ArticleScience robotics2021
Robotic hand augmentation drives changes in neural body representation.
Article in Science robotics, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 52 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
52 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 154 citations in OpenAlex.
- Neural correlates of phantom motor execution: A functional neuroimaging systematic review and meta-analysis.Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior · 2024Pooled it
- A multi-paradigm and longitudinal EEG dataset including the "sixth-finger" and "affected-hand" motor imagery of stroke patients.Scientific data · 2026Article
- Concurrent control of natural and robotic limbs through a tactile-encoded brain-computer interface.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Adaptive Neural Reorganization Enables Real-Time Finger-Level Robotic Control in BCI-Naïve Stroke Survivors.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Children's Embodiment of Non-Human Virtual Hand Forms.Developmental science · 2026Article
- Projecting the new body: How body image evolves during learning to walk with a wearable robot.PNAS nexus · 2026Article
- A Waist-Mounted Interface for Mobile Viewpoint-Height Transformation Affecting Spatial Perception.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Wearable technologies for assisted mobility in the real world.Nature communications · 2025Review
- Bio-Inspired SA-FA Bionic Dual Receptor Electronic Skin for Intelligent Gesture and Material Cognition Systems Enhanced by Static-Dynamic Mutual Interaction.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2025Article
- Stable cortical body maps before and after arm amputation.Nature neuroscience · 2025Article
- Peripheral neural interfaces for reading high-frequency brain signals.Nature biomedical engineering · 2025Review
- EEG-based brain-computer interface enables real-time robotic hand control at individual finger level.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Article
- Enhanced Somatosensory Inhibition Sharpens Hand Representation and Sensorimotor Skills in Pianists.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2025Article
- BandFocusNet: A Lightweight Model for Motor Imagery Classification of a Supernumerary Thumb in Virtual Reality.IEEE open journal of engineering in medicine and biology · 2025Article
- An fMRI study on the generalization of motor learning after brain actuated supernumerary robot training.NPJ science of learning · 2024Article
- A neurocognitive pathway for engineering artificial touch.Science advances · 2024Review
- Wearable and Implantable Soft Robots.Chemical reviews · 2024Review
- Neural signatures of motor imagery for a supernumerary thumb in VR: an EEG analysis.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Humans have long been fascinated by the opportunities afforded through augmentation. This vision not only depends on technological innovations but also critically relies on our brain's ability to learn, adapt, and interface with augmentation devices. Here, we investigated whether successful motor augmentation with an extra robotic thumb can be achieved and what its implications are on the neural representation and function of the biological hand. Able-bodied participants were trained to use an extra robotic thumb (called the Third Thumb) over 5 days, including both lab-based and unstructured daily use. We challenged participants to complete normally bimanual tasks using only the augmented hand and examined their ability to develop hand-robot interactions. Participants were tested on a variety of behavioral and brain imaging tests, designed to interrogate the augmented hand's representation before and after the training. Training improved Third Thumb motor control, dexterity, and hand-robot coordination, even when cognitive load was increased or when vision was occluded. It also resulted in increased sense of embodiment over the Third Thumb. Consequently, augmentation influenced key aspects of hand representation and motor control. Third Thumb usage weakened natural kinematic synergies of the biological hand. Furthermore, brain decoding revealed a mild collapse of the augmented hand's motor representation after training, even while the Third Thumb was not worn. Together, our findings demonstrate that motor augmentation can be readily achieved, with potential for flexible use, reduced cognitive reliance, and increased sense of embodiment. Yet, augmentation may incur changes to the biological hand representation. Such neurocognitive consequences are crucial for successful implementation of future augmentation technologies.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.