scholarly journals Spatial Accuracy of Predictive Saccades Determines the Performance of Continuous Visuomotor Action

2022 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chisa Aoyama ◽  
Ryoma Goya ◽  
Naofumi Suematsu ◽  
Koji Kadota ◽  
Yuji Yamamoto ◽  
...  

In a table tennis rally, players perform interceptive actions on a moving ball continuously in a short time, such that the acquisition process of visual information is an important determinant of the performance of the action. However, because it is technically hard to measure gaze movement in a real game, little is known about how gaze behavior is conducted during the continuous visuomotor actions and contributes to the performance. To examine these points, we constructed a novel psychophysical experiment model enabling a continuous visuomotor task without spatial movement of any body parts, including the arm and head, and recorded the movement of the gaze and effector simultaneously at high spatiotemporal resolution. In the task, Gabor patches (target) moved one after another at a constant speed from right to left at random vertical positions on an LC display. Participants hit the target with a cursor moving vertically on the left side of the display by controlling their prehensile force on a force sensor. Participants hit the target with the cursor using a rapid-approaching movement (rapid cursor approach, RCA). Their gaze also showed rapid saccadic approaching movement (saccadic eye approach, SEA), reaching the predicted arrival point of the target earlier than the cursor. The RCA reached in or near the Hit zone in the successful (Hit) trial, but ended up away from it in the unsuccessful (Miss) trial, suggesting the spatial accuracy of the RCA determines the task's success. The SEA in the Hit trial ended nearer the target than the Miss trial. The spatial accuracy of the RCA diminished when the target disappeared 100 ms just after the end of the SEA, suggesting that visual information acquired after the saccade acted as feedback information to correct the cursor movement online for the cursor to reach the target. There was a target speed condition that the target disappearance did not compromise RCA's spatial accuracy, implying the possible RCA correction based on the post-saccadic gaze location information. These experiments clarified that gaze behavior conducted during fast continuous visuomotor actions enables online correction of the ongoing interceptive movement of an effector, improving visuomotor performance.

2000 ◽  
Vol 84 (4) ◽  
pp. 1708-1718 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew B. Slifkin ◽  
David E. Vaillancourt ◽  
Karl M. Newell

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the influence of intermittency in visual information processes on intermittency in the control continuous force production. Adult human participants were required to maintain force at, and minimize variability around, a force target over an extended duration (15 s), while the intermittency of on-line visual feedback presentation was varied across conditions. This was accomplished by varying the frequency of successive force-feedback deliveries presented on a video display. As a function of a 128-fold increase in feedback frequency (0.2 to 25.6 Hz), performance quality improved according to hyperbolic functions (e.g., force variability decayed), reaching asymptotic values near the 6.4-Hz feedback frequency level. Thus, the briefest interval over which visual information could be integrated and used to correct errors in motor output was approximately 150 ms. The observed reductions in force variability were correlated with parallel declines in spectral power at about 1 Hz in the frequency profile of force output. In contrast, power at higher frequencies in the force output spectrum were uncorrelated with increases in feedback frequency. Thus, there was a considerable lag between the generation of motor output corrections (1 Hz) and the processing of visual feedback information (6.4 Hz). To reconcile these differences in visual and motor processing times, we proposed a model where error information is accumulated by visual information processes at a maximum frequency of 6.4 per second, and the motor system generates a correction on the basis of the accumulated information at the end of each 1-s interval.


2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 281-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephan Streuber ◽  
Betty J. Mohler ◽  
Heinrich H. Bülthoff ◽  
Stephan de la Rosa

