A novel method of Zero-Moment-Point (ZMP) compensation is proposed to improve the stability of locomotion of a biped, which is subjected to disturbances. A compensating torque is injected into the ankle-joint of the foot of the robot to improve stability. The value of the compensating torque is computed from the reading of the force sensors located at the four corners of each foot. The effectiv...

The study of human evolution depends upon a fair assessment of the ability of hominin individuals to gain access to necessary resources. We expect that the morphology of extant and extinct populations represents a successful locomotory system that allowed individuals to move across the environment gaining access to food, water, and mates while still maintaining excess energy to allocate to repr...

Exercise, in the form of moderate daily treadmill training following nerve transection and repair leads to enhanced axon regeneration, but its effect on functional recovery is less well known. Female rats were exercised by walking continuously, at a slow speed (10 m/min), for 1 h/day on a level treadmill, beginning 3 days after unilateral transection and surgical repair of the sciatic nerve, an...

After surgical repair of traumatically severed peripheral nerves, associated muscles are paralyzed for weeks. Little is known about fascicle length changes in paralyzed muscles during locomotion. The aim of this study was to investigate to what extent, if any, muscle fascicles of denervated feline soleus (SO) change length during stance of walking when intact SO synergists are actively contract...

Kinematics of cat level walking recover after elimination of length-dependent sensory feedback from the major ankle extensor muscles induced by self-reinnervation. Little is known, however, about changes in locomotor myoelectric activity of self-reinnervated muscles. We examined the myoelectric activity of self-reinnervated muscles and intact synergists to determine the extent to which patterns...

A relationship between spinal deformity and ambulation is yet to be clarified. We hypothesized that undesirable spino-pelvic alignment affects walking ability. The purpose of present study is to clarify an influence of spinopelvic alignments on walking ability. Consecutive patients who visited our institution between October 2011 to September 2012 were retrospectively surveyed. The cases of neu...

Our objective was to gain insight into the relative importance of feedforward control and different proprioceptive feedback pathways to ongoing ankle extensor activity during walking in the conscious cat. We asked whether the modulation of stance phase muscle activity is due primarily to proprioceptive feedback and whether the same proprioceptive gains and feedforward commands can automatically...

Arboreal substrates differ not only in diameter, but also in continuity and orientation. To gain more insight into the dynamics of small-branch locomotion in tetrapods we studied the veiled chameleon walking on inclined and declined perches of up to 60 deg slope. We found that forelimbs and hindlimbs contribute equally to the body's progression along inclines and declines. The higher-positioned...

The Hoffmann (H-) reflex is an electrical analogue of the monosynaptic stretch reflex, elicited by bypassing the muscle spindle and directly stimulating the afferent nerve. Studying H-reflex modulation provides insight into how the nervous system centrally modulates stretch reflex responses.A common measure of H-reflex gain is the slope of the relationship between H-reflex amplitude and EMG amp...