Proceedings of the Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBS, 2011
Humans experience the self as localized within their body. This aspect of bodily self-consciousne... more Humans experience the self as localized within their body. This aspect of bodily self-consciousness can be experimentally manipulated by exposing individuals to conflicting multisensory input, or can be abnormal following focal brain injury. Recent technological developments helped to unravel some of the mechanisms underlying multisensory integration and self-location, but the neural underpinnings are still under investigation. This paper presents the development and evaluation of an MR-compatible stroking device capable of presenting moving tactile stimuli to both legs and the back of participants lying on a scanner bed while acquiring functional neuroimaging data. The platform consists of four independent stroking devices with a travel of 16-20 cm and a maximum stroking velocity of 15 cm/s, actuated over nonmagnetic ultrasonic motors. Complemented with virtual reality, this setup provides a unique research platform allowing to investigate multisensory integration and its effects on selflocation under well-controlled experimental conditions. The MR-compatibility of the system was evaluated in both a 3 and a 7 Tesla scanner and showed negligible interference with brain imaging. In a preliminary study using a prototype device with only one tactile stimulator, fMRI data acquired on 12 healthy participants showed visuo-tactile synchrony-related modulations in bilateral temporo-parietal cortex.
IEEE/RSJ 2010 International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, IROS 2010 - Conference Proceedings, 2010
... control PC MRI user console ... We thank Jordi Campos Carol and Francois Barrot for their con... more ... control PC MRI user console ... We thank Jordi Campos Carol and Francois Barrot for their contribution to the design and evaluation of the ... staff of the imaging center at the University Hospital Vaudois (CHUV) for the valuable discussions and support during the compatibility tests. ...
IEEE International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics, 2013
The field of brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) has made great advances in recent years, converting ... more The field of brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) has made great advances in recent years, converting thought to movement, with some of the most successful implementations measuring directly from the motor cortex. However, the ability to record from additional regions of the brain could potentially improve flexibility and robustness of use. In addition, BMIs of the future will benefit from integrating kinesthesia into the control loop. Here, we examine whether changes in passively induced forefinger movement amplitude is represented in different regions than forefinger velocity using an MR compatible robotic manipulandum. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), five healthy participants were exposed to combinations of forefinger movement amplitude and velocity in a factorial design followed by an epoch-based analysis. We found that primary and secondary somatosensory regions were activated, as well as cingulate motor area, putamen and cerebellum, with greater activity from changes in velocity compared to changes in amplitude. This represents the first investigation into whole brain response to passive movement kinematics. In addition to informing BMIs, these results have implications towards neural correlates of robotic rehabilitation.
Proceedings of the Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBS, 2011
Humans experience the self as localized within their body. This aspect of bodily self-consciousne... more Humans experience the self as localized within their body. This aspect of bodily self-consciousness can be experimentally manipulated by exposing individuals to conflicting multisensory input, or can be abnormal following focal brain injury. Recent technological developments helped to unravel some of the mechanisms underlying multisensory integration and self-location, but the neural underpinnings are still under investigation. This paper presents the development and evaluation of an MR-compatible stroking device capable of presenting moving tactile stimuli to both legs and the back of participants lying on a scanner bed while acquiring functional neuroimaging data. The platform consists of four independent stroking devices with a travel of 16-20 cm and a maximum stroking velocity of 15 cm/s, actuated over nonmagnetic ultrasonic motors. Complemented with virtual reality, this setup provides a unique research platform allowing to investigate multisensory integration and its effects on selflocation under well-controlled experimental conditions. The MR-compatibility of the system was evaluated in both a 3 and a 7 Tesla scanner and showed negligible interference with brain imaging. In a preliminary study using a prototype device with only one tactile stimulator, fMRI data acquired on 12 healthy participants showed visuo-tactile synchrony-related modulations in bilateral temporo-parietal cortex.
IEEE/RSJ 2010 International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, IROS 2010 - Conference Proceedings, 2010
... control PC MRI user console ... We thank Jordi Campos Carol and Francois Barrot for their con... more ... control PC MRI user console ... We thank Jordi Campos Carol and Francois Barrot for their contribution to the design and evaluation of the ... staff of the imaging center at the University Hospital Vaudois (CHUV) for the valuable discussions and support during the compatibility tests. ...
IEEE International Conference on Rehabilitation Robotics, 2013
The field of brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) has made great advances in recent years, converting ... more The field of brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) has made great advances in recent years, converting thought to movement, with some of the most successful implementations measuring directly from the motor cortex. However, the ability to record from additional regions of the brain could potentially improve flexibility and robustness of use. In addition, BMIs of the future will benefit from integrating kinesthesia into the control loop. Here, we examine whether changes in passively induced forefinger movement amplitude is represented in different regions than forefinger velocity using an MR compatible robotic manipulandum. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), five healthy participants were exposed to combinations of forefinger movement amplitude and velocity in a factorial design followed by an epoch-based analysis. We found that primary and secondary somatosensory regions were activated, as well as cingulate motor area, putamen and cerebellum, with greater activity from changes in velocity compared to changes in amplitude. This represents the first investigation into whole brain response to passive movement kinematics. In addition to informing BMIs, these results have implications towards neural correlates of robotic rehabilitation.
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Papers by J. Duenas