CN100467087C - Brain nerve electrical stimulation device with remote control of motor behavior - Google Patents

Abstract

A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior, comprising a remote controller, a sound stimulator, a PC, a cranial nerve electrical stimulator, a brain stimulating electrode, and a motion trainer (box). The remote controller sends instructions to the brain nerve electrical stimulator, and then sends the command to the PC through the serial port to start running; at the same time, the brain nerve electrical stimulator sends out corresponding electrical pulses, which enter through the implanted brain stimulating electrodes. The brain stimulates the brain nerves, and the brain nerves control the body to generate motor behavior responses. Movement behavior is carried out in the training box. A sound stimulator is also designed in the system to assist the brain nerve electrical stimulator. Before the electric stimulation, the animals can be stimulated with sound, and the sound signal is sent by the PC. At the same time, the PC sends an electric signal to the copper net in the danger zone of the animal training box through the serial port. When the animal jumps from the danger zone to the other side ( safe zone), send out a signal through the serial port to inform the PC to stop the sound signal by way of infrared control.

Description

Brain nerve electrical stimulation device with remote control of motor behavior

technical field

The invention belongs to the technical field of biomedical engineering, in particular to a brain nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of animal movement behavior.

Background technique

All human or animal activities are controlled by the brain, and the brain's control over human or animal physiological activities is so perfect that no machine can match it. Exploring the mysteries of the brain has become the frontier science of the 21st century. Scientists propose that the 21st century is the "era of brain science", which includes understanding, protecting and creating the brain. At present, most of the brain research is to study the basic structure of the brain, but the study of advanced functions of the brain, such as motor control, learning and memory, emotion, language, consciousness, etc., is much more complicated than the basic structure of the brain, and it may make a breakthrough Sexual progress drives the development of the whole society.

What principle does the brain follow to orderly control the body's motor organs to meet the needs of people's behavioral purposes? It is still an unsolved problem. As people enter the 21st century, scholars in the disciplines of biology, automation and computer have entered this field one after another, engaged in the research of brain science related to this discipline.

The surface layer of the brain is called the cerebral cortex, which is a neural network composed of many nerves. It has different brain function areas and controls the behavior of animals. The so-called behavior is the various interrelated response systems that animals make to adapt to the environment, including the action response to external stimuli, speech and emotional responses. Taking limb movement as an example, it is an electrical signal issued by the motor area of the cerebral cortex or an electrical signal due to stimulation. The electrical signal is transmitted along the nerve fibers from the central nervous system to the peripheral nervous system, and the nervous system recognizes the environment-related Electrical signals, and the interaction between neuron groups and synapses to realize the response events to the signals. At present, the relationship between stimulation mode and motor behavior is still an important topic that needs further research. In this regard, we explore the effect of nerve electrical stimulation on animal behavior, find the relationship between nerve electrical stimulation mode and animal behavior response, and establish a set of animal behavior. Responsive proprietary cranial nerve stimulation system.

Not long ago, researchers at Brown University in the United States implanted an electronic chip in the brain of a severely paralyzed man. When he wanted to move his arm, the chip sent a signal to the computer, and the computer displayed Move the cursor on the screen. In the trial, the patient, who was completely paralyzed from the neck down, was able to do simple things like control a television. German scientists have successfully built a circuit using a silicon chip and nerve cells taken from the brain of a snail. Scientists at Northwestern University in Chicago have designed a robot controlled by the brain of a lamprey. When the robot's sensors detect light, they send a signal to the fish's nerve cells. Nerve cells act on this information, instructing the robot to move toward the light source. This response usually helps the fish follow the correct path in the ocean. However, it has not been reported to control the movement behavior of human body or animals by controlling external electronic devices by remote control.

The device of the present invention is different from other researches. It studies the "brain chip" from another angle, that is, the remote control sends instructions to the brain nerve electrical stimulator, and the stimulator sends out electrical pulses similar to brain nerve pulses to act on the brain nervous system. To direct the movement of people or animals. The above are the characteristics of this device.

