Francisco “Pancho” Ramirez

I am enrolled in the COOLEST clinical study at the University of California in San Francisco (UCSF). The doctor implanted a microchip on the surface of my brain, that  translating neural activity from my sensorimotor cortex into intended speech and motor actions.

Robot Arm

The goal is for an individual to be able to do something for himself/herself without the help of anyone, but the robot arm.

Speech Decoding

The goal is for an individual who can’t speak to have the ability to communicate with family, friends, and other people, throughout a computer interface, or handheld devices.

AAC-graphic

Full time AAC user

I use an AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) device to help me communicate with family, friends, and handle my work tasks.

AAC-graphic

Board member

It is a great privilege to be part of such an incredible nonprofit organization (CommunicationFIRST ) and continue to their noble mission

AAC-graphic

Contributing on the future

For over five years, I have been an instrumental member of a clinical trial team at the University of California, San Francisco. The clinical trial aims to help paralyzed people control a robotic arm and give voices to people who lost the ability to speak or have never spoken before.

Webinars I participated in!

This webinar was hosted by UCSF, doctor, Clarissa Kripkey, invited us. By us, I meant, David Moses, Margaret Seaton, and me, last year on March 2023. I think it was ok, but I could’ve done a better job writing the script. The script can be accessed here. 

This webinar was aired on October 2022, hosted by the organization, communicationFirst, I’m a member of. It was in English and translated in Spanish; unfortunately, only the English version was saved. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did! You can find the script in this Google document.

My latest post
Robot Arm

Robot Arm

After almost three years of training with the dot and exoskeleton, we started training with a robotic arm in a virtual environment for some time. Then, we transitioned to the real thing I always wanted: a real robot arm. That was the main reason I entered the clinical...

Exoskeleton

Exoskeleton

I’ve been a little too busy doing other things, and I haven’t updated my website for several months now; that’s terrible! I will start by introducing my robotic arm, well, not mine. The thing I work with is in the office with the clinical trial team. It’s pretty...

My first power wheelchair | Part 2

My first power wheelchair | Part 2

On the first day, I was officially approved to go out on my own. I remember I went to the Farmers Market. There’s a little farmer’s market in downtown Sonoma, every Tuesday afternoon, from May to September. So I went over there to have a nice and fun time, and for me,...

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