Basic Neuro-Robotics

GIF references: All photographs taken by H Muzart. All was assembled by H Muzart. The basic robotics does work, but the neuro-robotics aspects represented here is only for illustrative purposes.

     I have since a very young got into robotics, especially while doing product design & engineering (mechanical, electronic, etc) (2005-2009, 2011-2012) and then neuro-robotics in 2016-2018, 2020+ (in terms of real products & digital tools to test out basic simulations of these). 

I have a background in physics/engineering and training in biosciences, and there are 2 aspects when looking at robotics:

 1) Body phenotypes being emulated in the levers and physics of the musculoskeletal biomechanics and structural mechano- engineering and materials textures & tensile strengths, and how those interact within themselves an the external environmental objects/architectures.

 2) Systems neurophysiology and the neural electronics of control, functional algorithms in the hardware giving the system/organism basic sentience (response to external forces) and intelligent-appearing behaviour.

So both of these above aim to integrate engineering, biophysiology, and  humanoid/anthropomorphic designs.

See also bioneurotech.com/obmnr .

Small-scale robotic mechanical engineering and electronics

     During 2008, 2011, and later especially in 2017, using physical robot parts, electronics hardware (Elegoo chips) and software (Arduino programming language), I have built simple robots with motors that can move, and lights that can blink at pre-programmed times, with sensor-based turning wheels and arm pulleys on small vehicles.

Basic neuro-robotics

Future Aims: Towards an integration of biomechanics, sensor & motor mechatronics, biomedical-surgical engineering, artificial prosthetics, neuroplasticity, electronics, musculoskeletal electrophysiology, neuromorphometrics, neuromorphic computing, A.I., and automata.

Phase: Currently exploring (esp. non-invasive aspects); more work to be done for the future. Note: The basic robotics electronic components above does functionally work properly, as well as the non-invasive neuro-robotics showcased, but the more advanced neuro-robotics aspects represented in this webpage is only for illustrative purposes.

     Background: Robotics ties into my interests in both engineering and sports biomechanics, and particularly with my interests in psychology because because Cognition and Behaviour and intertwined. Our cognition operates embodied, in a body that can physically move, is subject to physical forces at a macroscopic level, with organs that have distinct metabolic functions, and we can affect the environment around us, which then in turn affects sensory input coming in. So 'Neuro-robotics' also relates to BMIs (brain-machine interfaces), which can be invasive or non-invasive, and also includes the PNS (peripheral nervous system). The idea is to have mind-controlled bots, or mechanobioprosthetics (3D-printed) that biomedical engineers develop, for example artificial hands connected to amputated/paralysed limbs by reconnecting to the nerves from new grafts, based on neuroplasticity also at the cortical level, as well as the 'sixth sense' tech, also with tactile haptic feedback, and non-invasive exo- / invasive endo- skeletons, and BMIs for neurodegenerative disorders (e.g. PD) rather that pharmaceutical or stem cell means. There are also simple wrist-devices, that can sense electrical impulses (non-invasively) from the wrist muscle, and stimulate a remote foreigh hand or a robotic attached hand. The other is to do with small vehicular rodents that have hippocampal navigational algorithms built in (e.g. see work by UCL, Imperial, MIT, Peking U, Tokyo U). The HBP EU project also provides a virtual test platform for 3D virtual neuro-robotics, just like the various institutes for robotics. Also see some other sources ( x x ). Moreover, I have my accounts with the Tesla dashboard autopilot yet to be used. Also, while A.I. and Robotics are different fields, they will need to ultimately integrate. Another hard problem is A.I. and neural consciousness. Ultimately we also need to solve for the dexterity of ape hands and facial expressions, using sensorimotor integration the way animals do it, perhaps with machine learning, based on tactile and sensory visual feedback, etc. Almost every manual and cognitive job a human being does would likely be replaced by a machine. It may not be cost efficient for certain tasks, but is already for heavy machinery and repetitive manual work and low-level cognitive tasks. The only issue is to integrate AI-powered robotic components in symbiosis with fine neural motor movements. Finally, there is the emerging concept (e.g. from the Blue Brain Project and other papers) or neuromorphic computer chips, which can take the form of petri dish artificial neurons or actual fixed  computer chips with special transistors, gates and memory components - but the key is that it also has to be neuromorphic in terms of the underlying operating programs that are pre-built in the chip and can be reprogrammed and are interoperable with other robotic or BMI/BCI components (e.g. in Python, C, Matlab, Arduino), some of which are on e-open-hardware websites where they share those.