Interfacing Sensors With the Nervous System: Lessons From the Development and Success of the Cochlear Implant

The cochlear implant is the most successful neural prosthesis to date and may serve as a paradigm for the development or further development of other systems to interface sensors with the nervous system, e.g., visual or vestibular prostheses. This paper traces the history of cochlear implants and describes how the current levels of performance have been achieved. Lessons and insights from this experience are presented in concluding sections.