Theories of social interaction (i.e., common coding theory) suggest that visual information about the interaction partner is critical for successful interpersonal action coordination. Seeing the interaction partner allows an observer to understand and predict the interaction partner's behavior. However, it is unknown which of the many sources of visual information about an interaction partner (e.g., body, end effectors, and/or interaction objects) are used for action understanding and thus for the control of movements in response to observed actions. We used a novel immersive virtual environment to investigate this further. Specifically, we asked participants to perform table tennis strokes in response to table tennis balls stroked by a virtual table tennis player. We tested the effect of the visibility of the ball, the paddle, and the body of the virtual player on task performance and movement kinematics. Task performance was measured as the minimum distance between the center of the paddle and the center of the ball (radial error). Movement kinematics was measured as variability in the paddle speed of repeatedly executed table tennis strokes (stroke speed variability). We found that radial error was reduced when the ball was visible compared to invisible. However, seeing the body and/or the racket of the virtual players only reduced radial error when the ball was invisible. There was no influence of seeing the ball on stroke speed variability. However, we found that stroke speed variability was reduced when either the body or the paddle of the virtual player was visible. Importantly, the differences in stroke speed variability were largest in the moment when the virtual player hit the ball. This suggests that seeing the virtual player's body or paddle was important for preparing the stroke response. These results demonstrate for the first time that the online control of arm movements is coupled with visual body information about an opponent.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 516-527
Author(s):  
Samira Moeinirad ◽  
Behrouz Abdoli ◽  
Alireza Farsi ◽  
Nasour Ahmadi

The quiet eye is a characteristic of highly skilled perceptual and motor performance that is considered as the final fixation toward a target before movement initiation. The aim of this study was to extend quiet eye–related knowledge by investigating expertise effects on overall quiet eye duration among expert and near-expert basketball players, as well as to determine the relative contribution of early and late visual information in a basketball jump shot by comparing the timing components of quiet eye duration (early and late quite eye). Twenty-seven expert and near-expert male basketball players performed the jump shots. Gaze was recorded with the SensoMotoric Instruments eye tracking glasses and shooting performance accuracy was evaluated by scoring each shot on a scale of 1–8. Six infrared cameras circularly arranged around the participants were used to collect the kinematic information of the players. The performance accuracy, gaze behavior, and kinematic characteristics of the participants during the test were calculated. The experts with longer quiet eye duration had better performance in a basketball jump shot compared to the near-experts. Also the experts had longer early and late quiet eye duration than the near-experts. The results revealed a relationship between quiet eye duration and performance. The combined visual strategy is a more efficient strategy in complex far-aiming tasks such as a basketball jump shot.


Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (13) ◽  
pp. 3807
Author(s):  
Young Hoon Oh ◽  
Da Young Ju

Recent studies have addressed the various benefits of companion robots and expanded the research scope to their design. However, the viewpoints of older adults have not been deeply investigated. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the distinctive viewpoints of older adults by comparing them with those of younger adults. Thirty-one older and thirty-one younger adults participated in an eye-tracking experiment to investigate their impressions of a bear-like robot mockup. They also completed interviews and surveys to help us understand their viewpoints on the robot design. The gaze behaviors and the impressions of the two groups were significantly different. Older adults focused significantly more on the robot’s face and paid little attention to the rest of the body. In contrast, the younger adults gazed at more body parts and viewed the robot in more detail than the older adults. Furthermore, the older adults rated physical attractiveness and social likeability of the robot significantly higher than the younger adults. The specific gaze behavior of the younger adults was linked to considerable negative feedback on the robot design. Based on these empirical findings, we recommend that impressions of older adults be considered when designing companion robots.


2008 ◽  
Vol 381-382 ◽  
pp. 369-372
Author(s):  
Gi Beum Kim ◽  
S.H. Jeong ◽  
Woo Suk Chong ◽  
H.S. Kang ◽  
S.J. Kim ◽  
...  

The effectiveness of the visual feedback to improve ability with the sense and muscular strength of human in our bicycle system was quantitatively verified in our study. Experiments were performed to find the factors related to the training of equilibrium sense. The subjects consisted of young and the aged and the group of young people was compared against the group of the aged. We investigated three different training modes, non-visual feedback (NVF), visual feedback of the weight (VFW), and visual feedback of the center of pressure (VFC) and measured the riding time and speed, the weight shift, and the center of pressure (COP) for twenties and seventies. The results showed that the running capability of the young and the aged became much better after repeated training. In addition, it was found out that the ability to control postural balance and the capability of equilibrium sense were improved with the presentation of the visual feedback information. These results will be effective in the diagnosis of equilibrium sense and vestibular function with the aged.


i-Perception ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 204166952110592
Author(s):  
Yosuke Suzuishi ◽  
Souta Hidaka

