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# One Giant Bite
VIDEO: Quadriplegic woman powers a robotic arm with her mind
Jan Scheuermann developed a degenerative condition that left her virtually paralysed – unable to move an arm for a decade.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76lIQtE8oDY
(YouTube: upmc)
THESE ARE the moments where a quadriplegic woman who had not moved a limb for ten years was able to control a robotic arm and feed herself a piece of chocolate – - using only her mind.
Jan Scheuermann had been a perfectly healthy woman until developing a degenerative condition that slowly removed her ability to move her limbs, eventually leaving her virtually paralysed.
After seeing TV coverage of a successful trial for a robotic prosthesis, Jan volunteered for an experimental course of research – having electrodes fitted to record her neural signals as she sent commands to her non-functional limbs.
The brainwaves are now fed to a robotic prosthesis, which can combine seven different physical motions – all triggered by its user’s mind – to give Jan a new lease of life.
Read: Explainer: How the prosthetic ‘blades’ of Paralympic athletes work
