Building a Working Robot Step-by-Step

In 2006, engineers and scientists from Honda's ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories used an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) machine to control Asimo simply by thinking. They had developed an interface (a means of communication between humans and machine) that measures a person's brain signals. These signals are then relayed to Asimo. In the test, the person in the MRI first made a fist and then a V-symbol (a peace sign) with the index and middle fingers. Asimo imitated both gestures just seconds later. A similar system could eventually be used by humans to control all manner of machines, from a keyboard to bionic implants that could allow a person with spinal cord injuries to move their limbs simply by consciously thinking motion commands.