Average Power as A Measure of Dexterity in Generalized Tool Use

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9213234 Colgate This is the second year funding of a three year continuing award. This project investigates a hypothesis related to the use of hand tools, with particular emphasis on the application of any discovered design principles to bilateral micromanipulators such as those used in microsurgery, with the hope that these principles would accelerate the evolutionary design and development of these and other tools. The hypothesis to be tested is that the hand tool which optimizes performance of a given task is that which optimizes the average power output from the operator, excepting power that is dissipated in the tool. Underlying this hypothesis is the notion that a well-designed hand tool serves to effect an impedance match between the human and the environment, enabling quick and efficient energy transfer. While this hypothesis does not deny the importance of information processing, it avoids using a measure of information transmission, which can be difficult to establish in the unstructured tasks of typical tool use. The study is performed with a "virtual tool system" consisting of a real time tool/environment simulation which outputs forces to a graphics display. A novel computer architecture for simulation is used to achieve real time rates.