Contents of the invention

The purpose of the present invention is to connect the brain with the electronic device and replace part of the brain function with the electronic device. The successful application of this technology in the human body will give the paralyzed patients a new life, and the paralyzed patients can control their personal behavior through the implanted electronic device. This technology has important application significance in the fields of military and public security. It controls the behavior of animals by remote control through electronic devices embedded in the brains of animals, so that animals can move purposefully in areas where humans cannot enter, which will greatly reduce the risk of damage to the environment. Hazardous environments and the dangers faced by humans in the battlefield.

The output terminal of the device of the present invention is a silver-plated stimulating electrode, which is implanted in the brain of the subject; the device of the present invention has a remote control function, through which the device generates different output signals to remotely control the activity of the brain nerves, and finally controls the subject's brain. motor behavior.

The waveform pattern of the brain nerve electrical stimulation pulse signal directly affects the stimulation effect, which is also the key technology of the present invention. A unique stimulation method is established here, that is, the waveform and frequency of stimulating electric pulses are similar to those of nerve electrical pulses generated in the brain, so that the signals generated by electronic devices are similar to the signals of brain activity.

The behavioral response of animals is also a process of learning and memory, and simple stimulation cannot achieve the expected effect without learning and training. Corresponding exercise trainer (box) is provided in the present invention for this reason, and this device is combined with cranial nerve electric stimulation device, sound stimulation device, has constituted a set of perfect cranial nerve electric stimulation device of controlling animal's motor behavior.

The device of the invention includes a remote controller, a sound stimulator, a PC, a brain nerve electrical stimulator, a brain stimulating electrode, and a sports training device (box). The remote control sends instructions to the brain nerve electrical stimulator, and then sends the command to the PC through the serial port to start running; at the same time, the brain nerve electrical stimulator sends out corresponding electrical pulses, which enter through the implanted brain stimulating electrodes. The brain stimulates the brain nerves, and the brain nerves control the body to produce motor behavior responses. Movement behavior is carried out in the training box. In order to formulate the pattern of nerve stimulation electrical signals, a sound stimulator is designed in the system to assist the brain nerve electrical stimulator. Before the electrical stimulation, the animal is first stimulated with sound, and the sound signal is sent by the PC, and at the same time, the PC sends an electric signal to the copper net in the danger zone of the sports trainer or box through the serial port, when the animal jumps from the danger zone to the other side That is, in the safe zone, a signal is sent out through the infrared control mode to notify the PC to stop the sound signal through the serial port.

Wherein, the cranial nerve electrical stimulator includes an oscillating current generating circuit, a power amplifier circuit, a voltage transforming circuit and a remote control output circuit. The stimulation signal emitted by the remote controller is input to the oscillating current generating circuit, the multivibrator of the oscillating current generating circuit outputs a rectangular pulse signal, and then the waveform and frequency of the stimulating signal are adjusted through the sliding rheostat, and the power amplifier circuit amplifies the signal to drive the transformer. The circuit then outputs electrical pulses whose waveform and frequency are similar to those of the nerve electrical pulses generated by the brain, and the signal is emitted by the remote control output circuit.

The oscillating current generation circuit is a multivibrator, the high trigger terminal is connected to the low trigger terminal, grounded through a capacitor, the voltage control terminal is also grounded through a capacitor, the reset terminal is connected to a high potential, and a rectangular pulse signal is obtained at the output terminal. The frequency of stimulation pulses is adjusted through sliding rheostats connected to the high trigger terminal and the discharge terminal.

The power amplifier circuit includes a directly coupled two-stage amplifier, which realizes the power amplification function to drive the transformer circuit.

