Optimal workloop energetics of muscle-actuated systems: an impedance matching view.

ABSTRACT: Integrative approaches to studying the coupled dynamics of skeletal muscles with their loads while under neural control have focused largely on questions pertaining to the postural and dynamical stability of animals and humans. Prior studies have focused on how the central nervous system actively modulates muscle mechanical impedance to generate and stabilize motion and posture. However, the question of whether muscle impedance properties can be neurally modulated to create favorable mechanical energetics, particularly in the context of periodic tasks, remains open. Through muscle stiffness tuning, we hypothesize that a pair of antagonist muscles acting against a common load may produce significantly more power synergistically than individually when impedance matching conditions are met be

SUBMITTER: Farahat WA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2880559 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature