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12 - Predictive mechanisms and object representations used in object manipulation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2009

By
J. Randall Flanagan ,
Kyle Merritt  and
Roland S. Johansson
Edited by
Dennis A. Nowak  and
Joachim Hermsdörfer
Dennis A. Nowak
Affiliation:
Klinik Kipfenberg, Kipfenberg, Germany
Joachim Hermsdörfer
Affiliation:
Technical University of Munich
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Summary

Summary

Skilled object manipulation requires the ability to estimate, in advance, the motor commands needed to achieve desired sensory outcomes and the ability to predict the sensory consequences of the motor commands. Because the mapping between motor commands and sensory outcomes depends on the physical properties of grasped objects, the motor system may store and access internal models of objects in order to estimate motor commands and predict sensory consequences. In this chapter, we outline evidence for internal models and discuss their role in object manipulation tasks. We also consider the relationship between internal models of objects employed by the sensorimotor system and representations of the same objects used by the perceptual system to make judgements about objects.

Introduction

Although we have designed computers that can beat grand masters at chess, we have yet to design robots that can manipulate chess pieces with anything like the dexterity of a 5-year-old child. What makes humans so good at object manipulation in comparison to robots? There is no question that the anatomy of the human hand is well adapted for manipulation. On the sensory side, the hand is richly endowed with tactile sensors that provide exquisitely precise information about mechanical interactions between the skin and objects. On the motor side, the numerous kinematic degrees of freedom of the hand enable it to grasp objects of all shapes and sizes.

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Type
Chapter
Information
Sensorimotor Control of Grasping
Physiology and Pathophysiology
 , pp. 161 - 177
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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