"When someone loses part of a leg, a prosthetic can make it easier to get around. But most prosthetics are static, cumbersome, and hard to move. A new neural interface connects a bionic limb to nerve endings in the thigh, allowing the limb to be controlled by the brain. The new device, described in a report in Nature Medicine, could help people with lower-leg amputations feel as if their prosthesis is part of them.
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Getting the neural interface hooked up to a prosthetic takes two steps. First, patients undergo surgery. Following a lower-leg amputation, portions of shin and calf muscle still remain. The operation connects shin muscle, which contracts to make the ankle flex upward, to calf muscle, which counteracts this movement. The prosthetic can also be fitted at this point. Reattaching the remnants of these muscles can enable the prosthetic to move more dynamically. It can also reduce phantom limb pain, and patients are less likely to trip and fall.
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In step two, surface electrodes measure nerve activity from the brain to the calf and shin muscles, indicating an intention to move the lower leg. A small computer in the bionic leg decodes those nerve signals and moves the leg accordingly, allowing the patient to move the limb more naturally."
Uma ilustração do que é a destruição criativa a funcionar. Não se pode dizer que não avisámos.
Parte I, parte II, parte III e parte IV.
Trechos retirados de MIT Technology Review, September/October 2024
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