A bidirectional peripheral neural interface for restoring sensorimotor function of non-human primates

Upper limb loss is a big disaster and markedly affects the quality of life. Bidirectional peripheral neural interface (PNI) is a feasible way to restore the sensorimotor functions of amputees. Bidirectional interface includes motor commands decoding and sensory feedback restoring. In this paper, we presented two neurobehavioral platforms for studying bidirectional PNI in the monkey. In the first platform, the monkey was guided to do reaching and grasping tasks meanwhile cortical and peripheral neural signals were recorded, motor commands can be decoded. In the other platform, the monkey was guided to express tactile sensation into motor action; sensory feedback restoring can be seen from the action of the monkey. We designed a bidirectional PNI and tried to achieve it, many substantial challenges still remains.