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BrainGate2 to use Utah Array and AI to decode speech from thoughts.
A brain-computer interface (BCI) device translates brain activity into commands that can be used to control external devices such as a robotic limb, or a computer to improve the lives of people with speech or movement impairment, such as those living with neurological disorders, spinal cord injuries, Locked in Syndrome, Muscular Dystrophy, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and brain injuries. UC Davis Health is conducting a new U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clinical trial to translate human thoughts into speech with the help of a brain-computer interface.
The UC Davis Health researchers are seeking to help those who are unable to speak due to the inability to move or control their mouth or vocal cords, a condition called anarthria. UC Davis is actively recruiting study participants between the ages of 18 Years to 75 Years with complete or incomplete tetraplegia (quadriplegia), and a clinical diagnosis of motor neuron disorders due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, brain stem stroke, or spinal cord injury.
In the clinical trial, Utah Arrays will be placed into speech-related and motor cortex of the brain. The Utah Array is a patented microelectrode array that has customizable electrode channels. The Utah Array was introduced in 1994 by Blackrock Neurotech, which is a pioneer in chronic single unit recording and stimulation in the cortex.
Neural recordings will be made at least once a week during a year or more. The array records the impulses from the brain’s nerve cells which are sent to two medal pedestals that are roughly half an inch in diameter on top of the study participant’s head. The pedestals can transfer the brain activity to a computer.
The pattern-recognition capabilities of artificial intelligence machine learning are used to decode the neural recordings into intended speech. Once AI machine learning decodes the neural activity for intended speech, then this information can be used as input for communication devices such as an artificial speech, voice, or text generator.
The main endpoint of the clinical trial is to assess the safety of the BrainGate2 Neural Interface System. The other aim of the study is to probe the feasibility of the BrainGate2 solution and create parameters for a larger clinical study. The Principal Investigator and Surgical Investigator of this clinical trial is Assistant Professor of Neurological Surgery at UC Davis Dr. David Brandman MD, PhD.
Other Braingate2 Neural Interface System clinical trial sites include Stanford University, Massachusetts General Hospital, Emory University School of Medicine, and the VA Providence Healthcare System.
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