The voltage transformation circuit includes a coil type AC transformer. The input terminal of the coil type AC transformer is provided with the required current by the power amplifier circuit to drive the coil type AC transformer. The output waveform and frequency of the coil type AC transformer output terminal are consistent with the waveform and frequency of the nerve electrical pulse generated by the brain. similar electrical pulses.

Remote control output circuit, the pulse current adopts remote control output to meet the needs of special work. The operating frequency of the transmitter is 315MHZ, and the receiving module is manufactured by SMD chip technology. It is a super regenerative receiving method, and it contains amplification, shaping and decoding circuits. Press the button of the transmitter, the relay of the receiving module will be closed, the circuit will be turned on, and the pulse current will be output. When the button is released, the relay will be released synchronously, and the circuit will be disconnected.

The sound stimulator hardware consists of a PC and speakers. The voice command is generated by the PC, and the voice generation is realized under the environment of Microsoft Visual C++6.0 by using Microsoft Foundation Class software. The software can generate sinusoidal sound waves of different frequencies and amplitudes, which are output to the speaker by the sound card and used as sound stimulation signals. The software is mainly composed of three parts: information input, wave file generation, and sound playback. The specific implementation steps are as follows:

1) Input basic information, including frequency range, playing time, and frequency change mode, where the difference in frequency change mode is reflected by the rise or fall of the sound;

2) According to the different basic information input, it is analyzed and processed by the PC to generate continuously changing sinusoidal sound wave files and save them in the designated location;

3) When using, choose to play different sound files according to needs, and output different sound signals, so that the subjects can complete different actions according to different sound signals.

The software implementation method of the sound stimulator in the device of the present invention produces sound, and its operation process execution steps are as follows:

Start; input basic information such as frequency change range, play time, frequency change mode, etc.; input file name; create and open the file; write file header and format information; Enter data, select Yes to increment the number of loops and write data; close the file; play a sound if necessary; end.

The sports trainer (box) is divided into two parts: the box body of the trainer (box) and the control device. The control device is connected with the bottom of the trainer (box) box through a copper mesh, so as to achieve the purpose of training by electrically stimulating the soles of the subjects in the trainer (box) box.

Among them, there are two doors on the box body of the trainer (box), and the beam in the middle of the bottom divides the box into two spaces, which are the dangerous area and the safe area. The copper nets at the bottom of the two spaces are powered by different circuits.

After the control device is connected to the power supply, two different voltages are generated through the transformer, one is 140 volts, which is used to control the voltage input to the copper grid; the other is 10 volts, which is used to provide voltage for the electronic devices in the control device. The control device includes an intensity control part and a delay control part, which are respectively used to control the intensity of the voltage and the delay time of the generated voltage after electrification. Finally, two outputs are generated through the switch circuit, which are respectively sent to the copper nets at the bottom of the two spaces of the training device (box).

The present invention establishes a set of experimental research system that controls the brain with electronic devices to control body movement, provides research means for further research in this field, and has important significance for studying the advanced functions of the brain and creating the brain.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of the device of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a block diagram of brain electrical stimulator;

Fig. 3 is the electric pulse schematic diagram that brain nerve electric stimulator produces;

Fig. 4 is the schematic diagram of the electrical circuit of brain nerve stimulator;

Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the remote control output circuit;

Fig. 6 is a circuit schematic diagram of the wireless receiving module;

Fig. 7 is a flow chart of sound stimulation software;

Fig. 8 is three views of the animal training box;

Fig. 9 is a functional block diagram of the control device in the animal training box;

Fig. 10 is a circuit schematic diagram of the control device in the animal training box.

