EXTENSIBLE HERMETIC NEURAL INTERFACE MICROSYSTEMS

This proposal will develop an implant capable of recording and wirelessly transmitting electrophysiological signals from a wide variety of anatomical locations for the purposes of prosthesis control. Such an implant does not exist and will be of great benefit to the prosthesis community. Additionally, an implant with these capabilities will have a significant number of other clinical applications including providing feedback to neurostimulators for better therapeutic treatments and detecting biomarkers for diseases like epilepsy, stroke, and Parkinsons disease. This implant will also have great utility for neuroscientists and neuroengineers by providing a means to wirelessly collect data from freely behaving subjects in their research. This proposal lays the foundation for producing an implant that can satisfy the demanding requirements for this wide range of applications. During Phase I, research and development will focus on the most critical requirements to make the proposed device a reality. This project will result in a next generation implant that can meet all the practical requirements of a clinical device, while greatly expanding the functionality and applications not possible with current medical device technologies.