Open AccessA scalable data transmission scheme for implantable optogenetic visual prostheses
Author(s) -
Zhenyang Hou,
Walid Al-Atabany,
Ramy M. A. Farag,
Quoc C. Vuong,
Andrey Mokhov,
Patrick Degenaar
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of neural engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.594
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1741-2560
pISSN - 1741-2552
DOI - 10.1088/1741-2552/abaf2e
Subject(s) - optogenetics , computer science , scalability , scheme (mathematics) , transmission (telecommunications) , data transmission , computer hardware , neuroscience , telecommunications , psychology , mathematical analysis , mathematics , database
Objective. This work described a video information processing scheme for optogenetic forms of visual cortical prosthetics. Approach. The architecture is designed to perform a processing sequence: Initially simplifying the scene, followed by a pragmatic visual encoding scheme which assumes that initially optical stimulation will be stimulating bulk neural tissue rather than driving individual phosphenes. We demonstrate an optical encoder, combined with what we called a zero-run length encoding (zRLE) video compression and decompression scheme—to wirelessly transfer information to an implantable unit in an efficient manner. In the final step, we have incorporated an even power distribution driver to prevent excessive power fluctuations in the optogenetic driving. Significance. The key novelty in this work centres on the completeness of the scheme, the new zRLE compression algorithm and our even power distributor. Main results. Furthermore, although the paper focusses on the algorithm, we confirm that it can be implemented on real time portable processing hardware which we will use for our visual prosthetics.