WASHINGTON — Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a brain-computer interface device that translates brain activity into both digital speech and body language simultaneously, the NIH announced Sept. 14. The device creates a digital avatar capable of conveying a paralyzed person’s full communicative expression.
The neuroprosthesis is the first device to achieve dual-modality communication for patients with paralysis, combining spoken words with facial expressions and gestures in a single system, according to the NIH. Prior brain-computer interfaces had been limited to restoring either speech or movement, but not both at once.
The technology works by decoding neural signals from the brain and converting them into a digital avatar that speaks and moves in real time, giving paralyzed individuals the ability to communicate with a richness that previous devices could not match, the researchers said.
The device has potential applications for people with paralysis caused by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, stroke or spinal cord injury. An estimated 5.4 million Americans live with some form of paralysis, according to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.
The research builds on years of NIH investment in brain-computer interface technology, including prior landmark achievements in restoring speech to patients who had lost the ability to talk. The addition of body language represents a qualitative leap in how fully the technology can restore human communication.
Body language — including facial expressions, head movements and gestures — accounts for a significant portion of how humans convey meaning and emotion. Restoring that dimension of communication could substantially improve quality of life for patients whose paralysis isolates them from full social interaction.
Further clinical development will be needed before the device is available for broad patient use, the NIH said. Regulatory review by the Food and Drug Administration would be required before commercial deployment.
The research represents a convergence of advances in neuroscience, artificial intelligence and medical device engineering that has accelerated rapidly in recent years, with multiple teams and companies competing to develop increasingly capable brain-computer interfaces.