Physically interacting individuals estimate the partner's goal to enhance their movements
File(s)
Accepted version
Author(s)
Takagi, Atsushi
Ganesh, Gowrishankar
Yoshioka, Toshinori
Kawato, Mitsuo
Burdet, Etienne
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
From a parent helping to guide their child during their first steps, to a therapist supporting a patient, physical assistance enabled by haptic interaction is a fundamental modus for improving motor abilities. However, what movement information is exchanged between partners during haptic interaction, and how this information is used to coordinate and assist others, remains unclear1. Here, we propose a model in which haptic information, provided by touch and proprioception2, enables interacting individuals to estimate the partner’s movement goal and use it to improve their own motor performance. We use an empirical physical interaction task3 to show that our model can explain human behaviours better than existing models of interaction in literature4,5,6,7,8. Furthermore, we experimentally verify our model by embodying it in a robot partner and checking that it induces the same improvements in motor performance and learning in a human individual as interacting with a human partner. These results promise collaborative robots that provide human-like assistance, and suggest that movement goal exchange is the key to physical assistance.
Date Issued
2017-03-06
Date Acceptance
2017-01-24
Citation
Nature Human Behaviour, 2017, 1 (3)
ISSN
2397-3374
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
Journal / Book Title
Nature Human Behaviour
Volume
1
Issue
3
Copyright Statement
© 2017 Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature. All rights reserved.
Sponsor
Commission of the European Communities
Commission of the European Communities
Commission of the European Communities
Commission of the European Communities
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Grant Number
231724
601003
611626
644727
EP/N032772/1
Subjects
Social Sciences
Psychology, Biological
Psychology
JOINT MOTOR ACTION
DYADS
TASK
COORDINATION
SYSTEMS
FORCE
MINDS
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
0054