Design and Evaluation of a Robotic System for Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Transcranial magnetic stimulation is a noninvasive brain stimulation technique. It is based on current induction in the brain with a stimulation coil emitting a strong varying magnetic field. Its development is currently limited by the lack of accuracy and repeatability of manual coil positioning. A dedicated robotic system is proposed in this paper. Contrary to previous approaches in the field, a custom design is introduced to maximize the safety of the subject. Furthermore, the control of the force applied by the coil on the subject´s head is implemented. The architecture is original and its experimental evaluation demonstrates its interest: the compensation of the head motion is combined with the force control to ensure accuracy and safety during the stimulation.