Impedance Control Balances Stability With Metabolically Costly Muscle Activation

2004 ◽  
Vol 92 (5) ◽  
pp. 3097-3105 ◽  
Author(s):  
David W. Franklin ◽  
Udell So ◽  
Mitsuo Kawato ◽  
Theodore E. Milner

Humans are able to stabilize their movements in environments with unstable dynamics by selectively modifying arm impedance independently of force and torque. We further investigated adaptation to unstable dynamics to determine whether the CNS maintains a constant overall level of stability as the instability of the environmental dynamics is varied. Subjects performed reaching movements in unstable force fields of varying strength, generated by a robotic manipulator. Although the force fields disrupted the initial movements, subjects were able to adapt to the novel dynamics and learned to produce straight trajectories. After adaptation, the endpoint stiffness of the arm was measured at the midpoint of the movement. The stiffness had been selectively modified in the direction of the instability. The stiffness in the stable direction was relatively unchanged from that measured during movements in a null force field prior to exposure to the unstable force field. This impedance modification was achieved without changes in force and torque. The overall stiffness of the arm and environment in the direction of instability was adapted to the force field strength such that it remained equivalent to that of the null force field. This suggests that the CNS attempts both to maintain a minimum level of stability and minimize energy expenditure.

2009 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Asadi Nikooyan ◽  
Amir Abbas Zadpoor

This paper studies learning of reaching movements in a dynamically variable virtual environment specially designed for this purpose. Learning of reaching movements in the physical world has been extensively studied by several researchers. In most of those studies, the subjects are asked to exercise reaching movements while being exposed to real force fields exerted through a robotic manipulandum. Those studies have contributed to our understanding of the mechanisms used by the human cognitive system to learn reaching movements in the physical world. The question that remains to be answered is how the learning mechanism in the physical world relates to its counterpart in the virtual world where the real force fields are replaced by virtual force fields. A limited number of studies have already addressed this question and have shown that there are, actually, quite a number of relationships between the learning mechanisms in these two different environments. In this study, we are focused on gaining a more in-depth understanding of these relationships. In our experiments, the subjects are asked to guide a virtual object to a desired target on a computer screen using a mouse. The movement of the virtual object is affected by a viscous virtual force field that is sensed by the examinees through their visual system. Three groups of examinees are used for the experiments. All the examinees are first trained in the null-field condition. Then, the viscous force field is introduced either suddenly (for the two first groups) or gradually (for the last group). While the first and third groups of the examinees used their dominant arm to guide the virtual object in the second step, the second group used their nondominant arm. Generalization of the learning from the dominant to the nondominant arm and vice versa was studied in the third phase of the experiments. Finally, the force field was removed and the examinees were asked to repeat the reaching task to study the so-called aftereffects phenomenon. The results of the experiments are compared with the studies performed in the physical world. It is shown that the trends of learning and generalization are similar to what is observed in the physical world for a sudden application of the virtual force field. However, the generalization behavior of the examinees is somewhat different from the physical world if the force field is gradually applied.


2003 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 3255-3269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rieko Osu ◽  
Etienne Burdet ◽  
David W. Franklin ◽  
Theodore E. Milner ◽  
Mitsuo Kawato

Recently, we demonstrated that humans can learn to make accurate movements in an unstable environment by controlling magnitude, shape, and orientation of the endpoint impedance. Although previous studies of human motor learning suggest that the brain acquires an inverse dynamics model of the novel environment, it is not known whether this control mechanism is operative in unstable environments. We compared learning of multijoint arm movements in a “velocity-dependent force field” (VF), which interacted with the arm in a stable manner, and learning in a “divergent force field” (DF), where the interaction was unstable. The characteristics of error evolution were markedly different in the 2 fields. The direction of trajectory error in the DF alternated to the left and right during the early stage of learning; that is, signed error was inconsistent from movement to movement and could not have guided learning of an inverse dynamics model. This contrasted sharply with trajectory error in the VF, which was initially biased and decayed in a manner that was consistent with rapid feedback error learning. EMG recorded before and after learning in the DF and VF are also consistent with different learning and control mechanisms for adapting to stable and unstable dynamics, that is, inverse dynamics model formation and impedance control. We also investigated adaptation to a rotated DF to examine the interplay between inverse dynamics model formation and impedance control. Our results suggest that an inverse dynamics model can function in parallel with an impedance controller to compensate for consistent perturbing force in unstable environments.


2007 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 474-481 ◽  
Author(s):  
Koji Ito ◽  
◽  
Makoto Doi ◽  
Toshiyuki Kondo ◽  
◽  
...  

Humans must compensate for the reaction forces arising from interaction with the physical environment. Recent studies have shown that humans can acquire a neural representation of the relationship between motor commands and movement, i.e. learn an internal model of environmental dynamics. We discuss feed-forward adaptation in a varying dynamic environment during reaching movements. Subjects first learned to move in a position-dependent divergent force field (DF) and velocity-dependent force field (VF), then move in a switched force field SF1 (DF→VF) and SF2 (VF→DF). The experimental results show that adaptation to switched force fields is achieved by programming the internal model control and impedance control in a feed-forward manner.


2013 ◽  
Vol 110 (3) ◽  
pp. 768-783 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anil Cherian ◽  
Hugo L. Fernandes ◽  
Lee E. Miller

We often make reaching movements having similar trajectories within very different mechanical environments, for example, with and without an added load in the hand. Under these varying conditions, our kinematic intentions must be transformed into muscle commands that move the limbs. Primary motor cortex (M1) has been implicated in the neural mechanism that mediates this adaptation to new movement dynamics, but our recent experiments suggest otherwise. We have recorded from electrode arrays that were chronically implanted in M1 as monkeys made reaching movements under two different dynamic conditions: the movements were opposed by either a clockwise or counterclockwise velocity-dependent force field acting at the hand. Under these conditions, the preferred direction (PD) of neural discharge for nearly all neurons rotated in the direction of the applied field, as did those of proximal limb electromyograms (EMGs), although the median neural rotation was significantly smaller than that of muscles. For a given neuron, the rotation angle was very consistent, even across multiple sessions. Within the limits of measurement uncertainty, both the neural and EMG changes occurred nearly instantaneously, reaching a steady state despite ongoing behavioral adaptation. Our results suggest that M1 is not directly involved in the adaptive changes that occurred within an experimental session. Rather, most M1 neurons are directly related to the dynamics of muscle activation that themselves reflect the external load. It appears as though gain modulation, the differential recruitment of M1 neurons by higher motor areas, can account for the load and behavioral adaptation-related changes in M1 discharge.


2003 ◽  
Vol 90 (5) ◽  
pp. 3270-3282 ◽  
Author(s):  
David W. Franklin ◽  
Rieko Osu ◽  
Etienne Burdet ◽  
Mitsuo Kawato ◽  
Theodore E. Milner

This study compared adaptation in novel force fields where trajectories were initially either stable or unstable to elucidate the processes of learning novel skills and adapting to new environments. Subjects learned to move in a null force field (NF), which was unexpectedly changed either to a velocity-dependent force field (VF), which resulted in perturbed but stable hand trajectories, or a position-dependent divergent force field (DF), which resulted in unstable trajectories. With practice, subjects learned to compensate for the perturbations produced by both force fields. Adaptation was characterized by an initial increase in the activation of all muscles followed by a gradual reduction. The time course of the increase in activation was correlated with a reduction in hand-path error for the DF but not for the VF. Adaptation to the VF could have been achieved solely by formation of an inverse dynamics model and adaptation to the DF solely by impedance control. However, indices of learning, such as hand-path error, joint torque, and electromyographic activation and deactivation suggest that the CNS combined these processes during adaptation to both force fields. Our results suggest that during the early phase of learning there is an increase in endpoint stiffness that serves to reduce hand-path error and provides additional stability, regardless of whether the dynamics are stable or unstable. We suggest that the motor control system utilizes an inverse dynamics model to learn the mean dynamics and an impedance controller to assist in the formation of the inverse dynamics model and to generate needed stability.


2015 ◽  
Vol 114 (3) ◽  
pp. 1565-1576 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. M. E. Sarwary ◽  
D. F. Stegeman ◽  
L. P. J. Selen ◽  
W. P. Medendorp

We continuously adapt our movements in daily life, forming new internal models whenever necessary and updating existing ones. Recent work has suggested that this flexibility is enabled via sensorimotor cues, serving to access the correct internal model whenever necessary and keeping new models apart from previous ones. While research to date has mainly focused on identifying the nature of such cue representations, here we investigated whether and how these cue representations generalize, interfere, and transfer within and across effector systems. Subjects were trained to make two-stage reaching movements: a premovement that served as a cue, followed by a targeted movement that was perturbed by one of two opposite curl force fields. The direction of the premovement was uniquely coupled to the direction of the ensuing force field, enabling simultaneous learning of the two respective internal models. After training, generalization of the two premovement cues' representations was tested at untrained premovement directions, within both the trained and untrained hand. We show that the individual premovement representations generalize in a Gaussian-like pattern around the trained premovement direction. When the force fields are of unequal strengths, the cue-dependent generalization skews toward the strongest field. Furthermore, generalization patterns transfer to the nontrained hand, in an extrinsic reference frame. We conclude that contextual cues do not serve as discrete switches between multiple internal models. Instead, their generalization suggests a weighted contribution of the associated internal models based on the angular separation from the trained cues to the net motor output.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clément Dulong ◽  
Bruno Madebène ◽  
Susanna Monti ◽  
Johannes Richardi

