Chapter 277: Brain-Machine Interface Technology
After obtaining the holographic imaging technology, the bionic technology quickly broke through its previous bottleneck. In less than a month, a bionic prosthesis was sent to Chen Chen.
This gadget called a bionic prosthesis had no head, only extending up to the neck. Its overall appearance was masculine, only there was no genitalia. In addition, the torso and limbs were painted to be flesh-colored, with only the gaps between the joints revealing that this was not a normal human body.
As he stared at this gadget that looked like a sutured monster, Chen Chen could not help raising his eyebrows.
“This is the bionic prosthesis based on the integration of bionic and mechanical technology from many movies.”
Little X explained, “The arms, spine, legs, internal organs — the bionic prosthesis can be divided into these four sections. The four sections are a.s.sembled to form a complete bionic prosthesis. When they are taken apart, they become separate bionic prostheses and artificial internal organs.”
As Little X spoke, the Black Knights standing on both sides of the bionic prosthesis began to take it apart before their eyes, quickly dismantling it into eight pieces, then spent a few minutes to rea.s.semble it.
“The bone structure of the bionic prosthesis is made of t.i.tanium alloy, the outer sh.e.l.l is made of elastic polyethylene to simulate muscle tissue, and the joints are constructed with normal-temperature superconductors. The Meissner effect induced within can perpetually maintain a gap of 0.5 mm between the bearings. This is a completely frictionless bearing technology.”
“In other words, the joints will have zero resistance and zero wear?”
Chen Chen stepped forward and asked while fiddling with the arm of the bionic prosthesis.
“That’s true in principle, but the actual effects will need to be tested before we reach a conclusion.”
Little X replied. Seeing that Chen Chen did not ask any more questions, it said again, “The best control mechanism for the bionic prosthesis is still the G.o.d chip, which can convert the nerve impulses transmitted from the human brain into electrical signals, then a.s.sign them to the bionic prosthesis. In the bionic prosthetic body, we have implanted nano-scale electrodes to act as nerves, according to the technology in the movies. This allows the user to experience tactile sensations that are very realistic.
“In terms of strength and agility, it can be adjusted according to power. Its maximum strength is 500N. If this is exceeded, the t.i.tanium alloy skeleton of the body is likely to become deformed.
“As for the battery, what we’re using for now is the high-efficiency hydrogen fuel cell, which allows users to remain mobile for a week to half a month.”
After listening to Little X’s explanation, Chen Chen asked again, “What about the digestive system?”
“That’s the function of the artificial internal organs.”
Little X continued. “In terms of internal organs, there are three — the artificial heart, artificial lung, and artificial stomach. Both the artificial heart and artificial lung can supply adequate oxygen and blood pressure according to the needs of users, while the artificial stomach can only digest nutrient fluid and water for now. It’s unable to consume food like ordinary people.”
“In other words, even if the user has only one brain left or even only one part of the brain, they can still be carried around upon this body and move like a normal person?”
Chen Chen asked.
“Yes, although we’ve only scratched the surface by combining the bionic technologies of various movies, we’ve still developed a mature bionic prosthesis. If the user has only lost their arms or legs, the limbs of this bionic prosthesis can still be taken off and transplanted to the user.”
Hearing this, Chen Chen smiled spontaneously. “Very good. But its level of technology is still too high. We need to simplify it.”
“You’re planning to commercialize it?” Little X understood at once.
“That’s right. Only commercialization will expand the influence of Blacklight Biotechnology in the world.”
Chen Chen replied, “I’ve been taking NZT-48 and reflecting for a long time recently, and the more I think about it, the more it seems that danger lurks all around us. X, aren’t you curious?”
“You mean the various anomalies of the Earth Federation?” Little X immediately understood what Chen Chen was referring to.
“Yes, during this period, I’ve been thinking, what has happened to humankind that led to the resolute decision of various countries to form the Earth Federation in 1992? And recently, how did they foresee the danger of the sculptures and the epidemic?”
Chen Chen paced slowly around the room. “Besides, what worries me even more is, will there be a possibility that one day, our existence will be antic.i.p.ated by the Federation?”
“If they really have the means to predict crises, that’s indeed possible to some extent.”
Little X exclaimed, “Moreover, we don’t have any defensive measures.”
“Thus, with each day that I don’t have an answer, I can barely sleep or eat peacefully.”
Chen Chen said solemnly, “I need to continue becoming stronger. While improving the company’s hard power, I’ll gradually approach the truth and try to find out the answer. Now it has been a long time since the launch of the three anti-cancer drugs. Launching a new product every half a year is the perfect frequency, so this time, let’s unveil the bionic prosthetic technology.”
“So, if it’s simplified, besides the elimination of the frictionless bearing technology, what other technologies should be eliminated?” Little X asked.
“In addition to the frictionless bearing technology that requires normal-temperature superconductors, the G.o.d chip must be taken out. As for its replacement, I think the brain-machine interface technology is good enough.”
Chen Chen said thoughtfully, “The ‘lace electrode’ that Musk launched in 2020 is a readily available choice. We can send someone to contact them and see if we can obtain the rights to use their company’s ‘lace electrode’.”
The brain-machine interface, in simple terms, was the use of a device to fuse the human brain with a computer. The brain-machine interface was such a device that played the role of this connection.
Generally speaking, brain-machine interfaces were divided into three categories, namely, invasive brain-machine interfaces, semi-invasive brain-machine interfaces, and non-invasive brain-machine interfaces.
With invasive brain-machine interfaces, the device was inserted into the cerebral cortex. This type of brain-machine interface would obtain high-quality neural signals. This equipment was mainly used for treatment purposes, such as restoring the vision of the blind or restoring the motor functions of paralyzed patients.
Semi-invasive brain-machine interfaces were those that were implanted in the cranial cavity but did not penetrate deep into the cerebral cortex.
The last type was non-invasive brain-machine interfaces. As the name suggested, this referred to those brain-machine interfaces that functioned without being implanted in the brain, such as electroencephalography (EEG).
Across all types, useful control signals must be pa.r.s.ed from the complicated cerebral cortex for the interface to work. Still, the invasive brain-machine interface would undoubtedly be much more accurate, while the least precise one was the non-invasive kind.
Now that brain-machine interfaces were leading the world, there existed companies like Neuralink, owned by the famous “real-life Iron Man” Elon Musk. This was why Chen Chen’s first choice was the “lace electrode” technology.
“In addition, we can hold back the artificial organ technology for now.”
After thinking about it, Chen Chen said a.n.a.lytically, “After all, these technologies are still a little startling. Our customers are only those with disabilities. Few people would be willing to abandon their entire body and preserve only their head unless they have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.”
“Understood. Shall we continue researching bionic prosthetic technology then?” Little X asked.
“Of course.”
Chen Chen said matter-of-factly, “Not only that, but I also hope to come up with the ma.s.s-produced versions of Terminator’s T-800 and NS-5 as soon as possible. These can make up for our lack of personnel. Moreover, we can try to manufacture the artificial skin from Alien, just like the cyborg’s.”
With that said, Chen Chen looked at the bionic prosthesis in front of him. He had to admit that although the bionic prosthesis was flesh-colored, its plastic gloss could be discerned at a glance. “Only when we combine the bionic prosthesis and the artificial skin will users feel a much stronger desire to buy it. After all, one type can be easily recognized as a prosthesis and the other type looks no different from the human body. Do users still need to think about which one to choose?”
“Artificial skin technology isn’t too difficult. We can replicate it in about two months.” Little X promised definitively.