Hochberg, a Brown University professor, is the director ofBrainGate clinical trials.
Before COVID-19, a wireless version of the system had only been tested with a researcher in the room.
Its full potential and ability to work smoothly without a medical professional on standby had not been evaluated.
Hochberg said the moment felt like fate.
Wireless technologies are opening doors in neuroscience, enabling new capabilities in communication, treatment, and research.
Today, wired implants are less invasive andwidely used.
They can help prevent seizures, manage OCD symptoms, and treat movement disorders.
Researchers are improvingbrain implant deviceswith wireless technology.
These devices can transmit information without cables through radio frequency fields, acoustic waves, and light.
This meant participants were physically tethered to the equipment.
The transmitter then sends the information to a computer system to be analyzed.
He works on creating wireless brain-interfacing devices that are small, flexible, and biocompatible.
McCall said the use of store-bought technology was intentional.
The goal, he added, was to make devices that are accessible to the scientific community.
However, wireless brain devices are still a work in progress.
But McCall said we’re at a moment when there’s plenty of space for new technologies to emerge.
Much of the field has focused on deciphering the electrical signals the brain constantly produces.
However, the brain also contains chemicals such as dopamine that influence our mood and health.
They developed a wireless, battery-free implant that can monitor dopamine signals in the brain.
The gear uses a technique calledoptogenetic stimulationto activate or inhibit certain neurons in mice and record dopamine activity.
The implant is powered remotely and transmits data wirelessly using infrared light waves.
With near-field communication, data is transmitted through electromagnetic radio fields.
Hochberg said academic institutions and private companies are racing to develop different versions of wireless devices.
The hope is to lay the groundwork for a more accessible future.
“There is tremendous promise for this powerful technology,” Hochberg said.