<div><div><div><p>A new reactive force field based on the ReaxFF formalism is effectively parametrized against an extended training set of quantum chemistry data (containing more than 120 different structures) to describe accurately silver- and silver-thiolate systems. The results obtained with this novel representation demonstrate that the novel ReaxFF paradigm is a powerful methodology to reproduce more appropriately average geometric and energetic properties of metal clusters and slabs when compared to the earlier ReaxFF parametrizations dealing with silver and gold. ReaxFF cannot describe adequately specific geometrical features such as the observed shorter distances between the under-coordinated atoms at the cluster edges. Geometric and energetic properties of thiolates adsorbed on a silver Ag20 pyramid are correctly represented by the new ReaxFF and compared with results for gold. The simulation of self-assembled monolayers of thiolates on a silver (111) surface does not indicate the formation of staples in contrast to the results for gold-thiolate systems.</p></div></div></div>


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maximiliano Riquelme ◽  
Alejandro Lara ◽  
David L. Mobley ◽  
Toon Vestraelen ◽  
Adelio R Matamala ◽  
...  

<div>Computer simulations of bio-molecular systems often use force fields, which are combinations of simple empirical atom-based functions to describe the molecular interactions. Even though polarizable force fields give a more detailed description of intermolecular interactions, nonpolarizable force fields, developed several decades ago, are often still preferred because of their reduced computation cost. Electrostatic interactions play a major role in bio-molecular systems and are therein described by atomic point charges.</div><div>In this work, we address the performance of different atomic charges to reproduce experimental hydration free energies in the FreeSolv database in combination with the GAFF force field. Atomic charges were calculated by two atoms-in-molecules approaches, Hirshfeld-I and Minimal Basis Iterative Stockholder (MBIS). To account for polarization effects, the charges were derived from the solute's electron density computed with an implicit solvent model and the energy required to polarize the solute was added to the free energy cycle. The calculated hydration free energies were analyzed with an error model, revealing systematic errors associated with specific functional groups or chemical elements. The best agreement with the experimental data is observed for the MBIS atomic charge method, including the solvent polarization, with a root mean square error of 2.0 kcal mol<sup>-1</sup> for the 613 organic molecules studied. The largest deviation was observed for phosphor-containing molecules and the molecules with amide, ester and amine functional groups.</div>


Author(s):  
Joshua Horton ◽  
Alice Allen ◽  
Leela Dodda ◽  
Daniel Cole

<div><div><div><p>Modern molecular mechanics force fields are widely used for modelling the dynamics and interactions of small organic molecules using libraries of transferable force field parameters. For molecules outside the training set, parameters may be missing or inaccurate, and in these cases, it may be preferable to derive molecule-specific parameters. Here we present an intuitive parameter derivation toolkit, QUBEKit (QUantum mechanical BEspoke Kit), which enables the automated generation of system-specific small molecule force field parameters directly from quantum mechanics. QUBEKit is written in python and combines the latest QM parameter derivation methodologies with a novel method for deriving the positions and charges of off-center virtual sites. As a proof of concept, we have re-derived a complete set of parameters for 109 small organic molecules, and assessed the accuracy by comparing computed liquid properties with experiment. QUBEKit gives highly competitive results when compared to standard transferable force fields, with mean unsigned errors of 0.024 g/cm3, 0.79 kcal/mol and 1.17 kcal/mol for the liquid density, heat of vaporization and free energy of hydration respectively. This indicates that the derived parameters are suitable for molecular modelling applications, including computer-aided drug design.</p></div></div></div>


Author(s):  
Joshua Horton ◽  
Alice Allen ◽  
Leela Dodda ◽  
Daniel Cole

<div><div><div><p>Modern molecular mechanics force fields are widely used for modelling the dynamics and interactions of small organic molecules using libraries of transferable force field parameters. For molecules outside the training set, parameters may be missing or inaccurate, and in these cases, it may be preferable to derive molecule-specific parameters. Here we present an intuitive parameter derivation toolkit, QUBEKit (QUantum mechanical BEspoke Kit), which enables the automated generation of system-specific small molecule force field parameters directly from quantum mechanics. QUBEKit is written in python and combines the latest QM parameter derivation methodologies with a novel method for deriving the positions and charges of off-center virtual sites. As a proof of concept, we have re-derived a complete set of parameters for 109 small organic molecules, and assessed the accuracy by comparing computed liquid properties with experiment. QUBEKit gives highly competitive results when compared to standard transferable force fields, with mean unsigned errors of 0.024 g/cm3, 0.79 kcal/mol and 1.17 kcal/mol for the liquid density, heat of vaporization and free energy of hydration respectively. This indicates that the derived parameters are suitable for molecular modelling applications, including computer-aided drug design.</p></div></div></div>


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