Learning to Control Flexible Objects Using Error-Tolerant Movement Strategies

描述(申请人提供)：人类在进行日常生活活动时必须操纵和运输各种物体。简单的刚性物体很容易对人类的控制动作做出反应，通常没有运动约束。相比之下，灵活的对象包含不能直接控制的元素，并对操纵性操作构成独特的约束。例如，杯子中的咖啡只能通过操纵杯子来控制，如果动作不合适，咖啡可能会溢出。到目前为止，大多数研究都集中在具有刚性物体的任务上，这些任务具有明确的最佳运动模式，导致单个目标；然而，许多日常任务并没有精确定义的最优策略-许多策略导致预期目标。重要的是，与其他策略相比，一些策略对控制错误的敏感度可能较低，这些策略可能是首选的。在前人研究的基础上，我们将容错移动策略定义为将移动变异性对任务绩效的影响降至最低的策略。容忍度在控制柔性物体方面尤其重要，违反能量约束可能会导致失去稳定性，从而导致不良后果，如洒出咖啡。灵活对象控制的关键悬而未决的问题包括个体是否对容错敏感，容忍度如何随着学习而变化。因此，本研究的目的是开发一种分析方法来量化柔性对象连续控制中的容错能力，并检查人类在运输柔性对象时是否学习容错策略。研究的三个具体目标是：1)建立一个基于能量约束的柔性物体运输任务的实验范式，建立该任务的数学模型，并使用机器人装置来执行该任务；2)将现有的分析方法TNC(Tensance，Noise，CoVariation)扩展到连续运输任务；3)表明人类在正常和扰动任务执行过程中学习到了运输任务的容错运动策略。这项研究结合了理论和实验工作，以解决我们在基本理解中的重要空白，即人类如何在存在运动、可变性和扰动的情况下操纵灵活的对象。此外，鉴于老年人在运动中的可变性增加，发展耐受性运动策略可能是老年人运动控制的一个关键特征。因此，这项研究将为未来对老年人的研究奠定基础，该研究将探索老年人是否将行动缓慢作为增加耐受性的战略反应，而不仅仅是由于生理限制。 与公共健康相关：当进行日常活动时，如端着一杯咖啡，人类的行动方式应该尽量减少杯子被意外打乱时洒出咖啡的可能性。这项研究提出，人类自然而然地学会了这种容错运动策略。这可能解释了为什么老年人移动较慢，这可能是一种策略，因为他们的运动可变性增加，从而提高了容错能力。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Humans must manipulate and transport a variety of objects when performing daily life activities. Simple rigid objects readily respond to human control actions and usually have no movement constraints. In contrast, flexible objects contain elements that cannot be directly controlled and pose unique constraints on manipulative actions. For example, coffee in a cup can only be controlled by manipulating the cup, and the coffee may spill if the movements are inappropriate. Most studies to date have focused on tasks with rigid objects that have a well-defined optimal movement pattern that leads to a single goal; however, many everyday tasks do not have precisely defined optimal strategies - many strategies lead to the desired goal. Importantly, some strategies may have less sensitivity to control errors compared to others, and these may be preferred. Extending previous research, we define an error-tolerant movement strategy as one that minimizes the effects of movement variability on task performance. Tolerance is particularly important in the control of flexible objects, where violations of energetic constraints can lead to a loss of stability with undesired consequences, such as spilling coffee. Critical unanswered questions for flexible object control include whether individuals are sensitive to error tolerance and how tolerance changes with learning. Accordingly, the goal of this research is to develop an analysis approach to quantify error tolerance in the continuous control of flexible objects, and examine whether humans learn error-tolerant strategies when transporting flexible objects. Three specific aims will be pursued: 1) develop an experimental paradigm based on the task of transporting a flexible object with energetic constraints, create a mathematical model of the task, and implement the task using a robotic device; 2) extend an existing analysis approach called TNC (Tolerance, Noise, Covariation) to the continuous transportation task; 3) show that humans learn error tolerant movement strategies for the transportation task during normal and perturbed task performances. This research combines theoretical and experimental work to address important gaps in our basic understanding of how humans manipulate flexible objects in the presence of movement variability and perturbations. Additionally, given that older adults have increased variability in their movements, the development of tolerant movement strategies may be a key feature of movement control in older adults. Hence, this study will lay the groundwork for future studies in older adults, which will explore whether older adults move slower as a strategic response to increase tolerance rather than simply due to physiological limitations. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: When performing everyday activities such as carrying a cup of coffee, humans should move in a way that minimizes the chance that the coffee will be spilled if the cup is unexpectedly disturbed. This research proposes that humans naturally learn such error-tolerant movement strategies. It may explain why older adults move slower, which may be a strategy to increase error tolerance due to their increased movement variability.