With a minimally intrusive surgical operation, certain patients will be able to send text messages with their mobile phones but using only their brains.
For decades, many technology companies have been thinking of an advance that would allow humans to control the mobile phone with just their hands. mind, something that seems to be taken from a science fiction movie, but that is already possible. And we are not talking about a project of Elon Musk.
We can now send messages with the mobile only with our mind and without the need for a computer, only with the brain and with a small surgical intervention that many will be surprised by.
As pointed out from traffic lighta retired software vendor from Melbourne, Rodney Gorhamwho suffers from ALS disease, has used his brain to send a text message through an iPad.
For this the company synchrobased in New York, has made a device that can be surgically implanted in the brain.
Synchron is the first company to gain approval from the US Food and Drug Administration to conduct clinical trials with a computer-enabled brain implant.
They currently have six patients using the device called Synchron Switch and specifically Gorham is the first to use it with an Apple product.
“We are very happy with iOS and Apple products because they are so ubiquitous. And this is the first input of this brain switch on the device”, he points out Tom Oxleyco-founder and CEO of Synchron.
This is how the brain implant works
For us to understand its operation, this device has a series of sensors called Stentrode that are inserted into the upper part of the brain through a blood vessel and that can be controlled wirelessly by a device placed on the patient’s chest.
If the US Food and Drug Administration finally approves this technology in widespread use, its makers believe computerized brain implants could become the standard among people with disabilities.
At the moment this technology is not designed so that patients can enjoy video games using only their brains or to write complex sentences, but yes to give concise answers.
“What’s really exciting about this project is that they’ve done something innovative and connected it to something that’s standard.”, he points out Gillian Hayesprofessor of computer science at the University of California, Irvine.
Getting ahead of Neuralink
The funny thing is that Synchron has been ahead of the competition like Elon Musk himself with Neuralink. The idea of neurolink is to allow humans to control mobile devices like iPhones with brain implants, and even play video games like Pong.
Synchron’s implants are intended to be permanent and have so far lasted more than a year in at least four patients, noting that there have been no reports of “serious adverse events” related to the device.
Synchron does not place sensors directly in the brain, if not it brings them close enough when inserting them through the jugular veinwhich runs right through the center of the brain, where the motor cortex is located.
If this technology becomes popular and reaches all the people who need it, it will be relatively easy to control the mobile phone with the mind.