Apparatus and methods for polychronous encoding and multiplexing in neuronal prosthetic devices

A sensory input encoding apparatus, comprising:

• a processing apparatus configured to receive and encode a sensory input into a plurality of pulses, the sensory input comprising information indicative of an object characteristic, and the processing apparatus is further configured to encode at least a portion of the plurality of pulses in a first polychronous pattern comprising at least two non-synchronous pulses;
• wherein the first polychronous pattern is characterized by a group delay that is common to all pulses within the plurality of pulses, the group delay configured based at least in part on the sensory input;
• wherein the sensory input comprises a visual input signal;
• and
• wherein the group delay is based at least in part on an output generated by a spatiotemporal filter using the sensory input.

A sensory input encoding apparatus, comprising:

• a processing apparatus configured to receive and encode a sensory input into a plurality of pulses,
• the sensory input comprising information indicative of an object characteristic;
• and
• and the processing apparatus being further configured to encode at least a portion of the plurality of pulses in a first polychronous pattern comprising at least two non-synchronous pulses;
• wherein the first polychronous pattern is characterized by a group delay that is common to all pulses within the plurality of pulses, the group delay configured based at least in part on the sensory input;
• wherein the first polychronous pattern is adapted for transmission via a plurality of transmission channels;
• and
• wherein at least a subset of the plurality of transmission channels is associated with a channel delay configured to effect a coincident arrival of the at least two non-synchronous pulses at a decoder.

A sensory input encoding apparatus, comprising:

• a processing apparatus configured to receive and encode a sensory input into a plurality of pulses,
• the sensory input comprising information indicative of an object characteristic;
• and
• and the processing apparatus being further configured to encode at least a portion of the plurality of pulses in a first polychronous pattern comprising at least two non-synchronous pulses;
• wherein the first polychronous pattern is characterized by a group delay that is common to all pulses within the plurality of pulses, the group delay configured based at least in part on the sensory input;
• wherein the first polychronous pattern is adapted for transmission via individual ones of a plurality of transmission channels;
• and
• wherein at least a subset of the plurality of the transmission channels is configurable based on a second polychronous pattern generated prior to the first polychronous pattern.