Researchers create new technologies that could enable better prosthetic limb control systems

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  • Researchers from Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a sophisticated method to track muscle movements using just a few magnets, which they think will make it simpler for people who have lost limbs to control prosthetic limbs.

Researchers have just published a new pair of publications in the journal Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology that show how their magnet-based system, which measures muscle length during movement, is both precise and secure. The tests, which were carried out using animal models, raise the possibility that the tactic could be applied to assist users of prosthetic devices in controlling them in a way that more closely resembles that of their own natural limbs.

A biology professor in Brown’s Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology affiliated with the Warren Alpert Medical School and a co-author of both papers, the findings advance our understanding of how muscles change length, produce force, and produce power during physical movement.

“This method gives us the ability to measure muscle mechanical function during everyday movements, which is essential for understanding how muscles work to move us around,” said Roberts, whose research aims to integrate knowledge of muscle physiology with cutting-edge methods in functional morphology and biomechanics. The usage of this new technology extends beyond the lab.

In one experiment, scientists demonstrated that they could precisely gauge the size of a turkey’s calf muscle while it was running, jumping, and engaging in other natural motions. Another study revealed that when implanted in muscle, the tiny magnetic beads used for the measurements did not result in inflammation or other negative effects.

These most recent findings show that this technique may be applied outside of the lab to monitor muscle activity while engaging in normal exercise. It also suggests that it does not cause discomfort, co-author of both publications and a research scientist at MIT.

Hugh Herr is a professor of media arts and sciences and a K. associate member of the McGovern Brain Institute and the Lisa Yang Bionics Center at MIT.

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