From skylight input to behavioural output: A computational model of the insect polarised light compass
From skylight input to behavioural output: A computational model of the insect polarised light compass
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DOI：
10.1371/journal.pcbi.1007123
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发表时间：
2019-07-01
影响因子：
4.3
通讯作者：
Webb, Barbara
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Gkanias, Evripidis;Risse, Benjamin;Webb, Barbara
许多昆虫通过综合向外行进的距离和方向来导航，从而允许直接返回起点。这个过程的可靠性的基础是使用基于外部天体线索的神经罗盘。在这里，我们研究了在天空偏振模式和昆虫眼传感器阵列的现实限制下，昆虫大脑如何可靠地计算出这些罗盘信息。通过处理天空不同部分不同方向的偏振度，我们的模型可以直接估计太阳的方位角，并推断出估计的置信度。我们介绍了一种校正传感器阵列倾斜的方法，这种倾斜可能是由于在不平坦的地形上行驶而引起的。我们还表明，置信度可以用来近似太阳位置随时间的变化，使指南针在长途旅行中保持相对于“真北”的固定。我们证明了罗盘对干扰具有鲁棒性，并且可以有效地用作现有昆虫路径整合神经模型的输入。我们讨论了将我们的模型映射到已知神经回路并用于机器人导航的可行性。
Many insects navigate by integrating the distances and directions travelled on an outward path, allowing direct return to the starting point. Fundamental to the reliability of this process is the use of a neural compass based on external celestial cues. Here we examine how such compass information could be reliably computed by the insect brain, given realistic constraints on the sky polarisation pattern and the insect eye sensor array. By processing the degree of polarisation in different directions for different parts of the sky, our model can directly estimate the solar azimuth and also infer the confidence of the estimate. We introduce a method to correct for tilting of the sensor array, as might be caused by travel over uneven terrain. We also show that the confidence can be used to approximate the change in sun position over time, allowing the compass to remain fixed with respect to 'true north' during long excursions. We demonstrate that the compass is robust to disturbances and can be effectively used as input to an existing neural model of insect path integration. We discuss the plausibility of our model to be mapped to known neural circuits, and to be implemented for robot navigation.