Vision of the body without task cues enhances tactile discrimination performance. This effect has been investigated only with static visual information, although our body usually moves, and dynamic visual and bodily information provides ownership (SoO) and agency (SoA) sensations to body parts. We investigated whether vision of body movements could enhance tactile discrimination performance. Participants observed white dots without any textural information showing lateral hand movements (dynamic condition) or static hands (static condition). For participants experiencing the dynamic condition first, it induced a lower tactile discrimination threshold, as well as a stronger SoO and SoA, compared to the static condition. For participants observing the static condition first, the magnitudes of the enhancement effect in the dynamic condition were positively correlated between the tactile discrimination and SoO/SoA. The enhancement of the dynamic visual information was not observed when the hand shape was not maintained in the scrambled white dot images. Our results suggest that dynamic visual information without task cues can enhance tactile discrimination performance by feeling SoO and SoA only when it maintains bodily information.


2016 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-411 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chao Shao ◽  
Xin Ye ◽  
Zhijing Zhang ◽  
Dengyu Zhou ◽  
Yuhong Liu

Purpose Micro ultra-thin tubes have important implications in aerospace, nuclear energy and other fields. In microassembly process, these parts are characterized by following reasons: the small size can easily lead to damage when gripping, even for low intensity and the parts are mainly affected by the instability of light source, for vision-based systems, the visual information about ultra-thin tubes is difficult to gather and the contact state is hard to monitor. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents a new method to adjust the position deviations based on contact forces during microassembly processes. Specific research is such that the assembly model was established based both on mechanic calculation and numerical simulation; the assembly task was carried out on an in-house microassembly system with coaxial alignment function (MSCA), the contact statements were controlled based on force sensor feedback signals and the model of the relationship between contact force and assembly deviations was established. Through a comparative study, the results of experiment and simulation differ by less than 11 per cent, validating the accuracy and feasibility of the method. Findings The model of assembly force and position deviations of micro ultra-thin tubes based on MSCA has been built. Besides, the assembly force threshold, and the assembly process parameters have been obtained. Originality/value The assembly process parameters obtained from experiments can be applied in the precision assembly and provide theoretical guidance and technical support to the precision assembly of the multi-scale parts.


2010 ◽  
Vol 07 (01) ◽  
pp. 51-57
Author(s):  
YIYANG LIU ◽  
YUECHAO WANG ◽  
PENG YU ◽  
ZAILI DONG

Because of the micro/nano manipulation's complexity, the accurate feedback information of the micro interactive force acting on micro devices is quite important and necessary for micro/nano manipulation, especially the 2-D micro interactive force feedback information. At present, there are no reliable and accurate 2-D micro force sensors applied in micro/nano manipulation. To solve the above problem, a novel 2-D micro force sensor that can reliably measure force in the range of submicro Newton (μN) is designed and developed in this paper. Based on the model of 1-D micro force sensor designed by us, the model of this 2-D sensor is set up. To verify the model of the 2-D sensor, micromanipulation experiments are designed and realized. Experiment results show the submicro Newton resolution, and verify the validity of the 2-D sensor's model. The developed 2-D micro force sensor will contribute to promoting the complexity of micro/nano manipulation, and will facilitate to automate the micro/nano manipulation.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Jin ◽  
Guoning Chen ◽  
Kete Lao ◽  
Songhui Li ◽  
Yong Lu ◽  
...  

Abstract Flexible sensors are required to be lightweight, compatible with the skin, sufficiently sensitive, and easily integrated to extract various kinds of body vital signs during continuous healthcare monitoring in daily life. For this, a simple and low-cost flexible temperature and force sensor that uses only two carbon fiber beams as the sensing layer is reported in this work. This simple, flexible sensor can not only monitor skin temperature changes in real time but can also extract most pulse waves, including venous waves, from most parts of the human body. A pulse diagnostic glove containing three such flexible sensors was designed to simulate pulse diagnostic methods used in traditional Chinese medicine. Wearable equipment was also designed in which four flexible sensors were fixed onto different body parts (neck, chest, armpit, and fingertip) to simultaneously monitor body temperature, carotid pulse, fingertip artery pulse, and respiratory rate. Four important physiological indicators—body temperature (BT), blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), and respiratory rate (RR)—were extracted by the wearable equipment and analyzed to identify exercise, excited, tired, angry, and frightened body states.


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