Detailed ways

The device of the present invention will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the device of the present invention includes a remote controller 1100 , a sound stimulator 1000 , a PC 1020 , a brain nerve electrical stimulator 1050 , a brain stimulation electrode 1060 , and a sports training device (box) 1030 . The remote controller 1100 sends an instruction to the brain nerve electrical stimulator 1050, and then sends the instruction to the PC 1020 through the serial port 1040 to start running; at the same time, the brain nerve electrical stimulator 1050 sends out a corresponding electrical pulse, which is passed through the implanted The brain stimulation electrode 1060 enters the brain to stimulate the brain nerve 1090, and the brain nerve 1090 innervates the body to generate a motor behavior response. The athletic activity is performed 1030 within the training box. In order to formulate the pattern of nerve stimulation electrical signals, a sound stimulator 1000 is designed in the system to assist the cranial nerve electrical stimulator 1050 . Before the electrical stimulation, the animal is first stimulated with sound, and the sound signal is sent by the PC. side (safety zone), send a signal with the infrared control mode and notify the PC 1020 to stop the sound signal through the serial port 1010.

Wherein, the cranial nerve electrical stimulator 1050 includes four parts, as shown in FIG. 2 , an oscillating current generating circuit, a power amplifier circuit, a transformer circuit and a remote control output circuit. The stimulation signal emitted by the remote controller is input to the oscillating current generating circuit, the multivibrator of the oscillating current generating circuit outputs a rectangular pulse signal, and then the waveform and frequency of the stimulating signal are adjusted through the sliding rheostat, and the power amplifier circuit amplifies the signal to drive the transformer. The circuit then outputs electrical pulses whose waveform and frequency are similar to those of the nerve electrical pulses generated by the brain, and the signal is emitted by the remote control output circuit.

The brain nerve electrical stimulator 1050 can generate bidirectional current pulses, and its parameters are controllable. The controllable parameters include: positive and negative pulse width T _p and T _n , amplitude I _p and _In , positive and negative pulse interval T _d , stimulation pulse frequency f ₀ . As shown in Figure 3. In addition, according to actual needs, the output pulse should be controlled by remote control.

As shown in Figure 4, I, the oscillating current generating circuit is a multivibrator composed of a 5G555 timer, the high trigger terminal TH (pin 6) is connected with the low trigger terminal TL (pin 2), grounded through a capacitor, and the voltage control terminal (Pin 5) is also grounded through a capacitor, the reset terminal (Pin 4) is connected to a high potential, and the output terminal (Pin 3) can get a rectangular pulse signal. The frequency of the stimulation pulse is adjusted through the sliding rheostats (R ₄ , R ₅ ) connected to the high trigger terminal (pin 6) and the discharge terminal.

As shown in II in Fig. 4, the power amplifier circuit includes directly coupled two-stage amplifiers (Q ₁ , Q ₂ ), which realize the function of power amplification to drive the transformer circuit.

As shown in III in Figure 4, the voltage transformation circuit includes a coil-type AC transformer T1, the input terminal of the coil-type AC transformer is supplied with the required current by the power amplifier circuit to drive the coil-type AC transformer, and the output terminal of the coil-type AC transformer outputs pulses that meet the requirements current. The output terminal of coil type AC transformer outputs pulse frequency 0-50Hz; continuously adjustable pulse width: 0.6ms; output pulse voltage: pulse current of 20V-70V.

As shown in IV in Figure 4, the pulse current is output by remote control. The encoding chip inside the remote control output circuit is a SC2262S encoding chip with a wide body patch. The battery is a small 12-volt battery for A27 remote control. The transmitting antenna is built-in. PCB antenna, the schematic diagram of the circuit is shown in Figure 5. The working frequency of the transmitter is 315MHZ. The receiving module is manufactured by SMD chip technology. It is a super-regenerative receiving method. It contains amplification, shaping and decoding circuits. There are seven terminals in total, which are 10, 11, 12, 13, GND, 17. VCC, where VCC is the 5V power supply terminal, GND is the ground terminal, terminal 17 is the effective decoding output terminal, 10, 11, 12, and 13 are the 10-13 pins of the decoding chip PT2272 (SC2272) integrated circuit, which are four-bit data The latch output terminal can output a high level of about 5V when there is a signal, and the driving current is about 2mA, corresponding to the four buttons on the transmitter. The schematic diagram of the circuit is shown in Figure 6. Press the button of the transmitter, the relay of the receiving module will be closed, the circuit will be turned on, and the pulse current will be output. When the button is released, the relay will be released synchronously, and the circuit will be disconnected.

