• Journal of information and communication convergence engineering
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.110-115
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• 2004

The prosthesis of current commercialized apparatus has considerable problems, requiring improvement. Especially, LLP(Lower Limb Prosthesis)-related problems have improved, but it cannot provide normal walking because, mainly, the gait control of the LLP does not fit with patient's gait manner. To solve this problem, HCI((Human Computer Interaction) that adapts and controls LLP postures according to patient's gait manner more effectively is studied in this research. The proposed control technique has 2 steps： 1) the multilayer neural network forecasts angles of gait of LLP by using the angle of normal side of lower limbs； and 2) the adaptive neural controller manages the postures of the LLP based on the predicted joint angles. According to the experiment data, the prediction error of hip angles was 0.32［deg.］, and the predicted error of knee angles was 0.12［deg.] for the estimated posture angles for the LLP. The performance data was obtained by applying the reference inputs of the LLP controller while walking. Accordingly, the control performance of the hip prosthesis improved by 80% due to the control postures of the LLP using the reference input when comparing with LQR controller.

• International Journal of Precision Engineering and Manufacturing
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.37-44
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• 2005

Gait control capacity for most trans-femoral prostheses is significantly different from that of a normal person, and training is required for a long period of time in order for a patient to walk properly. People become easily tired when wearing a prosthesis or orthosis for a long period typically because the gait angle cannot be smoothly adjusted during wearing. Therefore, to improve the gait control problems of a trans-femoral prosthesis, the proper gait angle is estimated through surface EMG(electromyogram) signals on a normal leg, then the gait posture which the trans-femoral prosthesis should take is calculated in the neural network, which learns the gait kinetics on the basis of the normal leg's gait angle. Based on this predicted angle, a postural control method is proposed and tested adaptively following the patient's gait habit based on the predicted angle. In this study, the gait angle prediction showed accuracy of over $97\%$, and the posture control capacity of over $90\%$.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.221-227
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• 2009

For successful restoration of visual function by a visual neural prosthesis such as retinal implant, electrical stimulation should evoke neural responses so that the informat.ion on visual input is properly represented. A stimulation strategy, which means a method for generating stimulation waveforms based on visual input, should be developed for this purpose. We proposed to use the decoding of visual input from retinal ganglion cell (RGC) responses for the evaluation of stimulus encoding strategy. This is based on the assumption that reliable encoding of visual information in RGC responses is required to enable successful visual perception. The main purpose of this study was to determine the influence of inter-dependence among stimulated RGCs activities on decoding accuracy. Light intensity variations were decoded from multiunit RGC spike trains using an optimal linear filter. More accurate decoding was possible when different types of RGCs were used together as input. Decoding accuracy was enhanced with independently firing RGCs compared to synchronously firing RGCs. This implies that stimulation of independently-firing RGCs and RGCs of different types may be beneficial for visual function restoration by retinal prosthesis.

• JSTS:Journal of Semiconductor Technology and Science
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.79-86
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• 2013

We describe a neural stimulator front-end with arbitrary stimulation waveform generator and adaptive supply regulator (ASR) for visual prosthesis. Each pixel circuit generates arbitrary current waveform with 5 bit programmable amplitude. The ASR provides the internal supply voltage regulated to the minimum required voltage for stimulation. The prototype is implemented in $0.35{\mu}m$ CMOS with HV option and occupies $2.94mm^2$ including I/Os.

• International Journal of Control, Automation, and Systems
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.152-158
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• 2005

Commercial lower limb prostheses or orthotics help patients achieve a normal life. However, patients who use such aids need prolonged training to achieve a normal gait, and their fatigability increases. To improve patient comfort, this study proposed a method of predicting gait angle using neural networks and EMG signals. Experimental results using our method show that the absolute average error of the estimated gait angles is $0.25^{\circ}$. This performance data used reference input from a controller for the lower limb orthotic or prosthesis controllers while the patients were walking.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.443-448
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• 2009

