Brain Interface, Robotic Legs May Restore Paralysis Mobility

Researchers develop a brain-computer interface that allows patients to control robotic legs and feel the sensation of walking.

Apr. 16, 2026 at 11:21am

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A bold, abstract painting in soft earth tones depicting the intricate neural pathways and sensory feedback loops of a brain-computer interface system that allows users to control a robotic exoskeleton with their thoughts and feel the sensation of walking.A revolutionary brain-computer interface system aims to restore both mobility and sensation for those living with paralysis, using a robotic exoskeleton controlled by the mind.Irvine Today

A team of researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has developed a fully implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) that allows patients to use their thoughts to control wearable robotic legs, known as a robotic exoskeleton. The system is designed to help patients walk while also restoring the sensation of walking. In early tests, the BCI was about 92% accurate at both reading step signals from the brain and delivering an artificial walking sensation.

Why it matters

Restoring both walking and sensation to patients with paraplegia is an ambitious goal that could significantly improve the quality of life for those living with spinal cord injuries. Unlike existing BCIs that only send signals in one direction, from brain to device, this new system adds a feedback loop that allows the brain to feel what the body is doing, providing a more natural and intuitive control of the robotic exoskeleton.

The details

The system works by placing electrodes on the brain's surface over the motor cortex, the region responsible for movement, to detect when the patient intends to step. Those signals then control the robotic exoskeleton, triggering a step. At the same time, the system sends signals to electrodes on the sensory cortex, the part of the brain that feels touch, to mimic the feeling of walking. This bidirectional, or two-way, system could someday give people with spinal cord injuries the chance to walk with more natural control.

  • The researchers' early proof-of-concept study was done in a patient with epilepsy who had electrodes implanted as part of her medical care.
  • The researchers have earned an Investigational Device Exemption from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which allows them to test the device in a clinical trial for patients with paraplegia.
  • The researchers aim to implant electrodes for 30 days at a time to test and refine the system's capabilities.

The players

Charles Liu

One of the study's principal investigators, professor of clinical neurological surgery, urology and surgery at the Keck School of Medicine and director of the USC Neurorestoration Center.

Richard A. Andersen

Professor of neuroscience and director of the T&C Chen Brain-Machine Interface Center at Caltech, one of the project's principal investigators.

Zoran Nenadić

Professor of biomedical engineering at UCI and one of the project's principal investigators.

An Do

Principal investigator from UCI.

Payam Heydari

Principal investigator from UCI.

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What they’re saying

“What's really new here is that sensors on the skeleton also trigger stimulation of the brain, so the person can feel every step. The plan is for the technology to be fully implantable, so patients aren't tethered to a large external device.”

— Charles Liu, Professor of clinical neurological surgery, urology and surgery at the Keck School of Medicine and director of the USC Neurorestoration Center

“Paraplegic subjects using exoskeletons must currently rely on visual feedback, but this research provides a new avenue for more naturalistic and effective use of walking exoskeletons.”

— Richard A. Andersen, Professor of neuroscience and director of the T&C Chen Brain-Machine Interface Center at Caltech

“These results are promising, especially given that this patient received no training. We expect the system to perform even better with practice.”

— Charles Liu, Professor of clinical neurological surgery, urology and surgery at the Keck School of Medicine and director of the USC Neurorestoration Center

“This work represents an important feasibility step toward future fully implantable systems. Our ultimate goal is to test the function of such a system on people with complete leg paralysis, demonstrating its potential to mimic the function of an intact sensorimotor loop.”

— Zoran Nenadić, Professor of biomedical engineering at UCI

What’s next

The researchers will continue improving the technology, including making its sensory feedback more sophisticated and miniaturizing the system so it can be fully implanted. They aim to implant electrodes for 30 days at a time to test and refine the system's capabilities in a clinical trial for patients with paraplegia.

The takeaway

This innovative brain-computer interface technology represents a significant step forward in restoring mobility and sensation for individuals living with spinal cord injuries. By creating a bidirectional system that allows the brain to both control and feel the robotic exoskeleton, the researchers are working towards a more natural and intuitive solution that could dramatically improve the quality of life for those with paralysis.