Amputees use new, naturalistic sensory device at home for daily tasks, gain greater sense of personal well-being and connection to loved ones
Paralyzed people might one day be able to operate smartphones and tablets just by thinking about the actions they want to perform, with help from sensors implanted in their brains, a recent experiment suggests.
In the first known study of how amputees use advanced sensory-enabled prostheses outside the lab, subjects used a mechanical hand more regularly and for longer periods of time compared to traditional prostheses—and also reported a greater sense of psychosocial well-being.
In fact, the study asserts that sensory feedback—achieved by direct interfaces attached to the nerves —fundamentally changed how the study participants used their mechanical attachment, “transforming it from a sporadically used tool into a readily and frequently used ‘hand.’”
