The Interaction of Posture, Locomotion and Sensory Information

两足站立的进化发展使双手从运动中解放出来，这被认为是人类和我们最亲近的亲戚之间的根本区别。伴随这种发展的是身体不稳定性的增加。汽车和机器人等工程设备通常通过广泛的支撑基础和/或将大部分重量集中在较低的位置来解决稳定性问题。然而，人体的支撑点很窄，大部分的质量都集中在躯干的上方，这使得我们天生就不稳定，容易摔倒。该项目将实验和复杂的非线性分析技术结合起来，研究人类两足运动的稳定性是如何实现的。运动是一项重要的日常生活活动。我们的生活环境是与人类活动的规模和方式相适应的。尽管人们试图改造环境，但行动不便、被迫借助拐杖或轮椅等辅助设备导航的人仍然会遇到许多障碍。更好地理解我们如何与环境相互作用以保持直立的稳定性，对改善人类各种各样的机动性和生活质量都有意义。研究人员还通过马里兰大学和蒙哥马利布莱尔高中的既定项目，鼓励本科生和高中生参与研究。通过针对目前在科学领域代表性不足的少数民族和种族群体，该项目为研究、培训和教育的整合做出了重大贡献。本研究由SBE/BCS和国际科学与工程办公室共同资助

The evolutionary development of bipedal stance, which freed the hands from locomotion, is considered a fundamental distinction between humans and our closest relatives. Accompanying that development was an increase in instability of the body. Engineered devices such as cars and robots typically solve the stability problem by having a wide base of support and/or having the bulk of the weight concentrated lower down. However, the human body has a narrow base of support and most of its mass is concentrated higher up in the trunk, making us inherently unstable and prone to falls. This project brings both experimental and sophisticated nonlinear analysis techniques to bear on the question of how the stability of human bipedal locomotion is achieved. Locomotion is a critical daily life activity. Our living environment is structured to be compatible with the scale and manner with which humans move. Despite attempts to restructure the environment, people who have limited mobility and are forced to navigate with assistive devices such as crutches or wheelchairs still encounter many obstacles. A better understanding of how we interact with the environment for upright stability has implications for improving human mobility of all kinds and hence quality of life. The investigators also foster participation of undergraduate and high school students in the research through established programs at the University of Maryland and Montgomery Blair High School. By targeting ethnic and racial groups currently underrepresented in science, the project makes significant contributions to the integration of research, training and education.This work is co-funded by SBE/BCS and the Office of International Science and Engineering