COGNITIVE FEEDBACK FOR USE WITH FES UPPER EXTREMITY NEUROPROSTHESES

This paper describes the development of two sensory substitutions systems that provide cognitive feedback for FES hand grasp restoration neuroprostheses. One system uses an array of five electrodes to provide machine status information and a spatially encoded representation of the command signal that a quadriplegic individual generates to achieve proportional grasp control. Only one electrode site is active at any given instant, and a second informational channel is superimposed on the spatial position channel by modulating the frequency of the stimulus pulses. The frequency modulated feedback channel signals six levels of force developed at the finger tips during prehension activities. The second sensory system is an integral part of an implanted FES system and utilizes a single subdermally placed electrode to display machine status information and a five-level frequency code for feedback of the user generated grasp control signal. The multielectrode feedback system was implemented for laboratory studies using surface mounted electrodes, although its design will ultimately incorporate subdermal electrodes to provide a highly cosmetic and unencumbering system. An evaluation of the effectiveness of grasp force and command signal feedback provided by this multielectrode system in assisting an FES hand system user to regulate grasp force during a laboratory task, showed increased consistency of performance and an economy of grasp effort between 25 and 30%. Alternative strategies for feedback information and coding algorithms are discussed.