22-03-2011, 10:44 AM
PRESENTED BY:
PRAKASH.V
ABSTRACT:
A new assistive technology developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology. It help individuals with severe disabilities lead more independent lives. The individuals with disabilities
such as to operate a computer control a powered wheelchair and Interact with their environments simply by moving their tongues.
The tongue-operated assistive technology, called the Tongue Drive system, was described on June 29 at the 2008 Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America (RESNA) Annual Conference in Washington, D.C.=
INTRODUCTION
This device could revolutionize the field of assistive technologies by helping individuals with severe disabilities, such as those with high-level spinal cord injuries, return to rich, active, independent and productive lives
An article about this system is also scheduled to appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development. This research was funded by the National Science Foundation and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.
WHY TO CHOOSE A TONGUE ???
TDS chose the tongue to operate the system because unlike hands and feet, which are controlled by the brain through the spinal cord, the tongue is directly connected to the brain by a cranial nerve that generally escapes damage in severe spinal cord injuries or neuromuscular diseases.
TDS PROCESSING
Tongue movements are also fast, accurate and do not require much thinking, concentration or effort. 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.
PROTOTYPE TONGUE DRIVE SYSTEM
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.
An individual could potentially train our system to recognize touching each tooth as a different command. The ability to train our system with as many commands as an individual can comfortably remember is a significant advantage over the common sip-n-puff device that acts as a simple switch controlled by sucking or blowing through a straw.
The Tongue Drive system is also non-invasive and does not require brain surgery like some of the brain-computer interface technologies.
TASKS PERFORMED IN TDS
Computer mouse tasks – left, right, up and down pointer movements and single- and double-click. For each trial, the individual began by training the system. During the five-minute training session, the individual repeated each of the six designated tongue movements 10 times.
During the testing session, the user moved his or her tongue to one of the predefined command positions and the mouse pointer started moving in the selected direction. To move the cursor faster, users could hold their tongue in the position of the issued command to gradually accelerate the pointer until it reached a maximum velocity.
Results of the computer access test by novice users with the current Tongue Drive prototype showed a response time of less than one second with almost 100 percent accuracy for the six individual commands. This is equivalent to an information transfer rate of approximately 150 bits per minute, which is much faster than the bandwidth of most brain-computer interfaces
The research team has also begun to develop software to connect the Tongue Drive system to a wide variety of readily available communication tools such as text generators, speech synthesizers and readers. In addition, the researchers plan to add control commands, such as switching the system into standby mode to permit the user to eat, sleep or engage in a conversation while extending battery life.
MODES IN POWERED WHEEL CHAIR
Operated the powered wheelchair using two different control strategies:
DISCRETE MODE
CONTINUOUS MODE
Discrete mode, designed for novice users, and continuous mode for more experienced users.
In discrete mode, if the user issued the command to move forward and then wanted to turn right, the user would have to stop the wheelchair before issuing the command to turn right. The default stop command was when the tongue returned to its resting position, bringing the wheelchair to a standstill.
Discrete mode is a safety feature particularly for novice users, but it reduces the agility of the wheel chair movement.
In continuous mode, however, the user is allowed to steer the powered wheelchair to the left or right as it is moving forward and backward, thus making it possible to follow a curve.”
ADVANTAGES OF TDS
Ø Allows disabled people to power a wheelchair
Ø Allows disabled people to use a computer
Ø Allows disabled people to not depend on others
Ø Allows disabled people to have more freedom
Ø Allows disabled people to become employable
DRAWBACKS
Ø Computer battery could die when not around charger
Ø Could take a while to learn how to use it
Ø Might not be affordable for some people
Ø Decreases job opportunities for some
Ø Computer could go down
CONCLUSION
Tongue drive system technology is a gift for the physically challenged and disabled persons to lead their life equal to the normal persons in the society.
PRAKASH.V
ABSTRACT:
A new assistive technology developed by engineers at the Georgia Institute of Technology. It help individuals with severe disabilities lead more independent lives. The individuals with disabilities
such as to operate a computer control a powered wheelchair and Interact with their environments simply by moving their tongues.
The tongue-operated assistive technology, called the Tongue Drive system, was described on June 29 at the 2008 Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America (RESNA) Annual Conference in Washington, D.C.=
INTRODUCTION
This device could revolutionize the field of assistive technologies by helping individuals with severe disabilities, such as those with high-level spinal cord injuries, return to rich, active, independent and productive lives
An article about this system is also scheduled to appear in an upcoming issue of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development. This research was funded by the National Science Foundation and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.
WHY TO CHOOSE A TONGUE ???
TDS chose the tongue to operate the system because unlike hands and feet, which are controlled by the brain through the spinal cord, the tongue is directly connected to the brain by a cranial nerve that generally escapes damage in severe spinal cord injuries or neuromuscular diseases.
TDS PROCESSING
Tongue movements are also fast, accurate and do not require much thinking, concentration or effort. 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.
PROTOTYPE TONGUE DRIVE SYSTEM
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.
An individual could potentially train our system to recognize touching each tooth as a different command. The ability to train our system with as many commands as an individual can comfortably remember is a significant advantage over the common sip-n-puff device that acts as a simple switch controlled by sucking or blowing through a straw.
The Tongue Drive system is also non-invasive and does not require brain surgery like some of the brain-computer interface technologies.
TASKS PERFORMED IN TDS
Computer mouse tasks – left, right, up and down pointer movements and single- and double-click. For each trial, the individual began by training the system. During the five-minute training session, the individual repeated each of the six designated tongue movements 10 times.
During the testing session, the user moved his or her tongue to one of the predefined command positions and the mouse pointer started moving in the selected direction. To move the cursor faster, users could hold their tongue in the position of the issued command to gradually accelerate the pointer until it reached a maximum velocity.
Results of the computer access test by novice users with the current Tongue Drive prototype showed a response time of less than one second with almost 100 percent accuracy for the six individual commands. This is equivalent to an information transfer rate of approximately 150 bits per minute, which is much faster than the bandwidth of most brain-computer interfaces
The research team has also begun to develop software to connect the Tongue Drive system to a wide variety of readily available communication tools such as text generators, speech synthesizers and readers. In addition, the researchers plan to add control commands, such as switching the system into standby mode to permit the user to eat, sleep or engage in a conversation while extending battery life.
MODES IN POWERED WHEEL CHAIR
Operated the powered wheelchair using two different control strategies:
DISCRETE MODE
CONTINUOUS MODE
Discrete mode, designed for novice users, and continuous mode for more experienced users.
In discrete mode, if the user issued the command to move forward and then wanted to turn right, the user would have to stop the wheelchair before issuing the command to turn right. The default stop command was when the tongue returned to its resting position, bringing the wheelchair to a standstill.
Discrete mode is a safety feature particularly for novice users, but it reduces the agility of the wheel chair movement.
In continuous mode, however, the user is allowed to steer the powered wheelchair to the left or right as it is moving forward and backward, thus making it possible to follow a curve.”
ADVANTAGES OF TDS
Ø Allows disabled people to power a wheelchair
Ø Allows disabled people to use a computer
Ø Allows disabled people to not depend on others
Ø Allows disabled people to have more freedom
Ø Allows disabled people to become employable
DRAWBACKS
Ø Computer battery could die when not around charger
Ø Could take a while to learn how to use it
Ø Might not be affordable for some people
Ø Decreases job opportunities for some
Ø Computer could go down
CONCLUSION
Tongue drive system technology is a gift for the physically challenged and disabled persons to lead their life equal to the normal persons in the society.
