capabilities and pave the way for its use: it uses three relevant test beds: manipulation with a wearable supernumerary robotic arm and two hands; surgical manipulation assistance to extend the surgeon’s capabilities and autonomy; and a three-handed computer interface.
