Abstract
Walking is a very important function of the human movement apparatus. The
question how walking is controlled by the central nervous system is yet to be
answered. A number of reasons lead us to believe that neural oscillators in
the spinal cord, termed Central Pattern Generators (CPGs), have a major
contribution to human gait control. Firstly, CPGs play a key role in locomotion
of many animals by providing the basic rhythm for muscular activity and by
interacting with the reflex system. Secondly, normal walking does not require
attention: it goes automatically. Finally, a growing number of observations
indicate the presence of CPGs in the human spine. A convincing example of
the latter is the fact that anencephalic babies – having a brain stem but no
cerebellum or cerebrum – are able to ‘walk’ on a treadmill and display
coordinated stepping movements when their feet touch the ground.
At present, no bipedal gait model combines efficiency and robustness up to
the level of human walking. The main motivation for the research in this
thesis is to obtain fundamental knowledge of the principles that account for
this reconciliation of efficiency and robustness in human walking. Other
motivations come from the fields of rehabilitation and bipedal gait robots.
The goal of the conducted research is to find the basic principles of neural
control that make human walking both efficient and robust. To achieve this
goal, a bottom-up approach was chosen that started with analyzing the
behavior and stability of posture under reflexive control and concluded with
an efficient and robust spinal control of bipedal gait.
Original language | English |
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Qualification | Doctor of Philosophy |
Awarding Institution |
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Supervisors/Advisors |
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Award date | 8 Feb 2008 |
Place of Publication | Enschede, The Netherlands |
Publisher | |
Print ISBNs | 978-90-365-2608-1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 8 Feb 2008 |