Israeli Sniff-Detector Allows Paralyzed People to Write Messages, Surf the Net and Drive a Wheelchair

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Israeli Sniff-Detector Allows Paralyzed People to Write Messages, Surf the Net and Drive a Wheelchair

Posted by JCOPrss 34 days ago Jewish World News| israeli sniffdetector paralyzed people write messages surf net drive wheelchair All

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com — (Discover)
In Israel's Loewenstein Rehabilitation Hospital, a 51-year-old woman who was paralyzed by a stroke is completely aware, but unable to move or speak. To communicate, she uses a "sniff controller" to control machines with her nose.
Developed at the Weizmann Institute of Science, when a patient sniffs, the device measures the change in pressure inside the nose and converts this into electrical signals that are passed to a computer.
With just a sniff, people can move a cursor on a screen, allowing locked-in patients to write messages. Quadriplegics can even use the device to surf the web, or drive a wheelchair.