Using Machine Learning To Help People With Paralysis Regain Independence - Pioneering Minds

Machine learning is an application of artificial intelligence (AI) that provides systems the ability to automatically learn and improve from experience without being explicitly programmed. To help modify current brain-computer interfaces, Zachary Danziger, an assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering housed within the College of Engineering & Computing, was awarded a $1.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Danziger is creating a less invasive and more interactive model, called the joint angle brain-computer interface (jaBCI), to help improve brain-computer interface's brain decoding algorithms before the device is implanted in the brain. This model is referred to as the jaBCI because it is powered by people's finger joint angles instead of neurons. The system can potentially help people who are paralyzed to regain their independence and ability to communicate.