Touching moments in prosthetics: New bionic

limbs that can "feel"

Doctoral student Jacob George (left) and professor Greg Clark examine the LUKE arm, a motorized and sensorized prosthetic that has been
in development for more than 15 years. Photo courtesy Dan Hixson/University of Utah College of Engineering

Phantom pain was all that Keven Walgamott had left of the arm he lost until he first tried on the
LUKE Arm. Walgamott could "feel" again thanks to the bionic arm that a team at the University of
Utah developed.

Although traditional prosthetic limbs are useful for many people who have lost limbs, they have
limitations. Researchers around the world have been developing prosthetics that more closely
mimic the human body. These new prosthetics are bionic body parts that can touch, feel and even
learn new things.

"Touch isn't a single sense," said Gregory Clark, lead researcher of the study. "When you first
touch objects with a natural hand, there's an extra burst of neural impulses."

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Tricking Brain Reduces Phantom Pain

Walgamott told researchers that it felt like he had his arm back and even his phantom pain was
reduced. Clark explained that was because the brain was tricked into believing that Walgamott's
prosthetic hand was his real hand.

Clark's team achieved these results by stimulating the sensory nerve fibers. They used a computer
algorithm to replicate the impulses the brain normally receives from a native arm.

Clark said that users "can feel the location and the contraction force of their muscles even when
muscles aren't there. We send electrical signals from the muscles, so the brain interprets them as
real."

Brain-Computer Interface

The brain-computer interface (BCI) is a critical component for bionic prosthetics. It enables
communication between the brain and the prosthetic. The LUKE Arm uses a neural interface that
users can easily apply to themselves. Yet in other mind-controlled prosthetics, brain implants are
used to send instructions to a robotic limb. However, this means that users must undergo brain
surgery — which can be risky, expensive, and requires time for recovery. Thanks to new
technology, this might be about to change.

Bin He is a professor of biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. He and his team
have been working on a noninvasive BCI that can perform precise movements. In June his team
reported that they have developed a mind-controlled robotic arm "that uses noninvasive EEG
signals."

In the past, noninvasive BCIs have shown promising results. However, users could only perform
distinct actions such as pushing a button. Yet when it comes to a continuous action such as
tracking a cursor on a computer screen, users could only make jerky movements. In He and his
team's demonstration, the subject mentally controlled a robotic arm in tracking a cursor. The
prosthetic finger was able to follow the cursor in a smooth, continuous path — just like a real
finger. While researchers used a computer-wired EEG cap on the subject during the
demonstration, He said that it is not necessary.

Thought-Controlled Robotic Devices Without Brain Surgery

He said that a smartphone app programmed with EEG recordings and wireless electrodes could
enable everyday use. People could then use thought-controlled robotic devices without brain
surgery.

Our native limbs are trained to perform actions ranging from walking to the movements required
to perform surgery. Prosthetic limbs also have to be trained for specific uses. Engineers at Joseph

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In 2018, the Imperial College London and the University of Göttingen collaborated to develop a
bionic hand. The hand used a human-machine interface that sent commands to the artificial limb
based on the user's intentions. Using machine learning techniques, the hand can "learn" how to
perform new skills.

"Our main goal is to let patients control the prosthetic as though they were their biological limbs,"
said Dario Farina. Farina is a lead researcher on the project.

Taruna Yadav, who worked on the University of Houston team, said bionic body parts can work for
both amputees and paralyzed people. Paralyzed people might be at a higher risk for additional
nerve damage. However, He said that "a noninvasive BCI should apply to both. The BCI system
can be tailored to particular needs."

The Next Frontier

And the next frontier? If BCIs and other neural interfaces can improve our bodies' capacities,
would it be possible to develop bionic add-ons that grant superhuman abilities?

"In a sense, yes," Clark said. "Indeed, we already do. Glasses restore normal vision to the
nearsighted. But telescopes and microscopes allow us to see what would be otherwise unseeable.
Canes assist in walking after injury, but fiberglass vaulting poles allow us to clear superhuman
heights."

Yet in other ways, bionic parts are no match for nature. Clark pointed out that the capabilities of
the LUKE Arm are no match for the thousands of motor and sensory channels of the human body.

Clark explained that the field of biomedical engineering exists to improve nature when it goes awry
through illness or an accident. "But we also try to understand and use nature to improve
engineering and ourselves," he said.

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1 Which section from the article BEST explains why noninvasive prosthetics are important?

(A) "Tricking Brain Reduces Phantom Pain"

(B) "Brain-Computer Interface"

(C) "Thought-Controlled Robotic Devices Without Brain Surgery"

(D) "The Next Frontier"

2 Read the following statement.

Even though prosthetics have gotten very advanced, the natural human body is still much more
effective and complex.

Which sentence from the article provides the BEST support for the above statement?

(A) Yet when it comes to a continuous action such as tracking a cursor on a computer screen, users could
only make jerky movements.

(B) "Our main goal is to let patients control the prosthetic as though they were their biological limbs," said
Dario Farina.

(C) Taruna Yadav, who worked on the University of Houston team, said bionic body parts can work for both
amputees and paralyzed people.

(D) Clark pointed out that the capabilities of the LUKE Arm are no match for the thousands of motor and
sensory channels of the human body.

3 Read the following selection from the section "Tricking Brain Reduces Phantom Pain."

They used a computer algorithm to replicate the impulses the brain normally receives from a
native arm.

Which two words would BEST replace “replicate” and “native” in the selection above?

(A) reproduce; muscular

(B) mimic; natural

(C) duplicate; normal

(D) repeat; resident

4 Read the following selection from the introduction [paragraphs 1-4].

The brain then "translates" neural impulses into characteristics such as firmness, texture and
temperature. This information is crucial in deciding how we should interact with an object.

Why did the author use the word "crucial"?

(A) to highlight the decisions we make when interacting with objects

(B) to highlight the differences between firmness, texture and temperature

(C) to emphasize that this kind of information is important for our senses to work

(D) to emphasize that this kind of information is necessary for our senses to work

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