|
| ![]() |
|
||
| Home Help Feedback Subscriptions Archive Search Table of Contents | ||||
Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol 203, Issue 7 1211-1223, Copyright © 2000 by Company of Biologists
JOURNAL ARTICLES |
C Bartling and J Schmitz
Department of Biological Cybernetics, Faculty of Biology, University of Bielefeld, PO Box 100131, D-33501 Bielefeld, Germany.
The ground reaction forces exerted by the legs of freely walking stick insects, Carausius morosus, were recorded during normal and perturbed locomotion. The animals walked along a path into which a three-dimensional force transducer was integrated. The transducer registered all three components of the forces produced by a single leg when, by chance, it walked on the force platform. The stiffness of the walking surface was found to be a critical variable affecting the forces and the trajectories of leg movements during undisturbed walking. The forces produced by a leg were considerably smaller and the trajectories were closer to the body during walking on soft versus stiff surfaces. Perturbations during stance were generated by moving the platform in various directions within the horizontal plane and at two different rates. Perturbations were applied either immediately after leg contact or after a delay of 300 ms. The reactions to these disturbances were compatible with the hypothesis that the velocity of leg movement is under negative feedback control. This interpretation is also supported by comparison with simulations based upon other control schemes. We propose a model circuit that provides a combination of negative and positive feedback control mechanisms to resolve the apparent discrepancies between our results and those of previous studies.
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
D. M. Dudek and R. J. Full An isolated insect leg's passive recovery from dorso-ventral perturbations J. Exp. Biol., September 15, 2007; 210(18): 3209 - 3217. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
T. Akay, B. Ch. Ludwar, M. L. Goritz, J. Schmitz, and A. Buschges Segment Specificity of Load Signal Processing Depends on Walking Direction in the Stick Insect Leg Muscle Control System J. Neurosci., March 21, 2007; 27(12): 3285 - 3294. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
H. Cruse, V. Durr, and J. Schmitz Insect walking is based on a decentralized architecture revealing a simple and robust controller Phil Trans R Soc A, January 15, 2007; 365(1850): 221 - 250. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. Schneider, H. Cruse, and J. Schmitz Decentralized Control of Elastic Limbs in Closed Kinematic Chains The International Journal of Robotics Research, September 1, 2006; 25(9): 913 - 930. [Abstract] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
B. T. Nohara and T. Nishizawa An Optimal Working Function Based on the Energetic Cost for Myriapod Robot Systems: How Many Legs Are Optimal for a Centipede? Journal of Vibration and Control, October 1, 2005; 11(10): 1235 - 1251. [Abstract] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
B. Diederich, M. Schumm, and H. Cruse Stick Insects Walking Along Inclined Surfaces Integr. Comp. Biol., February 1, 2002; 42(1): 165 - 173. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
J. Schmitz, J. Dean, T. Kindermann, M. Schumm, and H. Cruse A Biologically Inspired Controller for Hexapod Walking: Simple Solutions by Exploiting Physical Properties Biol. Bull., April 1, 2001; 200(2): 195 - 200. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
T. Kindermann Behavior and Adaptability of a Six-Legged Walking System with Highly Distributed Control Adaptive Behavior, March 1, 2001; 9(1): 16 - 41. [Abstract] [PDF] |
||||