The hardware of the sound stimulator 1000 is composed of a PC and a loudspeaker. The sound command is generated by the PC, and the sound generation is realized by using Microsoft Foundation Class software in the Microsoft Visual C++6.0 environment, and can generate sine waves of different frequencies and different amplitudes, which are output to the speaker by the sound card for use as Sound stimulus signal. The software is mainly composed of three parts: information input, wave file generation, and sound playback. The software flow chart is shown in Figure 7. The specific implementation steps are as follows:

1. Input basic information, including frequency range, playing time, and frequency change mode, where the difference in frequency change mode is reflected by the rise or fall of the sound;

2. According to the different basic information input, it is analyzed and processed by the PC to generate continuously changing sine wave files and save them in the designated location;

3. When using, choose to play different sound files according to needs, and output different sound signals, so that the subjects can complete different actions according to different sound signals.

The sports trainer (box) 1030 is divided into two parts: the box body of the trainer (box) and the control device. The control device is connected with the bottom of the trainer (box) box through a copper mesh, so as to achieve the purpose of training by electrically stimulating the soles of the subjects in the trainer (box) box.

As shown in Figure 8, there are two doors above the sports training device (box) 1030 box body, and the beam in the middle of the bottom divides the box into two spaces, which are respectively a dangerous area and a safe area. The circuits are powered separately.

The principle block diagram of the control device to realize the control function is shown in Fig. 9 . After the control device is connected to the power supply, two different voltages are generated through the coil transformer, one is 140 volts, which is used to control the voltage input to the copper grid; the other is 10 volts, which is used to provide voltage for the electronic devices in the control device.

The circuit principle of the control device is shown in Figure 10. The control device includes an intensity control part and a delay control part, which are used to control the intensity of the voltage and the delay time of the generated voltage after power-on respectively. Finally, two outputs are generated through the switch circuit, which are respectively sent to the copper nets at the bottom of the two spaces of the training device (box).

During training, animals are put into one side of the safe zone of the box, and the copper grid on the other side (dangerous zone) is powered, so that the animals are familiar with the environment for a while and dare not go to the dangerous zone. After the electrode sends an electric pulse signal to the animal's brain nerve for 2 seconds, the safe zone becomes a dangerous zone, and the rabbit should escape to the other side (safe zone). At this time, the electrical stimulation signal disappears, and the animal stays in the safe zone.

After many times of training, the animal's brain jumps to the other side immediately after receiving the electrical pulse signal. At this time, the dangerous area becomes a safe area, and the other side (dangerous area) has electricity, completing the learning process.

The specific working process of the device is:

The remote controller 1100 sends an instruction to require the animal to jump into the safe zone from the danger zone of the sports training box 1030, and the animal should do a corresponding action, otherwise it will be punished, that is, the PC will send the control to the sports training box 1030 through the serial port 1010. The device sends out a signal: electrify the feet on the side of the dangerous zone where the animal is located in the exercise training box, so that the animal will jump into the side of the safe zone. If it is instructed to jump from the side of the area into the safety area, it will jump from the dangerous area of the exercise training box into the safety area, realizing the purpose of controlling the animal's motor behavior with brain nerve electrical stimulation. In order to pattern the nerve stimulating electrical signals, a sound stimulator 1000 is designed into the system. Before electrical stimulation, animals can be stimulated with sound, and the rest of the process is the same as electrical stimulation.

Firstly, brain stimulation electrodes are installed on the head of the subject—the animal. After the animal adapts, it is put into the training box, and the brain nerve electrical stimulator is placed on the upper part of the training box. The output terminal of the brain nerve electrical stimulator is connected to the animal brain stimulation electrode. When connected, the experimenter holds the remote controller and gives instructions, and the animal jumps from the dangerous area to the safe area on the other side.

