Researchers develop piercing which allows to control wheelchairs

A group of researchers of the United States developed a piercing that is placed in the language of quadriplegics and allows them to control wheelchairs.

This piercing, which is actually a magnetic button and resembles a jewel, works like a joystick and provides more mobility and independence for people paralyzed. The new system was tested on 11 volunteers and, according to the researchers, patients learned quickly to use the equipment, which not only allows them to drive your wheelchair as well as using a computer.

"It's really powerful [equipment] because it's very intuitive," said John DiSanto, one of the volunteers, told Reuters.

The system of control of the wheelchair runs through a headset that detects the position of the tongue when the user moves the magnetic button. The headset sends movement information to a smartphone that the user owns. Subsequently, an application sends the information to the control of the wheelchair.

The researchers chose to develop this technology in the form of piercing the tongue because, second, biomedical engineer Maysam Ghovanloo who created the system, is an appliance that does not cause blockage is easy to use and flexible ". Most quadriplegics can't move the language, since it is a movement that does not involve the muscle contraction.

The appliance is already betraying the attention of various specialists, which reiterate the need of more assertive technologies, making it possible to customize the care for people with low mobility. "For people who have a very limited mobility to control an electric wheelchair there aren't many options," says Brad Dicianno, Centro Medico rehabilitation specialist at the University of University of Pittsburgh. "This control with the tongue promises to be something interesting," he adds.

The tests were only conducted in laboratories. In order to be able to commercialize the system you need to test it before the real everyday obstacles.

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