Tongue Drive System

[project report maker]

The recent technological advancements in sensor development, wireless communication, and computing have dramatically promoted research of new assistance technologies. The case of the quadriplegic is of particular interest in the development of the Tongue Drive System (TDS), which is a wireless non-obtrusive tongue operated assistive technology for people with severe disabilities. Quadriplegia is the clinical condition under which all voluntary muscles in the legs, the arms and torso of the body lose their ability to function. This is typically caused by severe trauma in the area of the fifth to seventh cervical vertebrae. This type of trauma damages the spinal cord significantly enough to sever all control of the voluntary muscles below the neck. The vital organs are able to function autonomously of the spinal cord. This allows them to remain functionally intact. Most quadriplegic patients maintain functional control over their tongue through cranial nerves and are able to speak and move their tongue without difficulty. The TDS seeks to allow patients with quadriplegia to have more control over their environment through their tongue motions. The system extracts patientsâ„¢ intentions by detecting patientsâ„¢ tongue movements and converts them into control commands to operate devices in the patientsâ„¢ environment. In TDS, a small permanent magnet is secured on the patient's tongue as a tracer. The magnetic field variation, which is a result of tongue movements, can be detected by a pair of magneto-inductive sensor modules mounted inside or outside the mouth and translated into various commands. These commands can then be used to wirelessly communicate with the devices in userâ„¢s environment, such as a powered wheelchair, TV or telephone. and the Movement of the magnetic tracer attached to the tongue is detected by an array of magnetic field sensors mounted on a headset outside the mouth or on an orthodontic brace inside the mouth. The sensor output signals are wirelessly transmitted to a portable computer, which can be carried on the user's clothing or wheelchair.
The sensor output signals are processed to determine the relative motion of the magnet with respect to the array of sensors in real-time. This information is then used to control the movements of a cursor on the computer screen or to substitute for the joystick function in a powered wheelchair.
The system can potentially capture a large number of tongue movements, each of which can represent a different user command. A unique set of specific tongue movements can be tailored for each individual based on the user's abilities, oral anatomy, personal preferences and lifestyle.




read more
http://rehab.research.va.gov/jour/08/45/6/pdf/huo.pdf
http://ece.gatech.edu/enrichment/ors/par...ureshi.pdf
http://gtresearchnews.gatech.edu/movies/...-drive.mov
http://ieeexplore.ieeeiel5/11145/35661/0...er=1693892



hope these all links help you lot..