Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

According to news on August 18, Nathan Kopenan, 36, has lived with the brain-computer interface for seven years and three months, and he is also the longest person in the world to wear this implant device. After a car accident and quadriplegia, he underwent brain-computer interface surgery. The surgery allows him to control external devices: a computer, video games and a robotic arm that he can move with his mind.

▲ Nathan Copenan started using brain-computer interfaces in 2015.

A car accident in 2004 paralyzed Kopenan from the chest down. In 2014, he did not hesitate to sign up for a University of Pittsburgh study of patients with severe spinal cord injuries to see if the brain-computer interface could restore his lost physical function.

At the time, no one knew how long the device would last. "when I started, they said it might last five years," and the five-year conclusion was actually based on data from monkey experiments, which had never been tried by humans before.

Now, eight years later, Kopenan, the first to eat crabs, said that the implant in the brain is still working properly and has not caused any serious side effects or complications, which is undoubtedly a sign of hope in the field of brain-computer interface.

Brain-computer interface technology has been in the development and experimental stage since the 1960s. Now, it may be expected to enter the treatment of patients with severe disabilities and achieve commercial landing. Jane Hodgins, director of the direct brain interface lab at the University of Michigan, also said, "it feels like it's on the brink of practicality."

But it is worth noting that there is still a question mark about the long-term durability of implanted arrays. How much will their performance deteriorate over time? Can they be updated and upgraded? "it would be crazy if the function is restored for a few years and then fails," Jane Hodgins said. this is always a problem for implants that may need to be repaired.

Kopenan implanted the first array in 2015 and then three more as part of the study. These four implanted arrays are called Utah arrays. Because neurons generate electric fields as they communicate with each other, scientists can use these arrays to capture and record the activity of hundreds of nearby neurons and convert these neural signals into digital instructions for the wearer to drive a prosthetic limb or computer.

According to scientific research, brain-computer interface refers to the connection established between human or animal brain and computer or other electronic devices, which realizes the direct interaction between brain and external devices, and can be used to treat patients with nervous system diseases.

In 2004, Matt Nagel became the first paralyzed person to be implanted in a Utah array, where he was able to move computer cursors, operate televisions and check emails after surgery. A year later, Nagel's implant was removed in accordance with the research agreement he was involved in. Today, more than 30 study participants around the world wear implanted brain-computer interfaces.

Members of Kopenan's research team said that in Kopenan's case, his array was still working, but the effect began to diminish compared with the first year after implantation. "because the human body has exclusion, it is very difficult to put into electronic and engineering systems."

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