SUMMARY
UCLA researchers in the Department of Bioengineering have developed a portable and implant/wearable 32-channel neural stimulator system that supports non-periodic protocols.
BACKGROUND
The use of electrical neural stimulation is an effective way to treat and research neurological diseases. Recent studies have demonstrated that non-periodic waveforms are more effective that periodic electrical when stimulating neural tissue. However, existing programmable stimulators that support non-periodic protocols are not portable and their architecture is not compatible with wearable or implant applications. Therefore, there is a need for improved, non-periodic neural stimulators that are compatible with wearables and implants to aid in patient treatment.
INNOVATION
UCLA researchers in the Department of Bioengineering developed a portable and implant/wearable 32-channel neural stimulator system that supports non-periodic protocols. The stimulator is based on an implantable System-On-Chip (SoC) system, designed to be portable, powered by a single battery, wirelessly controlled, and versatile to perform multichannel stimulation with independent arbitrary waveforms. Furthermore, the system was successfully developed and demonstrated to mimic neuronal firing patterns using randomly spaced stimulation pulses, demonstrating its ability as a more effective neural therapy for patients.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS
ADVANTAGES
RELATED MATERIALS
DEVELOPMENT TO DATE
Prototype that provides stimulation waveform mimicking standard biological signals was shown as first successful demonstration