Abstract: Future neuroprostheses will be tightly coupled with the user in such a way that the resulting system can replace and restore impaired upper limb functions because controlled by the same neural signals than their natural counterparts. A key component of these neuroprostheses is a brain-machine interface (BMI), which enables users to interact with computers and robots through the voluntary modulation of their brain activity. The central tenet of a BMI is the capability to distinguish different patterns of brain activity in real time, each being associated to a particular intention or mental task. This is a challenging problem due to the limited information carried by brain signals we can measure, no matter the recording modality. How then is it possible to operate complex brain-controlled robots over long periods of time? In this talk I will argue that efficient brain-machine interaction, as the execution of voluntary movements, requires subject's learning and the integration of several parts of the CNS with the external actuators. I will put forward principles to design neuroprostheses, which I will illustrate through working prototypes of brain-controlled robots and applications for disabled and able-bodied people alike.
Passcode: 989260
Speaker: José del R. Millán, PhD.
Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Carol Cockrell Curran Chair in Engineering
The University of Texas at Austin
Seminar Title: Brain-Robot Interaction
About the Speaker: Dr. José del R. Millán is a professor and holds the Carol Cockrell Curran Endowed Chair in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin. He is also a professor in the Department of Neurology at Dell Medical School and faculty of the Mulva Clinic for the Neurosciences. He is co-director of the UT CARE Initiative and associate director of Texas Robotics.
He received a PhD in computer science from the Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona. Previously, he was a research scientist at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission in Ispra (Italy) and a senior researcher at the Idiap Research Institute in Martigny (Switzerland). Most recently, he held the Defitech Foundation Chair in Brain-Machine Interface at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland (EPFL), where he helped establish the Center for Neuroprosthetics. Dr. Millán has made several seminal contributions to the field of brain-machine interfaces (BMI), especially based on electroencephalogram signals. He is an IEEE Fellow and a Fellow of the International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering.