MIT Researchers Use Magnetic Beads to Improve Prosthetic Control

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have shown that tiny magnetic beads implanted inside muscle tissue can accurately track muscle movement, Mirage News reported. The new study, published in Nature Sensors, offers an alternative method for guiding artificial limbs. [1]

Hugh Herr, senior author of the study and professor at MIT, explained that standard prosthetic control has relied on skin electrodes to measure electrical muscle activation for four decades. He noted that electrical activation alone cannot directly measure mechanical signals such as joint position, torque, or impedance necessary to control a prosthetic limb. [1]

A prosthesis is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part lost through trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth, and can restore lost body functions. Other recent efforts to improve prosthetic limb control include trials in Melbourne, Australia, where patients received under-skin implants to measure muscle signals, as HEROIC BREAKING NEWS reported earlier. [2][3][4]