# US 2017/0281086 A1 · Sensors to determine neuronal activity of an organism to facilitate a human-machine interface > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2017/0281086 A1 - Document ID: US20170281086A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 15/420,084 - Filed: 2017-01-30 - Published: 2017-10-05 - Earliest claimed: 2016-04-01 - Assignees: Thomas Alan Donaldson - Inventors: Thomas Alan Donaldson - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20170281086A1 ## CPC - A61B 5/6803: {Head-worn items, e.g. helmets, masks, headphones or goggles} - A61B 5/1118: {Determining activity level} - A61B 5/14532: {for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement} - A61B 5/14542: {for measuring blood gases (A61B5/14551 takes precedence)} - A61B 5/24: Detecting, measuring or recording bioelectric or biomagnetic signals of the body or parts thereof - A61B 5/245: specially adapted for magnetoencephalographic [MEG] signals - A61B 5/7278: {Artificial waveform generation or derivation, e.g. synthesizing signals from measured signals} - G06F 3/015: {Input arrangements based on nervous system activity detection, e.g. brain waves [EEG] detection, electromyograms [EMG] detection, electrodermal response detection} - A61B 2562/0209: Special features of electrodes classified in A61B5/24, A61B5/25, A61B5/283, A61B5/291, A61B5/296, A61B5/053 - A61B 2562/0223: Magnetic field sensors - A61B 2562/066: in a matrix array - A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) ## Abstract Various embodiments relate generally to electrical and electronic hardware, computer software and systems, and wired and wireless network communications to provide an interface between an organism and other computing machine-based entities, and, more specifically, to sensors that facilitate determination of a state of neural activity with which to associate data representing, for example, an intent and/or a command; to implementations of sensors under control to, for example, modify sensing characteristics to interpolate response signals spatially or temporally, or both, to facilitate determination of a state of neural activity; to the formation or implementation of a data model that includes, for example, data arrangements representative of at least neuronal activity to facilitate determination of a state of neural activity; and to mobile human-machine interface to facilitate control based on neuronal activity of an organism. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An apparatus comprising: an array of neuronal activity sensors adapted to confirm to a portion of head adjacent a portion of a brain to detect a subset of neuronal activity types, the array of neuronal activity sensors comprising; a subset of neuronal activity sensors, each of which comprises: one or more electrodes configured to impart an electric field into a plurality of biological tissues; and one or more magnetic field elements configured to receive a magnetic field associated with the electric field; a neuronal sensor transceiver configured to selectably drive a stimulus signal in association with the one or more electrodes to generate the electric field and further configured to receive a response signal that includes data representing an amount of neuron activity; and a physiological activity processor configured to extract the data representing an amount of neuron activity from the response signal and to determine a neuronal state. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the response signal comprises: an induced current. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more magnetic field elements comprises: at least one coil. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more magnetic field elements comprises: at least two coils. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the at least two coils comprise: a first coil having a first diameter and a winding in a first direction; a second coil having a second diameter and a winding in a second direction, wherein one of the first coil and the second coil is configured to generate an induced current to cancel another induced current generated by the other of the first coil and the second coil. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The apparatus of claim 5 wherein at least two coils include concentric coils, the neuronal sensor transceiver is configured to drive a first stimulus signal at a first range of frequencies to a first depth into the biological tissues, and drive a second stimulus signal at a second range of frequencies to a second depth into the biological tissues. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the subset of neuronal activity sensors comprises: a plurality of neuronal activity sensors arranged spatially to be disposed to different portions of the brain; and a plurality of switches controlled by the neuronal sensor transceiver, at least two switches being configured to implement a magnetic field element. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the one or more magnetic field elements comprises: a plurality of overlapping coils, wherein the physiological activity processor is configured to selectably control the driving of a subset of the overlapping coils via the neuronal sensor transceiver. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the physiological activity processor is further configured to determine a value representative of an aggregate of action potentials as the amount of neuron activity. ### Claim 10 An apparatus comprising: an array of physiological activity sensors adapted to couple to a portion of a body to detect a subset of physiological activity types, the array of physiological activity sensors comprising; a subset of physiological activity sensors, each of which comprises: one or more stimuli elements configured to impart a stimulus field into a plurality of biological components; and one or more response elements configured to capture a return field exiting the plurality of biological component; a physiological sensor transceiver configured to selectably drive the stimulus field in association with the one or more stimuli elements to generate the stimulus field and further configured to receive a response signal based on the return field including data representing an amount of physiological activity; and a physiological activity processor configured to extract the data representing the amount of physiological activity from the response signal and to determine a physiological state. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the physiological activity processor comprises: a stimulus signal generator including: a drive frequency modulator configured to modify the frequency of the stimulus field into a range of frequencies; and a drive selector configured to select the range of frequencies to extract the data representing the amount of physiological activity associated with a biological component. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the drive frequency modulator is further configured to generate multiple ranges of frequencies. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the stimulus signal generator comprises: a frequency division multiplexer configured to multiplex the multiple ranges of frequencies substantially simultaneously into the one or more stimuli elements: ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the stimulus signal generator comprises: a time division multiplexer configured to multiplex the multiple ranges of frequencies substantially sequentially into the one or more stimuli elements: ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the subset of physiological activity sensors comprise: at least one of a subset of bio-inductance sensor electrodes and a subset of photonic sensors. ### Claim 16 (depends on 10) The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the physiological state comprises: one or more of a state of neural activity, a state of blood oxygenation, and a state of glucose. ### Claim 17 (depends on 10) The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the subset of physiological activity sensors comprise: a subset of bio-inductance sensors. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The apparatus of claim 17 wherein each of the subset of bio-inductance sensors comprises: one or more magnetic drive coils as the stimuli elements to impart the stimulus field as an induced magnetic field into the plurality of biological components; and one or more search coils as the response elements. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The apparatus of claim 18 wherein at least one of the magnetic drive coils is disposed coaxially to at least one of the search coils. ### Claim 20 (depends on 18) The apparatus of claim 18 wherein the physiological sensor transceiver is configured to drive multiple magnetic drive coils with different stimulus signals each having a different range of frequencies, the physiological sensor transceiver is further configured to detect multiple frequencies at each of a subset of the search coils.