Claims (8)

1. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior, characterized in that the device includes a remote controller, a sound stimulator, a PC, a cranial nerve electrical stimulator, a brain stimulating electrode, a sports trainer or a box; Among them, the brain nerve electric stimulator includes an oscillating current generating circuit, a power amplifier circuit, a voltage transformer circuit and a remote control output circuit; the oscillating current generating circuit (I) is a multivibrator, the high trigger end is connected with the low trigger end, and grounded through a capacitor , the voltage control terminal is also grounded through a capacitor, the reset terminal is connected to a high potential, and the output terminal obtains a rectangular pulse signal, and the frequency of the stimulation pulse is adjusted through a sliding rheostat (R4, R5) connected to the high trigger terminal and discharge terminal; the power amplifier circuit (II ) includes a direct-coupled two-stage amplifier (Q1, Q2), which realizes a power amplification function to drive a transformer circuit; the transformer circuit (III) includes a coil-type AC transformer (T1), and the input terminal of the coil-type AC transformer The circuit provides the required current to drive the coil-type AC transformer, and the output terminal of the coil-type AC transformer outputs electrical pulses whose waveform and frequency are similar to the nerve electrical pulse waveform and frequency generated by the brain; the remote control output circuit (IV), the output of the coil-type AC transformer The pulse current is output by remote control to meet special requirements; The working process of the device is as follows: the remote controller sends an instruction to the brain nerve electrical stimulator, and then sends the instruction to the PC through the serial port to start running; at the same time, the brain nerve electrical stimulator sends out a corresponding electric pulse, and the electrical pulse passes through The implanted brain stimulation electrodes enter the brain to stimulate the brain nerves, and the brain nerves control the body to generate motor behavior responses; the motor behaviors are carried out in the training box. 2. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that the sound stimulator is used to assist the cranial nerve electrical stimulator; before electrical stimulation, first use sound stimulation Animals, the sound signal is sent by the PC, and at the same time, the PC sends an electrical signal to the copper net in the danger zone of the sports trainer or box through the serial port. When the animal jumps from the danger zone to the other side of the safe zone, it is controlled by infrared rays. Send a signal to notify the PC to stop the sound signal through the serial port. 3. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the sound stimulator cooperates with the cranial nerve electrical stimulator to produce sound. The specific implementation steps are as follows: 1) Input basic information, including frequency range, playing time, and frequency change mode, where the difference in frequency change mode is reflected by the rise or fall of the sound; 2) According to the different basic information input, it is analyzed and processed by the PC to generate continuously changing sinusoidal sound wave files and save them in the designated location; 3) When using, choose to play different sound files according to needs, and output different sound signals, so that the subjects can complete different actions according to different sound signals. 4. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control exercise behavior as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said exercise trainer or box is divided into two parts: the trainer box and the control device; the control device and the training device The bottom of the cabinet is connected by copper mesh. 5. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control exercise behavior as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that there are two doors on the box of the trainer, and the beam in the middle of the bottom divides the box into two spaces, They are the dangerous zone and the safe zone respectively, and the copper grids at the bottom of the two spaces are powered by different circuits. 6. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the control device generates two different voltages through a coil type AC transformer after being connected to the power supply, and one is used to control Input the voltage of the copper grid, and the other one is used to provide voltage for the electronic devices in the control device. 7. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control of motor behavior as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the control device includes an intensity control part and a delay control part, which are used to control the intensity of the voltage and the voltage after power-on respectively. Delay time to generate voltage. 8. A cranial nerve electrical stimulation device capable of remote control exercise behavior as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the control device generates two outputs through the switch circuit, which are respectively sent to the bottom of the two spaces of the trainer box. copper mesh.

Images