{"110351":{"#nid":"110351","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Tongue Drive System Goes Inside the Mouth to Improve Performance and User Comfort","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Tongue Drive System is getting less conspicuous and more\ncapable. Tongue Drive is a wireless device that enables people with high-level\nspinal cord injuries to operate a computer and maneuver an electrically powered\nwheelchair simply by moving their tongues. \u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe newest prototype of the system allows users to wear an\ninconspicuous dental retainer embedded with sensors to control the system. The\nsensors track the location of a tiny magnet attached to the tongues of users.\nIn earlier versions of the Tongue Drive System, the sensors that track the\nmovement of the magnet on the tongue were mounted on a headset worn by the\nuser.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cBy moving the sensors inside the mouth, we have created a Tongue\nDrive System with increased mechanical stability and comfort that is nearly\nunnoticeable,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.ece.gatech.edu\/about\/personnel\/bio.php?id=147\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EMaysam Ghovanloo\u003C\/a\u003E, an associate professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.ece.gatech.edu\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ESchool of\nElectrical and Computer Engineering\u003C\/a\u003E at the Georgia Institute of Technology.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe new intraoral Tongue Drive System was presented and demonstrated\non Feb. 20, 2012 at the IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference in\nSan Francisco. Development of the system is supported by the National\nInstitutes of Health, National Science Foundation, and Christopher and Dana\nReeve Foundation.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe new dental appliance contains magnetic field sensors mounted\non its four corners that detect movement of a tiny magnet attached to the\ntongue. It also includes a rechargeable lithium-ion battery and an induction\ncoil to charge the battery. The circuitry fits in the space available on the\nretainer, which sits against the roof of the mouth and is covered with an\ninsulating, water-resistant material and vacuum-molded inside standard dental\nacrylic.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cOne of the problems we encountered with the earlier headset\nwas that it could shift on a user\u2019s head and the system would need to be\nrecalibrated,\u201d explained Ghovanloo. \u201cBecause the dental appliance is worn\ninside the mouth and molded from dental impressions to fit tightly around an\nindividual\u2019s teeth with clasps, it is protected from these types of\ndisturbances.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen in use, the output signals from the sensors are\nwirelessly transmitted to an iPod or iPhone. Software installed on the iPod\ninterprets the user\u2019s tongue commands by determining the relative position of\nthe magnet with respect to the array of sensors in real-time. This information\nis used to control the movements of a cursor on the computer screen or to\nsubstitute for the joystick function in a powered wheelchair.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EGhovanloo and his team have also created a universal\ninterface for the intraoral Tongue Drive System that attaches directly to a standard\nelectric wheelchair. The interface boasts multiple functions: it not only holds\nthe iPod, but also wirelessly receives the sensor data and delivers it to the\niPod, connects the iPod to the wheelchair, charges the iPod, and includes a\ncontainer where the dental retainer can be placed at night for charging.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn preliminary tests, the intraoral device exhibited an\nincreased signal-to-noise ratio, even when a smaller magnet was placed on the\ntongue. That improved sensitivity could allow additional commands to be\nprogrammed into the system. The existing Tongue Drive System that uses a headset\ninterprets commands from seven different tongue movements.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe ability to train the system with additional commands \u2013\nas many commands as an individual can comfortably remember \u2013 and having all of\nthe commands available to the user at the same time are significant advantages\nover the common sip-n-puff device that acts as a simple switch controlled by\nsucking or blowing through a straw.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EThe researchers plan to begin testing the usability of the intraoral\nTongue Drive System by able-bodied individuals soon and then move onto clinical\ntrials to test its usability by people with high-level spinal cord injuries.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EIn recent months, Ghovanloo and his team have recruited 11 individuals\nwith high-level spinal cord injuries to test the headset version of the system\nat the Atlanta-based Shepherd Center and the Rehabilitation Institute of\nChicago. Trial participants received a clinical tongue piercing and tongue stud\nthat contained a tiny magnet embedded in the upper ball. They repeated two test\nsessions per week during a six-week period that assessed their ability to use\nthe Tongue Drive System to operate a computer and navigate an electric\nwheelchair through an obstacle course.