Revolutionary robots guided by real-time 3D magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning would enable reliable and precise minimally invasive operations with minimal recovery time. On the other hand, using a robotic interface in conjunction with functional MRI (fMRI) would enable neuroscientists to 'view' and investigate the brain mechanisms involved in performing tasks with arbitrary dynamics. There is, however, a major problem for robots working within an MRI environment: conventional materials, actuators and sensors interfere with the static magnetic field, switching magnetic field gradients and radio frequency (RF) signals generated by the MR scanner.
In this project we are developing a comprehensive robot technology compatible with MRI and fMRI, i.e. actuators, sensors, electronic hardware and software able to exert computer-controlled force/torque simultaneously to the imaging. These manipulators are safe, and smooth enough to interact with human motion. The control is based on existing PC technology and can be synchronized with commercially available scanners. We have developed several haptic interfaces to investigate the control of wrist, arm and finger movements as well as tactile sensing, for neuroscience groups in Europe and Japan.
This is a collaborative project between the group of Hannes Bleuler at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL) and the group of Etienne Burdet at Imperial College London, which currently involves Dominique Chapuis at EPFL and Roger Gassert at Imperial.
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