We've reported on robots that recognize human gestures and a robotic exohand that gives a human hand superhuman strength. Researchers have taken these abilities a few steps further using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to enable thought control of a robot thousands of miles away.
In a scenario reminiscent of the movie Avatar, the researchers used an fMRI machine to scan the brain activity of Tirosh Shapira, a university student in Israel, in real-time. By imagining moving different parts of his body, Shapira controlled a small, humanoid robot located in France at the Béziers Technology Institute. The commands were sent over an Internet connection. A camera mounted on the robot's head let Shapira view its environment.
Before the experiment, Shapira received training by researchers at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. During training, he tried to direct a virtual avatar by imagining himself moving one of his legs or hands. Using changes in blood flow to the brain's primary motor cortex measured by the fMRI scanner, the team created an algorithm to distinguish among different thoughts about moving different body parts.
When Shapira imagined moving his legs, the robot walked forward. Thinking about moving either his left or right hand made the robot turn 30 degrees to the left or right. Since time is required between the beginning of neural activity and the point at which an intended movement can be classified, this caused a short communication delay. (Watch a video here of the robot being controlled by thought to follow another person.)
The experiment's long-term goal is to create a surrogate that works like the one in the movie, said Abderrahmane Kheddar, director of the joint robotics laboratory at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in Japan, in an article in New Scientist detailing the research. The Institute is part of the international Virtual Embodiment and Robotic Re-embodiment (VERE) project.
The VERE project is focused on two goals: Avatar-like embodiment in a remote, surrogate robotic body controlled via a brain-computer interface, and virtual reality embodiment with a virtual representation. Applications are the rehabilitation and training by virtual embodiment of people who are confined to a bed or wheelchair, and physical, robotic embodiment for people who are immobilized.
The project's fundamental research areas include neuroscience, constructing embodiment machines that deliver virtual sensory data to and read signals from participants, monitoring brain and physiological signals to recognize the participants' intentions, embodying their intentions in actions by a physical robot, the technology underlying virtual embodiment, and a software development platform.
The researchers say the next step is to improve the robot surrogate by upgrading to the HRP-4, made by Kawada Industries in Japan. This robot has a more stable and dynamic walk, and is almost the height of a human, which will increase the feeling of actual embodiment, said Kheddar.
Wow, Ann, you don't even have to be there to do something. I can imagine a lot of uses, as you mention, for this technology. It is really something futuristic and shows the tremendous progress in understanding how we work.
One problem that will need to be solved is that of operator distraction. If adverse things can happen when a distracted operator is actually hands on with a machine, imagine what could happen with one controlled only by thoughts.
Oh, I agree, it is simply amazing stuff. I wasn't belittling the technology, just exploring a hurdle.
The most significant problem facing science fiction authors is that they don't predict far enough out.
Gene Roddenberry's Enterprise had hints of a computer tablet the captain signed, and pocket sized communicators. That was supposed to be 200 years in the future. Instead, we have them now.
I heard a news article today about warp drive, that it may not be complete fantasy. Best guess is that it will be doughnut shaped. Go figure!
TJ, that's a good point. OTOH, the robot only recognizes, and responds to, specific thoughts it's been programmed for. So if it gets thoughts it doesn't understand, nothing will happen. The potential danger will depend on the robot's size, abilities, and what it's doing.
I agree about the sc i-fi reality (again!). There are several different research projects that have focused on thought control of robots, including this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRt8QCx3BCo
I know what you mean, Rob. But so far, this technology only tells robots to make simply body movements that the "sender" thinks about. I suppose it could eventually be extended to firing a gun or some other wartime function. OTOH, we're already doing remote bombing without thought control.
Nice article Ann. I like reading about all the advancements in robots. They sure have come a long way. Sci-fi channel comes to life. I can really see a lot of good use for this robot.
@Ann: Great article on an interesting topic. I wonder if this technology could be used to help people with disabilities? (Kind of like Sam Worthington's character in Avatar).
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