Menashe Dornay, Ferdinando A. Mussa-Ivaldi,
Joseph McIntyre and Emilio Bizzi
Stability Constraints for the
Equilibrium-Point Hypothesis
Abstract:We have investigated the relation between static stability of a limb and the
equilibrium-point hypothesis. Mathematically, the equilibrium-point control
is equivalent to establishing a mapping between the command signals delivered
to the muscles and the equilibrium configurations of a limb. A condition for
this mapping to be possible is that the limb is stable across the workspace.
We analyzed how this condition may be translated into precise biomechanical
constraints for single- and multi-joint limbs. The satisfaction of these constraint
is necessary for the equilibrium-point hypothesis to be a viable control
paradigm.