Estimation of Walking Speed for Controlling Vehicle Using Neural Signals from Primary Motor Cortex of Rat

A prototype of a small vehicle controlled by the neural signals from the primary motor cortex of a rat´s brain that we named ´RatCar´ system has been developed. We implanted wire electrodes in the regions of a rat´s brain that control the hind limbs to chronically record its neural signals. Next, we assumed a linear model to estimate the walking speed of a rat by the weighted firing rates in the primary motor cortex. Then, with this information, we determined the approximate straight-line movement of the vehicle corresponding to the walking behavior of a rat. Although the movement is still limited, it suggested the possibility for our model-based approach to control the system. An overview of our system and the methods used to process the neural signals are described in this paper. It also contains a mapping of the functional localization in the primary motor cortex, a chronically reliable measurement, and an evaluation of our model that estimates the walking speed from the neural signals