Intracranial stereo-EEG analysis during grasping movement and intent: a neuroscientific and brain-machine interface study (DeepMotionBMI)

Main Investigators: 

• Prof. Kenneth Camilleri, Centre for Biomedical Cybernetics 
• Dr Tracey Camilleri, Department of Systems and Control Engineering 
• Prof. Giuseppe De Giovanni, Department of Physiology and Biochemistry
• Dr Fausto Caruana, University of Parma 
• Ms Ella Miceli Farrugia, Department of Systems and Control Engineering, Research Support Officer I (part-time)

Funding Body: RIDT Brain Research Fund of the Malta Neuroscience Network.

Began: May 2017

Completed: December 2024

Summary

In this project, in collaboration with the University of Parma, intracranial stereo-EEG data collected from patients during voluntary opening and closing of a set of normal and reverse-action pliers together with a signal representing the position of the pliers are analysed with the objective to throw light on the human neural basis of the opening and closing motor actions and on the higher level intentional grasping action which can be differentiated from the data obtained when subjects used the normal versus the reverse-action pliers.  Furthermore, this project seeks to perform single trial classification of the open-close events in the context of brain-machine interfaces, building our track record of work on scalp EEG brain-computer interfacing, which in turn may be used to control external devices without muscle control, or to drive neural prostheses.