There are those who face extreme disability to the point where they are only able to control their wheelchair by puffing into a straw, also known as sip-and-puff where the user will be able to move and stop their wheelchairs using their breath. However over at Georgia Tech, researchers have recently found a way which could be more efficient than using straws, and this is through the use of the person’s tongue. The school has developed a wearable Tongue Drive System which will allow those who are paralyzed to control their wheelchair just from their tongue, which is reportedly faster compared to using straws.
However this method would require that the person wear a magnetic tongue piercing which is used as a joystick, but the upside is that unlike sip-and-puff, this does not place anything in front of the wearer’s face and would use less equipment, meaning that their entire setup is not as bulky as before. As it stands Georgia Tech’s Tongue Drive System is being trialed at hospitals and labs, although the researchers are hoping to introduce this system on a broader scale in the future.
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