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Main Authors: Jia, Tianyu, Yang, Xingchen, McGeady, Ciaran, Li, Yifeng, Lin, Jinzhi, Ho, Kit San, Pan, Feiyu, Ji, Linhong, Li, Chong, Farina, Dario
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.08454
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author Jia, Tianyu
Yang, Xingchen
McGeady, Ciaran
Li, Yifeng
Lin, Jinzhi
Ho, Kit San
Pan, Feiyu
Ji, Linhong
Li, Chong
Farina, Dario
author_facet Jia, Tianyu
Yang, Xingchen
McGeady, Ciaran
Li, Yifeng
Lin, Jinzhi
Ho, Kit San
Pan, Feiyu
Ji, Linhong
Li, Chong
Farina, Dario
contents Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) promise to extend human movement capabilities by enabling direct neural control of supernumerary effectors, yet integrating augmented commands with multiple degrees of freedom without disrupting natural movement remains a key challenge. Here, we propose a tactile-encoded BCI that leverages sensory afferents through a novel tactile-evoked P300 paradigm, allowing intuitive and reliable decoding of supernumerary motor intentions even when superimposed with voluntary actions. The interface was evaluated in a multi-day experiment comprising of a single motor recognition task to validate baseline BCI performance and a dual task paradigm to assess the potential influence between the BCI and natural human movement. The brain interface achieved real-time and reliable decoding of four supernumerary degrees of freedom, with significant performance improvements after only three days of training. Importantly, after training, performance did not differ significantly between the single- and dual-BCI task conditions, and natural movement remained unimpaired during concurrent supernumerary control. Lastly, the interface was deployed in a movement augmentation task, demonstrating its ability to command two supernumerary robotic arms for functional assistance during bimanual tasks. These results establish a new neural interface paradigm for movement augmentation through stimulation of sensory afferents, expanding motor degrees of freedom without impairing natural movement.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_08454
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Intuitive control of supernumerary robotic limbs through a tactile-encoded neural interface
Jia, Tianyu
Yang, Xingchen
McGeady, Ciaran
Li, Yifeng
Lin, Jinzhi
Ho, Kit San
Pan, Feiyu
Ji, Linhong
Li, Chong
Farina, Dario
Robotics
Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) promise to extend human movement capabilities by enabling direct neural control of supernumerary effectors, yet integrating augmented commands with multiple degrees of freedom without disrupting natural movement remains a key challenge. Here, we propose a tactile-encoded BCI that leverages sensory afferents through a novel tactile-evoked P300 paradigm, allowing intuitive and reliable decoding of supernumerary motor intentions even when superimposed with voluntary actions. The interface was evaluated in a multi-day experiment comprising of a single motor recognition task to validate baseline BCI performance and a dual task paradigm to assess the potential influence between the BCI and natural human movement. The brain interface achieved real-time and reliable decoding of four supernumerary degrees of freedom, with significant performance improvements after only three days of training. Importantly, after training, performance did not differ significantly between the single- and dual-BCI task conditions, and natural movement remained unimpaired during concurrent supernumerary control. Lastly, the interface was deployed in a movement augmentation task, demonstrating its ability to command two supernumerary robotic arms for functional assistance during bimanual tasks. These results establish a new neural interface paradigm for movement augmentation through stimulation of sensory afferents, expanding motor degrees of freedom without impairing natural movement.
title Intuitive control of supernumerary robotic limbs through a tactile-encoded neural interface
topic Robotics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.08454