The vagus nerve is the tenth pair of nerves in the human brain. It is a mixed nerve. It is spread over many parts of the human esophagus, chest, heart, etc. It is like a ranger, which dominates all internal organs except the adrenal gland and participates in the human body. Ingestion, metabolism, endocrine, mood, immune regulation. The vagus nerve is also the longest and most widely distributed nerve in the brain.

The sensory fibers in the vagus nerve can transmit signals from the heart, blood vessels, lungs, trachea, and gastrointestinal organs to the solitary nucleus (NTS) of the brainstem, and then send nerve projections through the solitary tract nucleus to activate multiple key points in the brain. The region regulates the autonomic functions of emotion, endocrine, cardiovascular, digestive and respiratory.

In 1988, American physician Jacob Zabarra believed that stimulation of the vagus nerve could change the potential in the brain, thereby blocking or even preventing the onset of epilepsy; in 1994, the European Union approved the use of vagus nerve stimulation to treat epilepsy; in 1997, the US FDA approved the NCP system developed by Cyberonics ( Invasive vagus nerve stimulation is used to treat epilepsy; in 2005, the FDA approved it for the treatment of depression, and in 2015 was approved for the treatment of obesity.

There is no end to the exploration of the vagus nerve, and the heat of vagus nerve research at home and abroad has been rising. International studies have reported that stimulation of the vagus nerve by surgery can significantly improve symptoms such as depression, sleep disorders, gastrointestinal dysfunction, and cardiac dysfunction.

However, there are many drawbacks to the way the surgical invasion stimulates the vagus nerve, such as high surgical risk (side effects, sequelae, etc.), high price (about 150,000 to 200,000 RMB), limited population (only for extreme patients). Scientists have long been looking for alternative solutions.

After scientific demonstration and clinical research practice, non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation has become the latest hotspot in recent years. This program is favored by international researchers and medical manufacturers because it avoids the shortcomings of invasive vagus nerve stimulation. In 2017, the US FDA first approved a non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation device (non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation) for the treatment of adult episodic cluster headache.

Based on the special effects of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation, some companies try to stimulate the vagus nerve through yoga, massage, meditation, music, etc., such as Calm Radio, the largest music media in the United States, which provides users with specific music packages to optimize The vagus nerve achieves a soothing effect.

However, the shallow stimulation effect is not obvious, and the deep stimulation is expensive and high risk. How to optimize the vagus nerve in a way to compromise between shallow stimulation and deep stimulation? This is what Zhilian Brain Control Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as: Zhilian Brain Control) is doing.

Zhang Feng, head of Zhilian Brain Control, told the arterial network reporter that there is a branch in the sensory fibers of the vagus nerve located in the outer ear skin. The vagus nerve in the ear is stimulated by the body surface, which can also activate the brain stem orphan nucleus to further activate the related brain center. Regulate the dysfunctional circulation, digestion, respiration, and endocrine system to achieve comprehensive regulation of sleep and mood.

The non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation system developed by Zhilian Brain Control utilizes the vagus nerve of the ear. The principle is: using artificial intelligence algorithm to stimulate the ear vagus nerve through the electrode micro-current, acting on the brain's autonomic activity regulation and emotional control related center, prompting the brain to initiate self-regulation mechanism, thereby regulating the activities of multiple visceral systems and restoring the internal organs. Steady state of equilibrium, to achieve improved sleep, relieve mood and other effects.

According to the World Health Organization, about 1.8 billion people worldwide suffer from sleep disorders, accounting for about 27% of the total population. In China alone, 300 million people have sleep disorders and the incidence of insomnia is nearly 40%.

Zhang Feng, head of Zhilian Brain Control, said: "At present, there are many sub-health people in China, but they have not received enough attention and have not received good treatment. The physical therapy for insomnia and depression on the market is mixed, some are ineffective or The effect of propaganda is not achieved. Some patients with severe illnesses are unable to be relieved by physical therapy, but need to take specific drugs for treatment, but drug treatment has side effects and addiction, which will cause additional harm to health. This is the brain of Zhilian. Control the opportunity to see."

Zhao Gongbo, founder of Zhilian Brain Control, and Dr. Jose C. Principe, an international authoritative expert on EEG signal processing, consider that non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation is the closest technology to sub-healthy people when selecting the brain science segment. Users have many problems such as sleep and emotions. Zhilian Brain Control decided to cut into the field of brain science from this technology.

Zhilian Brain Control uses the latest research results in the field of international neuromodulation to develop non-invasive ear vagus nerve stimulation equipment through self-developed ear vagus targeting electrodes and patent parameters. At present, the R&D team of Zhilian Brain Control accounts for 68% of the company's total staff. The non-invasive ear vagus nerve stimulation equipment developed has three core technical advantages:

·        First, the disease-specific multifunctional vagus nerve stimulation technology. Developed different stimulation parameter modules to achieve multifunctional adjustments for obesity, depression and memory consolidation.

·        Second, respiratory gated vagus nerve stimulation technology. The vagus nerve stimulation technique synchronized with the breathing achieves vagal stimulation at a specific respiratory stage and significantly improves the efficacy.

·        Third, the real-time acquisition of cloud analysis technology for sleep brain electricity. Real-time analysis of EEG technology through sleep, manipulation in the memory-related brainwave stage, stimulation, and cloud computing.

Zhang Feng added: "The localization of neuromodulation equipment is a sign of the rapid development of neuromodulation in China. Zhilian Brain Control will continue to focus on product development, and we will continue to introduce new products according to market demand."

In terms of product form, Zhilian Brain Control has already listed three products, namely "spinal nerve electrical stimulation device", "emotional adjustment instrument" and "health slimming instrument". Users can adjust the vagus nerve stimulation gear according to different needs, only need to insist on using more than 30 minutes every day, long-term use can be effective. In addition, the product can be used in a variety of scenarios, such as driving, watching TV, reading, sleeping, etc., portable, convenient, and does not affect daily life.

According to the arterial network, Zhilian Brain Control has set up a joint laboratory with Xi'an Jiaotong University and Xi'an University of Electronic Science and Technology, respectively. The product has been upgraded to version 2.0, and the follow-up brain science products are worth looking forward to. In addition, the company also cooperated with Peking University Sixth Hospital, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine First Affiliated Hospital, Xijing Hospital and other hospitals to confirm the effectiveness of the company's products in improving sleep and relieving emotions.

It is worth mentioning that Zhilian Brain Control is cooperating with some chain pharmaceutical groups to push and display products, and collect data from users' use effects for research and analysis. In addition to offline sales, the company built its own online store and sold products online on some large e-commerce platforms. According to the market and product characteristics, the company has built a professional team of online and offline to develop the market, which is radiated from the first-tier cities to the second-tier cities, from the north to the south, and from the domestic to the foreign countries.

In the future, Zhilian Brain Control will start from the five sub-markets of wearable, home-based, community-based, clinic-type and hospital equipment, and strive to transform into a digital medical brand. The company's future development focus will be on providing added value for new products and working to improve the health of sub-health people.

At present, Zhilian Brain Control is applying for a medical device type 2 medical device registration certificate, and plans to release 10% of the equity for financing, with a total financing of 20 million yuan. The proceeds from the financing will be used to expand the R&D and sales network.