Research directions
The main focus of our research is on biological motor control and robotics. The control of goal-directed motor behavior requires of the brain to carry out extremely complicated but as yet poorly understood computations. A particular emphasis of our research has been on computational approaches to motor control. Such approaches inquire directly into the nature of the underlying information processing and control mechanisms subserving motor learning and performance. This research area is strongly interconnected with the field of robotics, which shares a similar goal of translating perception into action. Hence robotics provides a useful medium for testing ideas about biological motor control. Likewise, since human capabilities far surpass those of artificial systems, insights gained from biological motor control investigations can inspire and suggest useful ideas for the design and control of robotic systems.
In our research, we are combining behavioral and experimental studies of human movements with mathematical modeling and simulations aimed at capturing the suggested organizing principles and at testing their validity for biological motor control. These studies have provided us with new insights into motor organization and have allowed us to formulate novel ideas regarding the neural representations subserving motor learning and performance. In parallel, we are also developing computer algorithms for the control of robotic systems.
Current Research Topics:
- Computational motor Control
- Action-Perception Coupling
- Controlling soft biological and robotics arms
- Movement disorders studies