For successful visual perception by visual prosthesis using electrical stimulation, it is essential to develop an effective stimulation strategy based on understanding of retinal ganglion cell (RGC) responses to electrical stimulation. We studied RGC responses to repetitive electrical stimulation pulses to develop a stimulation strategy using stimulation pulse frequency modulation. Retinal patches of photoreceptor-degenerated retinas from rd1 mice were attached to a planar multi-electrode array (MEA) and RGC spike trains responding to electrical stimulation pulse trains with various pulse frequencies were observed. RGC responses were strongly dependent on inter-pulse interval when it was varied from 500 to 10 ms. Although the evoked spikes were suppressed with increasing pulse rate, the number of evoked spikes were >60% of the maximal responses when the inter-pulse intervals exceeded 100 ms. Based on this, we investigated the modulation of evoked RGC firing rates while increasing the pulse frequency from 1 to 10 pulses per second (or Hz) to deduce the optimal pulse frequency range for modulation of RGC response strength. RGC response strength monotonically and linearly increased within the stimulation frequency of 1~9 Hz. The results suggest that the evoked neural activities of RGCs in degenerated retina can be reliably controlled by pulse frequency modulation, and may be used as a stimulation strategy for visual neural prosthesis.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.243-249
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• 2005

The number of people who have lost limbs due to amputation has increased due to various accidents and diseases. Numerous attempts have been made to provide these people with prosthetic devices. These devices are often controlled using myoelectric signals. Although the success of fitting myoelectric signals (EMG) for single device control is apparent, extension of this control to more than one device has been difficult. The lack of success can be attributed to inadequate multifunctional control strategies. Therefore, the objective of this study was to develop multifunctional myoelectric control strategies that can generate a number of output control signals. We demonstrated the feasibility of a neural network classification control method that could generate 12 functions using three EMG channels. The results of evaluating this control strategy suggested that the neural network pattern classification method could be a potential control method to support reliability and convenience in operation. In order to make this artificial neural network control technique a successful control scheme for each amputee who may have different conditions, more investigation of a careful selection of the number of EMG channels, pre-determined contractile motions, and feature values that are estimated from the EMG signals is needed.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.252-256
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• 2003

In this paper we describe the status of a silicon-based microelectrode for neural recording and an advanced neural interface. We have developed a silicon neural probe, using a combination of plasma and wet etching techniques. This process enables the probe thickness to be controlled precisely. To enhance the CMOS compatibility in the fabrication process, we investigated the feasibility of the site material of the doped polycrystalline silicon with small grains of around 50 nm in size. This silicon electrode demonstrated a favorable performance with respect to impedance spectra, surface topography and acute neural recording. These results showed that the silicon neural probe can be used as an advanced microelectrode for neurological applications.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.611-615
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• 2004

A neural prostheses can be designed to permit stimulation of specific sites in the nervous system to restore their functions, lost due to disease or trauma. This study focuses on the feasibility of optoelecronic stimulation into nervous system. Optoelectronic stimulation supplies, power and signal into the implanted optical detector inside the body by optics. It can be effective strategy especially on the retinal prosthesis, because it enables the non-invasive connection between the external source and internal detector through natural optical window 'eye'. Therefore, we designed an effective neural stimulating setup by optically based stimulation. Stimulating on the sciatic nerve of a rat with proper depth probe through optical stimulation needs higher ratio of current spreading through the neural surface, because of high impedance of neural interface. To increase the insertion current spreading into the neuron, we used a parallel low resistance compared to load resistance organic interface and calculated the optimized outer parallel resistance for maximum insertion current with the assumption of limited current by photodiode. Optimized outer parallel resistance was at a range of 500Ω-700Ω and a current was at a level between 580uA and 650uA. Stimulating current efficiency from initial photodiode induced current was between 47.5 and 59.7%. Various amplitude and frequency of the optical stimulation on the sciatic nerve showed the reliable visual tremble, and the action potential was also recorded near the stimulating area. These result demonstrate that optoelectronic stimulation with no bias can be applied to the retinal prosthesis and other neuroprosthetic area.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SC
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• v.44 no.2 s.314
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• pp.18-23
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• 2007

Intra-body communication' is a wireless communication technology that uses a body as a transmission medium for electrical signals. Generally, an 'earth ground' is used to create an electric field for operating the system; however this operating method could not apply to telemetry for implanted neural prosthetic devices. So this paper suggests a newly designed intra-body communication for neural prosthetic devices. A floating system which has a couple of electrodes with body was studied to remove an influence of the 'earth ground'. We found that 10MHz is the most suitable carrier frequency in skin experiments and over 3MHz in subcutaneous experiments. The system has been applied to a current stimulator circuit for cochlear implant that uses pulse width modulation (PWM) method at 480kbps rate successfully.