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cDuring the trials, users have been able to learn to use the\nsystem, move the computer cursor quicker and with more accuracy, and maneuver\nthrough the obstacle course faster and with fewer collisions,\u201d said Ghovanloo.\n\u201cWe expect even better results in the future when trial participants begin to use\nthe intraoral Tongue Drive System on a daily basis.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003EGeorgia Tech graduate students Abner Ayala-Acevedo, Xueliang\nHuo, Jeonghee Kim, Hangue Park and Xueli Xiao, and former postdoctoral fellow\nBenoit Gosselin also contributed to this work.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThis project was\nsupported in part by the National Science Foundation (NSF) (Award Nos.\nCBET-0828882, IIS-0953107 and IIS-0803184) and the National Institutes of\nHealth (NIH) (Award No. RC1 EB010915-01). The content is solely the\nresponsibility of the principal investigators and does not necessarily\nrepresent the official views of the NSF or NIH.\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EResearch News \u0026amp; Publications Office\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nGeorgia Institute of Technology\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n75 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 314\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nAtlanta, Georgia  30308  USA\u003C\/strong\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EMedia Relations\nContacts:\u003C\/strong\u003E Abby Robinson (abby@innovate.gatech.edu; 404-385-3364) or John\nToon (jtoon@gatech.edu; 404-894-6986)\u003C\/p\u003E\n\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EWriter: \u003C\/strong\u003EAbby\nRobinson\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Tongue Drive System is getting less conspicuous and more\ncapable. The newest system prototype allows people with high-level spinal cord\ninjuries to wear an inconspicuous dental retainer embedded with sensors to\noperate a computer and electric wheelchair simply by moving their tongues.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The Tongue Drive System is getting less conspicuous and more capable."}],"uid":"27206","created_gmt":"2012-02-19 21:26:36","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:11:44","author":"Abby Vogel Robinson","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2012-02-20T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2012-02-20T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"110321":{"id":"110321","type":"image","title":"Intraoral Tongue Drive System commands","body":null,"created":"1449178201","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:30:01","changed":"1475894728","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:45:28","alt":"Intraoral Tongue Drive System commands","file":{"fid":"194074","name":"tongue_drive_commands_hires.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_commands_hires_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_commands_hires_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":170958,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/tongue_drive_commands_hires_0.jpg?itok=99cJn3CF"}},"110331":{"id":"110331","type":"image","title":"Tongue Drive System dental retainer","body":null,"created":"1449178201","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:30:01","changed":"1475894728","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:45:28","alt":"Tongue Drive System dental retainer","file":{"fid":"194075","name":"tongue_drive_retainer_hires.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_retainer_hires_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_retainer_hires_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":266234,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/tongue_drive_retainer_hires_0.jpg?itok=-u3J7OTZ"}},"110341":{"id":"110341","type":"image","title":"Tongue Drive System interface","body":null,"created":"1449178201","gmt_created":"2015-12-03 21:30:01","changed":"1475894728","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:45:28","alt":"Tongue Drive System interface","file":{"fid":"194076","name":"tongue_drive_holder_hires2.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_holder_hires2_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/tongue_drive_holder_hires2_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":1539884,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/tongue_drive_holder_hires2_0.jpg?itok=doeeFoTi"}}},"media_ids":["110321","110331","110341"],"groups":[{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"}],"categories":[{"id":"145","name":"Engineering"},{"id":"135","name":"Research"}],"keywords":[{"id":"4369","name":"assistive technology"},{"id":"594","name":"college of engineering"},{"id":"24381","name":"dental retainer"},{"id":"24391","name":"intraoral"},{"id":"7132","name":"magnet"},{"id":"8781","name":"Maysam Ghovanloo"},{"id":"166855","name":"School of Electrical and Computer Engineering"},{"id":"8782","name":"Tongue Drive System"},{"id":"1652","name":"wheelchair"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAbby Robinson\u003Cbr \/\u003E\nResearch News and Publications\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:abby@innovate.gatech.edu\u0022\u003Eabby@innovate.gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n404-385-3364\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}